Life today floods your nervous system nonstop. You are constantly processing social media, texts, work stress, information, news, email notifications, dopamine hits from your phone, people demanding your attention, noise, expectations, responsibility, pressures, emotions, everything swirling around in your brain almost all day, every day.
At some point, your mind can hit a breaking point where it feels like everything around you is mentally “too much.”
Your mind feels foggy. All the little things become frustrating. You feel drained, anxious, restless, scattered, exhausted, grouchy, or simply unable to focus.
Some people get headaches. Others shut down emotionally. Panic sets in. You feel tired all of the time. Or you just want to curl up in a ball and disappear from the world entirely.
It doesn’t have to stay this way.
You aren’t doomed to live your life in a constant state of mental overwhelm. Your nervous system can learn to calm down when you practice building healthier thought and emotional patterns.
How to Stop Feeling Mentally Overstimulated: 8 tips
1. Take a Break From Constant Noise and Digital Inputs
There is so much input going into your brain nowadays.
You rarely experience true silence like you used to. Between texting, videos, social media, podcasts, background TV, radios, music, scrolling through your phone, conversations around you, advertisements, your brain is constantly processing stimuli every minute of the day, even when you’re trying to “relax.”
We don’t realize how mentally fatigued we become from constantly staring at screens and consuming digital content until we take a break.
Your brain has an attention system. It needs time to rest. But your brain never fully rests because you have endless streams of information feeding into it all day long.
You have to take intentional breaks from input. Turn off your notifications. Practice sitting in silence with yourself. Stop multitasking. Allow your brain time to not process new stimuli every second.
Creating healthy digital boundaries is a game changer for nervous system overload.
Read also: 10 Ways of Managing Overwhelming Emotions
2. Step Away Before You Feel Emotionally Exhausted
Most people wait until they feel OVERWHELMED before they give themselves a break.
By then, your body has already been screaming at you for days that you need to stop.
When your mind and body start to feel overstimulated, it rarely happens overnight. Your body always tries to warn you before you reach that point of emotional exhaustion.
You may feel irritated. Tired. Foggy. More anxious than usual. Stressed. Short tempered. Emotional. Angry. Unable to concentrate.
These are clues your body sends you when you’re running on fumes mentally and emotionally. If you ignore these signs, you’ll likely drive your nervous system into full overload.
Instead of waiting until you need a week long vacation to recover, identify how you can rest before you reach burnout.
Oftentimes, just stepping away for 5 minutes to breathe and get some space from whatever you’re doing can help your nervous system come back down.
Allow yourself to listen to your body and take breaks when you know you need them. You don’t have to wait until you “deserve” rest by working yourself to absolute zero.
Read also: 8 Easy Habits to Create a Stress-Free, Soft Life
3. Give Your Nervous System Time to Physically Calm Down
Mental overstimulation isn’t just a thought battle, it’s physical too.
When you’re constantly overloaded, your body reacts by going into a stress response. You may start breathing faster. Get distracted easily. Feel like your muscles are constantly tense. Experience heart palpitations. Or your mind may just race with stressful thoughts even when there is no real danger around you.
That is why giving your body time to physically calm down is so important.
Deep breathing. Stretching. Lying down. Going somewhere quiet. Dimming the lights. Taking a warm shower. Rolling your shoulders. Grounding your body.
Do what you need to do to slowly bring your body out of that frenzied state of overwhelm.
Pinch your nose repeatedly while taking slow deep breaths. This is something I used to do when my mind and body felt overwhelmed growing up. The act of focusing on lightly pinching your nose while regulating your breath helps shift your mind’s focus off of stressful thoughts.
Your brain needs your body to feel safe before you can truly feel mentally calm again. Try some nervous system regulation exercises next time you feel like your mind is about to explode.
Read also: 12 Ways to Make Your Life Interesting
4. Stop Trying to Do Everything All at Once
Distressed minds try to juggle way too many things at once.
I know because I’m super guilty of this.
My mind likes to run at lightning speed thinking about a million different things all at once. How I messed up that day. What I need to do later. Who I want to text. How much work I have to do. The list goes on and on.
My brain spends way too much time trying to process too much stuff at once. Until it literally cannot handle any more thoughts and I snap.
Your brain cannot healthfully operate when your mind is in chaos.
You didn’t sign up for life to “figure it all out.” You just need to slow your thoughts down.
Write things down. Focus on one task at a time. Stop trying to do twenty things at once.
You will feel better once you give your mind somewhere to focus other than a dozen different problems all yelling for your attention at once.
Practice mental organization. It helps more than you think.
5. Spend More Time Outside Artificial Environments
Mother nature helps your brain.
We spend so much time inside staring at screens, surrounded by people demanding our attention and expectations of who we should be that we forget how calm and simple life can feel when you give your mind a break from technology.
Your brain is naturally wired to feel more at ease outside. Go outside. Feel the sun on your skin. Look at the trees. Walk around quietly and feel the ground beneath you. Allow yourself to be present with your surroundings and not inside your head.
You’ll feel more refreshed after spending time away from computers, phones, and other people for a while.
Give yourself permission to step away from overstimulating environments and spend more time in natural settings. You’ll notice a big difference.
6. Guard Your Sleep Like Your Life Depends On It
Sleep and overstimulation are toxic for each other.
The less you sleep, the more overloaded your mind will feel. The more overloaded your mind feels, the less you will be able to sleep. It’s a vicious cycle.
Sleep is when your brain recovers from your day.
Your brain and body NEED time to recharge or else your emotions will feel off. You’ll be tired all of the time. Everything will irritate you. Your ability to focus will diminish. Your patience will wear thin. And you’ll start crumbling inside because your mind and body didn’t properly recover from the day’s stresses.
When you don’t sleep, your nervous system feels threatened. Your mind goes into defense mode. Which means that small stressors will suddenly feel ten times bigger than they actually are. Because your brain is exhausted.
Sleep is probably the number one thing you can improve to feel less mentally overloaded during the day.
Limit your screen time before bed. Stop eating or consuming endless stimuli past a certain hour. Turn off all notifications on your phone at night. Keep your phone out of the bedroom if you can. Stick to a sleep schedule.
Your brain will thank you when you allow it to fully recover during the night.
Nourishing sleep quality is essential for managing feelings of overstimulation.
7. Learn the Art of Saying No
Many people feel mentally drained because they say yes to too much stuff.
Whether it’s taking on too many projects at work. Overcommitting yourself to others. Jumping from conversation to conversation. Always giving your attention to others and never yourself. Emotionally draining relationships. Aggressive people who know no boundaries. Or never wanting to miss out on anything fun.
Your mind cannot heal if you never slow down to take care of YOU.
It’s okay to say no to people. You don’t need to feel guilty about prioritizing your mental health.
You don’t owe anybody your energy if they are disrespectful of your boundaries or take you for granted.
Some people will be bothered when you start establishing healthy boundaries. But that means you should say no even MORE around them.
You don’t need to please everyone around you. Take care of yourself FIRST.
Establish some personal boundaries. You’ll feel better off in the long run.
8. Allow Yourself to Truly Recover
When you give yourself time to rest, be sure to allow yourself to mentally recover.
It’s not enough to just stop what you’re doing. If you lay down to rest but your brain is still doing a million things, thinking about work, stressing about something you have to do later, trapped in your emotions, you’re NOT recovering.
True recovery means allowing your brain to take a break from processing too much information.
Sit with yourself in silence. Allow your mind to slow down. Do less. Allow yourself to just be for a while.
Your mind needs time to recover just as your body does. Incorporate mental rest into your daily schedule. Take breaks. Go outside. Don’t feel like you need to fill every minute of your day with “productivity.”
Your brain will function exponentially better if you give it a chance to rest.
Mental recovery. Give it a try. You have nothing to lose.
Conclusion
Life is stressful. You are going to feel mentally drained at times, but that doesn’t mean you have to feel OVERWHELMED.
Take breaks. Listen to your body. Rest when you know you need to. Don’t force yourself to do more than you’re mentally capable of handling.
Remember that your brain needs rest just as much as your body does.
If you want to stop feeling overstimulated, make the choice to relax every chance you get.
Seth
FAQ
What are signs of being overstimulated?
Overstimulation causes anxiety, irritation, mental fatigue, restlessness, depression, stress, and inability to focus. If everything starts feeling like “too much,” you may be mentally overloaded.
Why do I feel overstimulated?
Too much stimulation of any kind can trigger feelings of being overstimulated. Stress, anxiety, exhaustion, sleep deprivation, noise, information overload, emotions, people, and chaos are a few common sources of overstimulation.
Does media cause overstimulation?
Yes. Media like social media, videos, TV, podcasts, radio, blogs, websites, and other outlets contribute to mental overload. Staring at screens and mindlessly consuming content feeds into your brain’s desire to seek new information 24/7.
How can I calm down my nervous system?
You can help regulate your nervous system by slowing your breath. Trying grounding techniques. Resting. Reducing stimulation around you. Going somewhere quiet. Turning off loud noises. Practicing mindfulness brings your mind back to the present, which can help calm your nerves.
Will sleep help me calm down?
Sleep is one of the best ways to help your nervous system feel calmer. When you don’t sleep enough, your brain struggles to cope with new stressors and your emotions feel out of whack. A good night’s sleep can help you feel more balanced emotionally.
Can anxiety make you feel overstimulated?
Anxiety definitely worsens feelings of being overstimulated. Anxiety tricks your mind into thinking you are always in danger. Which means your brain and body are constantly prepared to respond to stress at all times. This can make you feel on edge and more reactive to your environment.
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