You might not think you are overwhelmed, because you are still getting up, going to work, replying to messages and keeping everything going.

But overwhelm does not always look dramatic.

10 things to notice about overwhelm

1. You’ve slept, but still wake up tired. You struggle to even pull back the covers. It takes all your energy just to get up.

2. You can’t even decide what to eat, so you skip meals or grab what’s available. Decision fatigue means you make no choice, or choices that don’t really help you feel better.

3. You put off little jobs that need doing, like paying a bill or replying to a message. They’re probably not even that big of a task, but the thought of doing it makes you avoid it even more.

4. You can’t tolerate being around people. Social events you had planned fill you with dread. You think of reasons and excuses not to go.

5. You become snappy over little things. The smallest inconvenience can suddenly feel huge, because you are already carrying so much.

6. You sit down to relax, but your mind still races. Even when your body is still, your brain feels like it’s constantly switched on.

7. You feel emotional over things that normally wouldn’t bother you. You might cry more easily, feel irritated, or just feel like everything is getting on top of you.

8. You struggle to concentrate. You read the same message three times, forget what you walked into a room for, or lose track of what someone is saying.

9. You stop doing the things that normally help you. You cancel plans, stop exercising, avoid hobbies, and tell yourself you’ll get back to them when you feel better.

10. You keep telling yourself to “just get on with it”, even though deep down you know you are exhausted and need support.

Overwhelm isn’t always a breakdown. It can slowly chip away at you and become the new norm.

Sometimes it just looks like someone trying to hold it all together.

I had never really thought about overwhelm until I did my training. I never even thought I had experienced it myself.

I thought overwhelm was something that only happened to people in the middle of a mental health crisis, and I felt so far away from that.

Yes, I had days where I really did not want to function. Days where even the smallest task felt like too much. But little did I know, these were often the tell-tale signs that something was beginning.

Our bodies are very good at giving us signs. We just are not always very good at reading them.

As a mum, an employee, and someone who has so many people relying on them, there often feels like there is no room to put anything down.

Who will do it if you decide to have a break?

“Don’t be silly. You can manage”

That is what we tell ourselves.

We tell ourselves we just need to get through to the weekend. But then the weekend comes, and the housework needs doing, there is a pile of washing or paperwork waiting, family are coming for dinner, and the kids need dropping off or picking up from whatever party, football match or activity they have committed to.

Maybe Saturday night you get a takeaway, pour yourself a glass of wine, or try to switch off for a few hours, hoping it will be enough to make you feel better.

But one night off is not always enough to fix what has been building up for weeks, months, or even years.

Then Sunday comes, and before you know it, you are already thinking about Monday again.

We can find ourselves stuck in a constant loop of putting everyone else first, worrying about letting people down, while quietly letting ourselves down in the process.

So what do we do?

Do we start saying no to everyone, go back to bed and pull the covers over our heads?

What if I told you there is a much better way.

Not something that gives you just a few minutes of respite, but something that can give you a lifetime of awareness and understanding.

When I ask my clients at the end of their sessions what they are taking away with them, they often say the same thing.

They can see things differently.

They realise life does not have to feel so hard.

They understand themselves better, they recognise the signs sooner, and they know what they need to do to get themselves back on track.

And they can do all of that knowing that putting themselves first does not mean they are letting everyone else down.

Hypnotherapy can help you recognise these patterns, understand where they come from, and focus on what is important again.

The post Would you recognise overwhelm in yourself? appeared first on Rise & Renew Hypnotherapy.

Christmas should be about connection, rest, and enjoyment, yet for many it becomes a very overwhelming time of year. Shopping lists, food, deadlines, family expectations, decorations, looking perfect, and the pressure to “make memories” and book all the Christmas activities that cost an absolute fortune.

We all know that too many open tasks can lead to overwhelm, and Christmas just amplifies it. Incomplete tasks don’t just sit on a to-do list, they stay in our minds like a program running in the background and draining our energy. Time pressures, interruptions, or limiting beliefs can keep reminding us that something is unfinished. This creates anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and raises stress hormones such as adrenalin and cortisol. Once a task is completed, the loop can close, and the mind can finally breathe a sigh of relief.

So how does this impact Christmas?

Not only are we trying to function on a daily basis, we’ve added wrapping up work, attending school plays, managing excited (and overwhelmed) children, and the work Christmas party, we also face cognitive overload from the additional expectations of Christmas. This affects our stress regulation and makes it hard for the brain to switch off. The more unfinished tasks we hold, the more our nervous system stays on high alert. Then we still have Christmas to get through!

The brain is constantly scanning:

Did I forget something?
Have I done enough?
What if it’s not perfect?

Christmas is meant to be a time of restfulness, yet enjoyment doesn’t come from doing more, it comes from doing less, but more consciously.

Keeping it simple

How do we do this at a time of year that feels so fast-paced?

Keep it simple

You don’t have to do everything.
And you certainly don’t need all the food!

Have you considered lowering your expectations on yourself? Your family members are often just glad they aren’t the ones doing it. Have you ever considered maybe sharing the responsibility and letting go of things? 

Do you struggle with perfectionism and allowing others to do things their way?

So what if the napkins don’t match the Christmas decorations? Do you honestly think people are noticing when they’re wiping their face after enjoying the dinner you’ve prepared? 

And do you even allow yourself to enjoy the dinner? After all that hard work you put in?

You have to give your brain the chance to settle, to be calm, and to enjoy what is happening rather than worrying about what isn’t. Fewer loops allow the body and mind to relax, so we can actually enjoy Christmas.

Choosing less

My Christmases each year become less and less stressful, to the point that I now view it very differently.

I watch people losing their minds in the Sainsbury’s car park because the shop will be shut for one day. Overloaded trolleys. Presents bought with the receipt kept, just in case the person wants to return it. Gift sets that will probably end up being re-gifted. Buying gifts that they likely don’t need, or even want, and in some cases what they can’t even afford.

It feels over the top, chaotic, performative and quite honestly exhausting.

The biggest gift you can give anyone is your time, and that’s what I intend to do this year. Spending it with the people I love, with no expectations around gifts, table decorations, or how it’s meant to look.

Because it really doesn’t matter at all.

What matters is being present. Being connected. Being calm enough to actually enjoy the moment you’re in rather than rushing through it or worrying about whether you’ve done “enough.”

You are the present!

So give yourself a few minutes to ask yourself these questions (even giving yourself permission to have 5 minutes can be beneficial!)

What am I taking on?
Why do I feel I need to do this?
Who am I doing it for?
What would happen if I didn’t?

Sometimes the most helpful thing we can do is let a few things go.

This year, I’m choosing less.
And you know what? It feels like more.

Have a very merry Christmas

Love Terrie

The post Christmas Overwhelm and How to Manage It Better appeared first on Rise & Renew Hypnotherapy.

Hypnotherapy taught me how to calm the part of my brain where anxiety lives and bring my rational mind back online, so I could finally respond to life instead of just reacting.

Hypnotherapy first came into my life when I was retraining as a counsellor. I hadn’t done any academic work since leaving school, so my belief in my ability to take on something new was pretty much non-existent. But I had the learning bug, and hypnotherapy just intrigued me. I had no idea what I was letting myself in for, and my mind was blown.

I gave up drinking once I knew the damage it was doing to my brain and the impact it was having on me moving forward. Alcohol actually switches off the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that helps us make rational decisions and think about consequences. That’s why we can become more impulsive, emotional, or reactive when we drink. It also raises stress chemicals like cortisol and lowers serotonin, making anxiety and low mood worse. For me, smoking had always been linked with drinking, so when I stopped alcohol, smoking naturally went too. The desire was just gone. Having that freedom gave me the opportunity and motivation to build better habits. I train at the gym, I eat better, and I look after myself in ways that make a noticeable difference in how I look and feel.

Understanding myself and how my mind works made everything so much clearer. I realised I’d been living my life reacting to everything without even being aware of my conscious and unconscious thoughts and where they came from. Did you know we have around 60,000 thoughts a day and, according to research, around 95% of them are unconscious? No wonder so much of what we do is automatic. Once I understood that, those feelings of anxiety and the behaviours I struggled with all started to make sense.

Since then, life has changed a lot. I now work full time, run my hypnotherapy practice in the evenings, and also attend college as I study for my final year of counselling, something I never thought I’d be able to do. The old me was always thinking I never had time for anything. I’ve learned what’s important, and I make decisions that serve me rather than everyone else (yes, I’ve become a master of saying no) – I’ve rewired my brain!

I’ve also learned the importance of regulating our nervous system. When our stress response is constantly activated, cortisol – the stress hormone, runs high. This can affect how blood circulates around the body, meaning our organs and systems aren’t functioning optimally. Hypnotherapy helps calm that response, reducing cortisol levels so our blood flows properly, nourishing all parts of our body. It’s like giving your system a reset button, supporting not just mental wellbeing, but physical health too.

Hypnotherapy also works on the part of our brain where anxiety often lives – the primitive brain. When we’re stressed, this part of the brain can hijack our thoughts and behaviours, keeping us in fight-or-flight mode. By guiding the mind into a relaxed state, hypnotherapy helps bring the prefrontal cortex back online, the area responsible for rational thinking, planning, and emotional regulation. Essentially, it helps us respond rather than react, giving us more control over how we think, feel, and behave.

I still have low moods, and I can still react in the moment, I’m still human after all. The difference now is I don’t beat myself up. I recognise where it comes from. I can apologise if I’ve misjudged things, and I know when things are getting too much, I can step back if I need to, without feeling guilty or the need to over explain myself.

Most importantly, I know how to relax. Self-care isn’t about fancy holidays or spa trips, it can be as simple as sitting in the garden with a cup of coffee and a good book. When you allow that to be enough, it’s just as rewarding. I’m okay with just being. And it feels bloody marvellous.

Solution Focused Hypnotherapy isn’t just something I use with clients, it’s something I practise every day myself. Even when I take clients through hypnosis, I go into a light trance too, and the language I use has become part of how my mind works. It keeps me grounded and moving forward, and that’s why I believe in it so much.

Because hypnotherapy has been so life changing, I am passionate about sharing it with others. If this sounds like something you need to learn more about, I look forward to welcoming you into my therapy room, where we can explore what it is you want to change and what we need to do to help you move forward.

Terrie

The post How Hypnotherapy Changed My Life appeared first on Rise & Renew Hypnotherapy.