What is Overwhelm?
Psychologist Maria W. Deibler, PsyD, describes overwhelm as ‘feeling completely overcome in mind and emotion’. Essentially, when we believe an external stressor is too great for us to manage, we feel overwhelmed. External stressors are events and situations that happen to us. Basic examples include major life changes (both positive and negative), our immediate environment, unpredictable events, the workplace, social situations, and relationships.
Overwhelm can show up in a variety of ways. You may experience anger, irritability, worry, self-doubt and feelings of helplessness, but anxiety is probably the most common response.
Anxiety is what we feel when we’re worried, tense or afraid – particularly about things that are about to happen, or which we think could happen in the future. It’s a natural human response when we perceive that we’re under threat and it can be experienced through our thoughts and feelings, as well as in the form of physical sensations like a racing heartbeat, chest pain or shortness of breath.