ADHD Overwhelm is what happens when the world is coming at us at a gazillion miles an hour and we have no functional way to process, organize or manage it all…
Unlike neurotypical brains which can parse, delegate, delay, chunk and prioritize, ADHD brains get slammed in one fell swoop. Like getting hit by a freight train! This is the felt reality of ADHD Overwhelm.
While there are many strategies that can help manage ADHD Overwhelm, each person’s situation, learning style, and needs are unique. Personalized Coaching can help identify and implement the systems and approaches that work best for you.
The word ‘Overwhelm’ sounds so benign and doesn’t begin to describe how it actually feels. For those of us who live with it, ADHD Overwhelm can be crushing. Unchecked it can lead to toxic shame spirals, paralysis, heightened anxiety, frustration, avoidance, depression and serial procrastination.
The urge to escape this unbearable state feels near impossible to resist.
For many of us, substances or compulsive behaviours become an alluring and soothing way out, Frankly, because they offer a quick and effective way to escape these overwhelming feelings. The kicker being that unless we’re also working on how to manage ADHD Overwhelm in functional and healthy ways, we set ourselves up to become more and more dependent and eventually even addicted.
When we begin the process of cutting back or stopping any over-use of substances or behaviours, we quickly discover, much to our horror that underneath all those layers of self-medicating, our old nemesis ADHD Overwhelm was alive and kicking, just waiting to pounce… Or as they say in recovery circles:
“In recovery the good news is that you get your feelings back, but the bad news is that you get your feelings back!”
Holiday Stress: A Fertilizer for ADHD Overwhelm!
This time of year tends to pile on even more demands on our already over-taxed ADHD brain- holiday plans, endless and impossible to do’s, triggering people, places and things and the high or even unrealistic expectations from ourselves and others.
If we don’t have systems and approaches in place to deal effectively with this growing list of demands, we’re setting ourselves up to need that quick and addictive Escape Hatch.
Find relief by starting to put in place ADHD friendly systems and approaches that will reduce your ADHD Overwhelm, effectively removing the need to use and escape. Since each person’s situation is unique, coaching can provide the guidance needed to find what truly works for you. When you find the systems that work for you, believe it or not, holidays and just regular ol’ crazy busy and speedy life can be something you get to enjoy and embrace again instead of something you have to hide from, resist or self medicate on.
Any path of growth and self-awareness—whether it’s about addiction recovery or simply creating a more balanced way of being, needs to address the root causes of our emotional triggers, only then can we meet life on life’s terms with greater peace and equanimity.
My wish for you this season—and beyond—is that you find ways to ease some of the unnecessary stress we often place on ourselves. By building supportive systems and practicing self-compassion, you can begin to reduce ADHD overwhelm and cultivate a lasting sense of peace, no matter what life brings your way.”
If ADHD Overwhelm has been holding you back and you’ve been self-medicating to cope, know that help and hope are within reach—you don’t have to face this alone. If you’re using substances or behaviours and they are causing you or those around you any harm, please contact me. Together, we can break this cycle and find relief.