What to do when everything lands on your plate in the same week
Some weeks everything arrives at the same time. Deadlines at work, appointments to keep, messages piling up, people around you who need something from you. Even good things count. Something you're looking forward to still takes time, decisions and energy.
When it all stacks up, the mind does something unhelpful: it tries to hold the whole pile at once. Every task feels equally urgent. You start three things and finish none. A simple request suddenly feels like one thing too many.
That's overwhelm. It isn't a sign you're bad at life. It's a sign your plate is full.
A part trying to keep everything safe
In IFS (Internal Family Systems) we'd say an overwhelmed part has taken the wheel. It keeps scanning everything because it's scared something will fall through the cracks. It means well. But a part that holds every item at once can't actually do any of them.
What helps isn't pushing harder. It's helping that part put the pile down, so you can pick up one piece.
Smaller is the skill
ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) teaches that you can make room for the pressure without letting it run the show. You don't need to feel calm first. You need one next step small enough to start.
Try this: empty the plate
- Write it all down. Every task, worry and loose end, on one page. Your head isn't a storage unit.
- Speak to the part. "I see how much you're holding. It's on paper now. You can rest a little."
- Circle one thing. Pick a step you can finish in ten minutes. Do only that.
- Repeat. When it's done, circle the next one.
Asking the people around you for help, or asking them to send things one at a time, counts as a step too.
If the overwhelm doesn't lift after the busy stretch passes, or it starts affecting your sleep, work or relationships, reach out and talk to someone. You don't have to carry it all yourself.
Moishy Anderson, LMSW
Brooklyn