Thai Massage Greenock

Research of the Week

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The aging (and young, for that matter) brain .

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, and yet that’s what most health authorities recommend.

Too many omega-6 fats, .

New Primal Blueprint Podcasts

Host Elle Russ Dr. Rodgers back to the podcast.

: Host Elle Russ chats with April King, founder of Better Than Provisions, a food company providing high quality food that’s also convenient.

: Allison Tenney wants you to bet on yourself. I do too.

 

Media, Schmedia

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Lab grown meat is .

Interesting Blog Posts

Are eggs for metabolic health?

With antibiotics, .

Social Notes

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Everything Else

The answer is “.”

Let’s hope .

Things I’m Up to and Interested In

Things get older and older: .

This is how you use technology to enhance the ecosystem: .

Many examples abound: .

Expect more of this: .

Expect more of this, too: .

Question I’m Asking

When are the “experts” going to stop talking about the “dairy paradox?” When will they accept that full-fat dairy is simply the healthiest type?

Recipe Corner

• .
• Now is a salad I can get behind.

Time Capsule

One year ago (Sep 18 – Sep 24)

• — Happens to the best of us.
• — Respect the spice.

Comment of the Week

“While I love the idea of bringing back the mammoth (and eating a mammoth steak), I must side against it.

This isn’t like repopulating Yellowstone with timber wolves. Mammoths have been gone for 4,000 years (and closer to 10,000 on the mainland). Their native habitats have changed considerably in that time, and adapted to new regional homeostases. Bringing back the mammoth would not be repopulation, it would be the introduction of an invasive species. It’s more analogous to horses returning to American grazing lands.

Yes, the agendas behind such an initiative are largely noble – whether it is to redirect climate change or simply to advance our understanding of genetics -but there are far too many known and unknown variables. We know that invasive species can quickly upset the delicate balance of an ecosystem, and we don’t know what will happen when we take an already-intelligent and dangerous animal and make it bigger… then hope it will simply act as we want it to.”

-Good point, .

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The past 19+ months have provided us with more than a few challenges, but they’ve also allowed us to reflect on what’s working in our lives and what could use a major overhaul.

An unexpected benefit of all the cancelled happy hours, closed gyms, and remote offices is that it automatically created boundaries for our personal and professional lives. Too exhausted to go out on Friday night? No problem, the bar isn’t open. Don’t feel like going to spin class? Yoga at home sounds better anyway. Have trouble telling co-workers “No” in person? Being off site makes it easier to say you “Have a conflict.”

Do You Need Better Boundaries?

As you venture back into the (partially) reopened world, you might notice that your exhaustion levels and people-pleasing behaviours have resurfaced. Maybe you’re feeling more drained and less psyched about social obligations. Or you’re experiencing more guilt, regret, and resentment.

Sure, there are a lot of reasons you might be feeling . But in my decade of experience as a health coach, I’ve seen firsthand what can happen when folks don’t stand up for what they need, when they need it. Research professor and author, Dr. Brené Brown agrees, saying, “Daring to set boundaries is about having the courage to love ourselves, even when we risk disappointing others.”

 

In short, boundaries are the limits you decide work for you.

When you say “Yes” to others, you’re often saying “No” to your own needs. You’re telling yourself that pleasing others — or avoiding the fear of rejection, disappointment, criticism, or feeling temporarily uncomfortable — is more important than respecting yourself. Healthy boundaries are a crucial component of self-care. And deciding that you deserve to put limits on your energy and time, especially toward things that don’t serve you, can be a total game-changer.

Benefits of having healthy boundaries:

• Conserved emotional energy
• More confidence
• A better sense of self
• Lower rate of burnout
• More autonomy
• Less stress
• Increased fulfillment

What Does a Healthy Boundary Look Like?

Boundaries can be physical, emotional, spiritual, work-related, or friend-and-family-related. For example, in my -client relationships, I could set the boundary to keep my own health struggles separate and not share too much about my personal life. Or I could decide that I won’t hold myself responsible for my clients’ slip-ups, or compromise my schedule just to fit someone in last minute.

Healthy boundaries can be set for personal relationships as well. Got a friend who stops by unannounced, with boatloads of comforting junk food, to worry about their never-ending quest to lose weight? Or a sibling who borrows your things without asking? A healthy boundary would require you to speak up about what you need from that relationship — whether it’s letting that friend know they need to give you a head’s up before popping over, or telling your sibling they need to ask first. Or just straight up saying “no.”

And just so you know, not creating boundaries can lead to these same issues appearing over and over again in all of your relationships.

Believe That You’re Worth Creating Boundaries

All of this boundary stuff has been well documented too, from research around work-life balance to the expectations of new moms. One study, in particular, evaluated 31 participants who’d given birth in the previous year, addressing three things: perceptions regarding the role of maternal self-care, specific applications of self-care in new motherhood (like exercising, seeing friends, allowing dad to jump in to help), and barriers to acting on those applications. Researchers found that two ideologies came to the forefront. One, the new moms believed that self-care was important during this time. And two, they associated an extreme form of self-sacrifice was required of them.

In other words, they knew what they needed to do, yet because for those of their baby, they didn’t follow through with any of kind of self-care.

In a nutshell, if a situation you’re repeatedly in makes you feel drained, stressed, overcommitted, overly taxed, or resentful, it’s time to create some boundaries.

Still not sure if you need to create better boundaries? Ask yourself:

• Do I have a hard time saying no to people?
• Do I usually say yes to things I secretly don’t want to do?
• Do I worry about what others think?
• Do I believe I need to earn people’s respect by being overly nice?
• Do I often feel taken advantage of?
• Do I feel irritated or defeated more often than I don’t?

Become a Boundary-Setting Pro

Setting boundaries is a life skill, it’s not something you’re inherently born with. It’s also not something you do once and never give another thought to. Your needs, your environment, and the people you interact with are constantly changing, so you’ll need to update and manage your boundaries as those variables change. When you decide to make yourself a priority (yes, that’s what boundaries do), you’ll notice how quickly you feel more empowered and less exhausted. Here are five tips for creating good boundaries in your world:

1. Reflect on What Depletes You
   A lot of times, things happen to people that make them feel uncomfortable, but they don’t know why. Take time to be a detective of your own well-being and really start to notice the difference between feeling tired from overdoing it at the gym and feeling depleted because you neglected to put any boundaries up with your friends and family.
2. Give Yourself Permission to Set Limits
   Love, acceptance, and approval are often tied to , especially if you have these tendencies. Even though it may feel like you’re risking rejection when you put a limit on your time or energy, you’re declaring the fact that you respect yourself enough to do so. It’s also important to note that setting limits isn’t selfish. It actually makes you more productive and enjoyable to be around.
3. Speak Up About Your Needs
   We don’t live in a world of mind-readers, which means you’re going to have to communicate your needs if you want them met. You can’t hold people to the unrealistic expectations that they inherently know you don’t want to work ‘til midnight or eat the homemade cupcakes they brought over. Get clear about your boundaries and then voice them where appropriate.
4. Address Any Feelings That Come Up
   If you’re not used to creating boundaries, you’ll probably feel a bit of guilt, selfishness, or embarrassment at first. After all, who are YOU to say you won’t do these things others are asking of you? This is where self-respect comes in. Remind yourself that you have a right to tell someone no without feeling bad about it. You also have a right to put your own needs first.
5. Decide You’re Worth It
   When you don’t set good boundaries, or set them but don’t follow through, you’re reinforcing your personal talk track that says that someone else’s needs are more important than yours. On the flip side, when you establish good boundaries and maintain your commitment to them, it can lead to you feeling proud, respected, and in control. It’s up to you, but I’d argue that the latter is a much better way to go through life.

My 5-Step Plan for Good Boundaries

Healthy boundaries are a critical component of self-care. As you start to realize what limits you need to set for your time and energy (and why that’s important to your overall wellbeing), you’ll quickly see that you don’t need to expend so much energy giving more of yourself than you want. You’ll also see that the fear of rejection, disappointment, and criticism decreases the more you practice these five steps:

1. Reflect on What Depletes You
2. Give Yourself Permission to Set Limits
3. Speak Up About Your Needs
4. Address Any Feelings That Come Up
5. Decide You’re Worth It

What about you? Do you have good boundaries?

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Seems like every international traveler who normally follows a Primal way of eating has had the experience of splurging on pasta in Italy or baguettes in France or pita in Greece without any of the negative effects they normally experience back home. There are even people with confirmed gluten sensitivities who can get away with eating wheat overseas. Whenever I’m in Europe, I enjoy the local cuisine without worrying too much, even though I definitely get a reaction back in the US. I may not be eating entire baguettes or plates of pasta, but I don’t shy away from smearing raw brie over crusty bread—and yet back home, I avoid wheat as a general rule.

What’s going on here? Why do some people get gluten reactions from American wheat but not European wheat?

There are a lot of different possibilities. It’s not just one factor. It is many.

American wheat is higher in gluten.

Point blank: this might be the major issue. The majority of American wheat grown is hard red wheat, which is high in protein and thus gluten.

In Europe, the majority of wheat grown in Europe is soft wheat, which is lower in gluten.

Julia Child famously lamented trying to make French-style bread with American flour. She couldn’t do it because the gluten content was too high in the American stuff.

 

American wheat is covered in glyphosate.

Glyphosate is perhaps the most common herbicide used worldwide. But it has another interesting use case: desiccation. If an American farmer wants to prepare his wheat for harvest, he will often spray it with glyphosate in order to “dry it out.” Desiccated wheat stores and travels better than fresh wheat. It’s much quicker—and more profitable—to just douse the field in glyphosate than it is to let it dry naturally. Meanwhile, this practice isn’t as widespread in Europe, where some countries have banned or heavily restricted the use of glyphosate. Your average American wheat product is more likely to have glyphosate residues than your average European wheat product.

The official story is that the herbicide glyphosate is inert in humans, totally non-toxic, because it targets a biological pathway important to insects and other pests but that mammals do not possess. This is misleading. The pathway, known as the shikimate pathway, is extremely important in bacteria as well. And while we are not bacteria, we host trillions and billions of bacteria in our guts, where they modulate our immune system, form a barrier against pathogens, manufacture nutrients and neurotransmitters, interface with our brains via the gut brain axis, and digest and nullify problematic food components like gluten.

Glyphosate can disrupt or kill the bacteria in our guts. Some of those bacteria, like members of the bifidobacterium species, have been shown to digest intact gluten proteins.

Glyphosate also has the ability to mimic glycine, an amino acid that forms the backbone of many proteins in the body, such as trypsin, a protease (protein-digesting enzyme) that helps us break down gluten. If glyphosate inserts itself into the space normally occupied by glycine, the trypsin doesn’t work as intended and gluten digestion suffers as a consequence.

These are plausible mechanisms for glyphosate disruption of gluten digestion. They aren’t proven. But it does make you wonder, right?

American wheat is grown in sulfur-deficient soils.

Why does soil sulfur contribute to gluten reactions?

As we know, gliadin is the gluten subfraction responsible for most of the allergenic response to wheat consumption. But what we don’t know is that the gliadin concentration in wheat can be modified by the presence of sulfur in the soil. The concentration of sulfur in the soil regulates the amount of allergenic gliadin proteins the wheat produces during its lifecycle. Less sulfur in the soil, more gliadin in the gluten. More sulfur in the soil, less gliadin in the gluten. The more gliadin in the gluten, the more reactive a person will be to the wheat when they eat it.

The top wheat-producing states in America are Kansas, Washington, and North Dakota. If you look at (lower right map), you’ll see that all three states are either low or deficient in sulfur, which means the wheat they produce is likely to be higher in gliadin than normal.

European wheat tends to be lower in gliadin.

Remember how gliadin is the gluten component that’s most problematic for celiac and gluten sensitive people? It turns out that the types of wheat flour used most frequently in European wheat products are lower in gliadin and higher in glutenin (the other component of gluten that has little to no allergenicity). Both soft wheat flour (used in breads in Europe) and semolina (used in pasta) are lower in gliadin than hard wheat (used in the US).

You’re more likely to eat high-quality stuff on vacation.

When you’re traveling, you’re not eating grocery store mass-produced bread. You’re not buying snack cakes at gas stations. You’re eating at that great pizzeria you saw Anthony Bourdain visit once in an episode of “No Reservations.” You’re grabbing baguettes from the world-famous bakery your globe-trotting friends insisted you visit. And those places, the more traditional places serving wheat products, will be more likely to use higher quality wheat and other ingredients and minimal processing. They’ll be more likely to use natural leavening, which helps break down the gluten.

When you’re at home, you’re not eating out at every night. You’re eating the basic stuff, not the artisanal. Well, maybe not you specifically, but my readers are a special breed. But the average person who complains about gluten sensitivity at home and not abroad likely is eating standard grocery store wheat products at home and being exposed to all the glyphosate and fast rising yeast with low efficacy at breaking down gluten.

If you compare an artisanal loaf of sourdough from the farmer’s market back home, the difference won’t be as stark. But if you’re comparing the French baguette baked by the fifth generation artisan to a loaf of Wonderbread back home, of course you’re going to lose. It’s apples and oranges.

There are plenty of lower quality, mass-produced wheat products available in Europe, but if you’re traveling for pleasure you probably won’t encounter them.

You’re walking more.

An underappreciated factor in a European vacation is all the walking you do. You’re staying in historic cities that were built before the advent of the automobile. They’re built for pedestrians. They’re full of little alleyways and curving streets dotted with interesting shops that invite walks. They’re beautiful to just wander around. When I’m in Europe, I walk 8-10 miles a day on average. The steps just happen.

While that may not directly reduce the allergenicity of wheat, it does affect your ability to handle wheat. Your digestion works better when you’re moving around frequently a slow pace. Your blood glucose control is better when you’re walking consistently, and that can play a role in how wheat—a decidedly high-carb food—interacts with your metabolism. There’s simply a big difference between eating a baguette and sitting on your ass and eating a baguette and walking for five miles looking at the beautiful architecture.

You’re less stressed.

When you’re traveling, you’re not thinking about work. There’s no commute. You don’t have to rush the kids to get ready for school. The bills aren’t an issue. What’s more, you probably took care of all the stuff that had to be taken care of before leaving for the trip—just so you wouldn’t have anything hanging over your head, coloring the experience. Why is this important for gluten tolerance?

One of the .

Stress, especially chronic stress, is one of the most under-appreciated and yet potent disrupters of gut health, gut bacteria, and gut permeability. The more stressed you are, the more “leaky” your gut gets. The leakier your gut, the more gluten, and other harmful toxins and food components can be admitted into circulation. Gluten by itself can induce leaky gut; combined with stress, the tight junctions just let it all flow through.

Stress even reduces the number of Lactobacillus species living in your gut, some of whom are responsible for breaking down gluten into manageable, less allergenic fragments.

More stress, worse gut health, worse gluten reaction.

There you have it: my seven hypotheses, none mutually exclusive, all mutually inclusive, for why some people can eat bread and pasta in Europe without incurring a gluten reaction.

What about you? Have you experienced this yourself? What’s your hypothesis?

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“Some days you will feel like the ocean. Some days you will feel like you are drowning in it.”

—Lora Mathis

Ain’t that the truth. Life comes at you fast. You get laid off and don’t have enough money in savings, a family member gets sick, your car gets totaled. All of a sudden, you’re totally underwater.

Often, though, it’s not one catastrophic event that gets you; it’s the sum total of all the small-to-medium-sized stressors in your life. Death by papercuts, if you will. Overwhelm results from having too much or not enough — too much to do, too many responsibilities, not enough money or time.

Overwhelm quickly becomes a vicious cycle, as it requires energy and resources (neither of which you have in abundance) to dig yourself out. A classic sign of overwhelm is feeling like you’ve lost control over your circumstances, like things are happening to you instead of for you or because you chose them.

You can’t govern all the sources of stress in your life, but you may have more control than you realize. At the very least, there are probably ways to manipulate your schedule and environment so your stress triggers aren’t so triggering.

Start by asking yourself, “What would need to change in order for me to feel less overwhelmed?” If just that step feels overwhelming, don’t worry. You’re about to start taking action, and action is empowering.

Coping with Overwhelm

• Signs of overwhelm include:
• Exhaustion
• Irritability
• Hopelessness
• Trouble focusing
• Catastrophic thinking
• Worry, anxiety
• Lack of motivation

When you’re already overwhelmed, taking action can feel impossible. However, even when you can’t fix everything all at once, there are almost always small, manageable steps you can take to get the ball rolling.

 

Get Organized

Disorganization feels chaotic, and chaos is overwhelming.

• Everyone needs a calendar and a system for organizing to-do lists. Trying to keep everything straight in your head is a recipe for disaster. There are endless options here: Google Calendar, iCal, Evernote, iPhone Memos, Anylist, old-fashioned paper and pencil, bullet journaling, and on and on. The best one is the one that works for you.
• Start your day by making your to-do list, organizing tasks in order of importance and due date. Before mentally checking out for the evening, look ahead to tomorrow’s calendar so you don’t miss early appointments. (Hint: Use habit stacking to make these practices second nature.)
• Create a shared calendar with family members so you can see everyone’s schedule in one place.
• Use your calendar for daily appointments as well as recurring commitments and tasks, including things like paying credit cards and changing the air filter in your house. That way, you never have to remember to do them and stress when you forget.

Cull Your Commitments

For most people I know, being overcommitted and is their biggest source of overwhelm. Chances are, you say yes to too many things, too.

What can be outsourced? Put off? Canceled altogether?

Delegate and Outsource

Delegating and outsourcing tasks frees up time, mental energy, and other resources so you can concentrate on the things that matter most. Asking for help can feel vulnerable, though. Rather than admit they’re struggling, folks try to power through on their own, all the while digging themselves into a deeper emotional hole.

Delegating also means ceding control over how things get done. You have to get comfortable with letting people do things their way, even if it’s not how you would do it. Your way might indeed be best, but theirs is probably good enough.

As Ann Landers said, “Some people believe holding on and hanging in there are signs of great strength. However, there are times when it takes much more strength to know when to let go and then do it.”

Let kids do more

is a widespread problem, in part because parents today feel (real or imagined) pressure to make their children’s lives as easy as possible. Moms, in particular, often believe we are failing somehow if we aren’t doing the absolute most. Yet, we also understand that doing everything for our kids doesn’t really help any of us in the long run.

While they can’t drive themselves to dance class or deal with the barrage of paperwork that comes home from school, kids can do age-appropriate chores. Pick a couple things you’d like to take off your plate and teach your kids to do them. Let them pick up after themselves, fold their own laundry, or pack their own lunches (with options you provide).

Don’t fall into the trap of, “It’s easier just to do it myself.” That’s only true until they learn how to do things properly and accept their new responsibilities. Don’t let them wear you down with whining and half-hearted efforts. Power through. Short-term pain for long-term gain.

Hire it out

To the degree your financial situation allows, look for ways to buy more freedom in your schedule. There are plenty of people who are happy to take your money in exchange for cleaning your house, doing yard work, or helping your kids with their homework. Virtual assistants can schedule appointments, make travel arrangements, and do other small tasks that build up on your to-do list.

Think of it as contributing to the economy while also reducing your stress, a win-win.

Say No More Often

You know this. I know you know this. So why is it such a struggle? Because saying no means setting a , and most people aren’t comfortable with boundaries. They feel icky until you get used the idea that, when employed correctly, boundaries protect your space, mental health, and even your relationships.

Repeat after me: saying no isn’t mean, rude, or selfish. Saying no to things you aren’t excited about allows you to devote your precious time to people and opportunities that light you up. They benefit from getting a better, less frazzled version of yourself.

The more you say no, the more you realize how many of the things on your calendar and to-do list are optional. The world doesn’t fall apart when you turn down a committee assignment or miss a party, particularly not when you continue to show up as a reliable employee and caring friend in other ways.

Start saying no to things that aren’t a “heck yes!” If necessary, try to extricate yourself from ongoing commitments that are no longer rewarding. Explain that while you’d love to help/participate/organize/donate your time, your situation has changed, and you no longer have the resources. If possible, suggest someone who can take your place.

Put Routines in Place

Routines reduce decision fatigue and inject a comforting sense of familiarity into your day. A good sets your day off on the right food, while a calm, comforting evening routine puts you in the right headspace for a restorative night’s sleep.

Setting up weekly routines keeps you organized and reduces strife with other members of your household. Chore charts, for example, designate what chores get done each day and by whom. Overflowing laundry hampers are less overwhelming when you know someone will handle them tomorrow.

Variety may be the spice of life, but when you’re feeling overwhelmed, embrace the concept of strategic repetition. Choose three to five favorite breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and workouts, then cycle through them on repeat. Mix in something new when you feel bored or particularly inspired.

Try Block Scheduling

With block scheduling, you divide your weeks into segments designated for specific tasks. Your blocks could include:

• Work
• Chores
• Parenting
• School
• Fun family time
• Fitness
• Personal/spiritual growth
• Hobbies
• Friend time
• Whatever else makes sense for you

Don’t forget to include a block for relaxation and self-care (non-negotiable!) and a “miscellaneous” block where you can stick the random tasks that come up.

Make a weekly template based on how much time you need for each block, customized to your needs. Organize your to-do lists around each block. For example, you might designate an hour on Tuesdays and Fridays for household adulting—paying bills, scheduling repairs, and the like. If something breaks on Monday, and it’s not urgent, put it on the household to-do list and handle it on Tuesday.

Focus on One Thing at a Time

As much as I’d like to be able to multitask effectively, the fact is that it doesn’t work. It may feel like you’re saving time, but you’re less productive overall when you try to divide your focus between multiple tasks. Plus, when you’re already feeling overwhelmed, having your attention pulled in multiple directions at once can make you feel even more frenzied.

When you’re working, place your phone out of reach and put it on airplane mode if you can. Close extraneous tabs. Turn off email notifications and commit to checking your email less often throughout the day—every hour or two instead of every four minutes.

Give yourself 20 or 30 minutes at a time to focus on one thing and one thing only. Longer is great if you get into a state, but don’t forget to take work breaks to move your body, too.

Employ Transition Rituals

One of the more difficult parts of working from home, as so many of us have done for the past year and a half, is the lack of separation between work life and home life. We’re always here. Work bleeds into domestic life and vice versa, and it’s hard to create appropriate divisions of time and space.

Transition rituals give your brain and body time to pause, reorient, and re-energize between tasks. They signal that it’s time to change gears, closing one door before opening another. For example, when my kids leave for school in the morning, I put on proper clothes (no working in pajamas), start the essential oil diffuser on my desk, and put on some light music. That tells my brain that it’s time to work. On mornings where I skip those steps, I feel notably less focused. At the end of the workday, I make a point of closing my laptop and pushing in my desk chair.

Other transition rituals could include making a cup of tea before sitting down to study or doing a quick microworkout before meetings.

Automate Where You Can

It takes only a few minutes to set bills to autopay, set up reminders in your calendar for recurring tasks, or turn on email filters that keep your inbox more organized.

Small business owners and self-employed folks can benefit from low-cost services to help automate payroll, invoicing, and other easy but time-sucking tasks.

Lose the Clutter

When you’re already feeling overwhelmed, a crowded, disorganized home environment only contributes to the stress. Look around. Does your home feel soothing, or does it make you feel anxious in its current state?

If the latter, it’s time to clean, organize, and purge. Start small, with one room, even one drawer. Fill one bag with stuff to donate. Keep chipping away. Each little bit of progress should provide some immediate relief. If the problem is big enough and you can afford it, hire a housecleaner or professional organizer to help put things right. Then, do everything you can to keep it that way.

Block, Unfollow, Delete

Sometimes social media provides a welcome escape, but it can also be a breeding ground for social comparison, self-doubt, and FOMO. That’s the last thing you need when you’re already feeling overwhelmed.

Ruthlessly curate your social media and unfollow anyone who makes you feel insecure or unhappy. Hide or block people who drain you emotionally by causing drama on your timeline. Consider deleting apps altogether if you find yourself wasting time you don’t have to spare by scrolling.

Fill Your Bucket

Coping with overwhelm isn’t always about doing less. Sometimes you actually need more—more time with friends, better self-soothing or relaxation practices, more fun. All too often, the things that nurture our souls are the first things we let slide because they feel optional. Preserving your mental wellbeing is not optional. What do you need more of?

What to Do In the Moment When You Feel Overwhelmed

In addition to mitigating sources of stress and anxiety, you should have some tools for self-soothing when that wave of feeling overwhelmed hits. Here are some quick ideas:

Take ten

What’s the first thing you do when one of your electronic devices is on the fritz? You unplug it. Same goes for you. Walk away from the computer, put down your phone, and give yourself permission to turn off for a few minutes. Take a power nap or do one of the things below.

Breathwork exercises

Any kind of slow, controlled will stimulate the vagus nerve and activate the parasympathetic (rest and digest) nervous system. A simple practice is the extended exhale, where you breathe out for twice as long as you breathe in. For example, breathe in for a count of four, pause, then exhale for a count of eight. Repeat five times.

Meditation, prayer, and chanting have the same effect of improving .

Journal

Getting things out of your head and onto paper can be a big help. Sit down and do a brain dump. Let the thoughts flow without censoring them.

Taking a minute to write down a few gratitude statements can help, too.

Pop a piece of gum

Chewing relieves stress and anxiety!

Move your body

It may be cliche, but one of the best things you can do when you start feeling overwhelmed is to get out of your head and back into your body. Take a quick walk or do a .

Mindset Shifts for Dealing with Overwhelm

Here’s the bottom line:

1. Focus on the things you can control about your situation. Address the major root causes of stress when you can. When you can’t, look for ways to alleviate smaller sources of stress and bring more calm and order into your environment.

2. But don’t try to control everything. Ask for help.

3. Let go of perfectionism. Get comfortable with “good enough.”

4. Practice self-compassion. Everyone gets overwhelmed sometimes. Don’t make it worse by getting down on yourself for how you’re feeling. Focus on what you need to do to feel better.

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