Are we over the overwhelm yet?

Understanding where exhaustion and overwhelm end, and burnout begins, is no easy task, discovers Yasmina Floyer

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W e live in a society that glorifies hustle culture, where being exceedingly busy is seen as evidence of success. We are encouraged towards multi-tasking and life hacks, because why do one thing at a time, when you could be doing three? This maximalist approach can on occasion have us feeling like we are winning, sucking from the marrow of life, embracing everything that it has to offer. I must admit that there are times when packing out my week with deadlines, events, nights out and family commitments can feel exhilarating. There is a particular brand of tiredness that comes at the end of one of these weeks that is underscored with contentment and satisfaction, a feeling that I'll admit I sometimes chase.

There is a tipping point, however, when all of this muchness gets a bit, well, too much, and lands us firmly with feelings of overwhelm.

When I think of what that word feels like, I envision an all-consuming tidal wave that crashes atop of me, knocking the breath from my lungs; a wave possessing of a great crushing weight. It's a telling image, as (what I didn't realise until recently is that) the verb 'overwhelm' is defined as to bury or drown beneath a huge mass of something, especially water. So when I say I'm drowning in work, commitments, things to do, I may well be on to something.

Another word I think of frequently when it comes to this feeling is 'mental load'.

Amazingly, that term didn't enter our dictionaries until 2020, but the sense of relief and validation I felt on finally acquiring the vocabulary to describe this feeling of strain that I had come to know so well was palpable.