We’ve all been there.

Overwhelmed and feeling stuck. But feeling so stuck and so overwhelmed you aren’t even sure where to start.

If you’re anything like me, when you get overwhelmed, you shut down and don’t take any action. Which just leads to more anxiety and overwhelm.

It’s like an unending cycle that is guaranteed to keep you stuck right where you are.

If I’m describing you to a T, hear me when I say, there IS HOPE!

I used to live in this “cycle of stuck” and it is terrible. If i’m not careful, I still have the tendency to get stuck there from time to time. However, I now have the tools and awareness to keep myself from staying in this place.

I am living proof you can take action and get yourself out of this place.

You really don’t have to stay stuck. You don’t have to continue living in the heaviness and staying paralyzed by your inability to make a decision about where to start.

The Unfiltered Reality of Overwhelm

But how? How can we push past these feelings?

What can we actually do to move the needle forward, even if it is so tiny, it’s almost unnoticeable at first.

That’s exactly what I’m going to tell you. But before I do, I want you to know everything I ever share is done in love. Even when sometimes it may feel like “tough love.”

I recently heard tough love described as real love, because real love will tell you the truth like it is.

Think about your friend who tells you, you have a booger in your nose or spinach in your teeth… Okay, kind of gross, but a person who truly loves you and wants the best for you will tell it like it is.

And since you’re here, I’m going to say we’re becoming friends, so here it is…

Sometimes, whether we realize it or not, we use overwhelm as an excuse.

I know it hurts to hear, and it kind of hurts to say, but it’s true.

We use overwhelm to avoid what’s actually going on. We use it to hide from what we really need to deal with.

This truth is something I have to remind myself of when I start to get stuck in the place of “I’m so overwhelmed. This is just too much. I can’t handle this. This is just how life is. This is how it has to be.”

I start to spiral and then I stay stuck there. I feel so helpless and believe the lie there’s nothing I can do about it.

Overwhelm is a Choice

Overwhelm is a natural reaction to your brain perceiving threats, or not being able to process all of the things at once.

It’s normal to feel overwhelmed when we’re scared, or worried, or even when we have so many things going on, we aren’t sure where to start. But staying in this place of overwhelm is a choice.

Before you shut down or leave this post, there is good news! The good thing about overwhelm being a choice is knowing we don’t have to stay overwhelmed.

You don’t have to stay in that place. 

You ultimately have the power to make a different choice. Think about this for a minute.

Notice what’s coming up for you. Do you feel defensive? Are you shutting down? Are you feeling relieved? Hopeful?

The excuses can stop today if you decide they can. 

Tiny Steps Lead to Big Change

Okay, so let’s get a little more practical with this. 

Here’s the thing: Sometimes when we’re so overwhelmed, we think we just need rest.

And, yes there is definitely a time and place for rest. But sometimes instead of more rest, what we actually need is more action.

You may actually need one more thing in your life to help you manage what feels like out-of-control chaos. You may need one small action step to help create huge change.

What’s one area you can take action in right now? Don’t overthink it. Don’t overcomplicate it. What is the lowest hanging fruit?

What feels like the easiest area to tackle?

Would a load of laundry make you feel more relieved? Would you feel more accomplished if you drank water today? If you cleared off the counter? Wiped down your microwave?

You would be surprised at how tiny steps of action can make you feel so much better.

Keep the Promises You Make to Yourself

Think about an area you need to improve in and needs to see change. But also an area you can start to tackle fairly easily, bit by bit?

You need quick wins. You’ve got to rewire the way your brain is firing and what it’s telling you is and isn’t possible. 

When you say you’re going to go for a walk later, you don’t even believe yourself.

You’ve told yourself over and over that you’re going to take action and you don’t. You don’t keep your promise to yourself. So your brain knows you won’t follow through.

You have to show yourself you can be trusted… That you will show up for YOU.

You’ve got to start proving to yourself you’re going to do what you say you’re going to do, and you actually CAN complete the tasks you set out to do.

We’re much more likely to keep our word when it involves other people, yet we often don’t keep our word to ourselves.

The key is to start with the easiest, or most obvious area. What can you follow through with, and actually prove to yourself that you will do what you say you’re going to do?

This is what I teach a little more in depth in my online courses.

You have to start proving to yourself, through small steps of action, you can and will do what you set out to do.

Take Your Power Back

Maybe an action step came up for you while reading this, but maybe not.

If not, then just make a choice.

Choose one thing to do today, right now, as soon as you can, that is one step closer to less overwhelm.

Find a friend for accountability to help hold you to your word. Utilize our online Facebook community for accountability. Post in the group there, we would love to hold you accountable!

Make a choice and do the thing.

It really can be that simple. You don’t not have to be a victim to the overwhelm that is keeping you stuck.

Take your power back. Make a choice and watch yourself start to make progress.

When you start to show up for yourself and prove you can follow through, you will begin to give yourself the confidence you need to start tackling the bigger things on your to-do list. You will truly become unstoppable because you will start to believe that you can!

Regardless of what this may look like for you. We all have different goals and dreams, but some of us have given up on ourselves. And that’s not acceptable.

I’m not going to let you do that. Because you’re still alive, which means you still have a choice.

So stop being a victim to overwhelm, stop letting it consume and control you. Don’t be a victim of your circumstances. Start taking your power back.

It’s not too late for you to turn things around or start showing up differently. You just need to show yourself that you are capable of actually doing it.

Start small, maybe even start safe. It doesn’t really matter. What matters is that you start to take action. 

You’ve Got This, Mama!

As a reminder, you are amazing.

I know you are doing your best, so give yourself grace.

Forget all of your past decisions or mistakes. From this point forward you can decide to show up as the mama who does what she says she’s going to do. You can be an action taker, the person who follows through.

But it’s up to you. You’ve got this. You are amazing. And you are more than mama!

I’ve created a free resource to help you start taking action, if you are feeling overwhelmed. You can download the free Overwhelmed Mom’s Survival Guide here.

If you’ve lost yourself in motherhood and your days feel like constant chaos, I want to help you move past the overwhelm and experience more joy and abundance. I want to help you take your power back!