5 Ways to Cope With Emotional Overload

Last time I made a post about information overload. In that post, we explored what information overload is, what can cause it, and how we can start to recognize when it happens. This time, I want to offer ways we can cope with information overload once we recognize that we’re struggling with it.  

This deserves its own post because coping with something is a different concept from figuring out what is making us feel a certain way. I feel like the process of figuring out why we feel the way we do is more self-reflection - we have to ask ourselves about it. Coping comes after that. We can handle different situations in different ways, so it’s really helpful to know what exactly we’re trying to cope with before we try to take action. That way we can really tailor our actions to do the most to help ourselves.

When it comes to information overload, what we’re trying to actually cope with is feeling overwhelmed. We’re also trying to cope with the amount of information that we’re receiving, because if we can handle it, then we won’t feel as anxious. If you’ve been struggling with these ideas, here are some ways you can cope.

Use lists. Lists, especially to-do lists, can help us organize our thoughts. It can be really overwhelming to feel like we have to keep track of everything in our heads, but writing things down takes the pressure off of our minds. If we write it down, we don’t have to worry about forgetting something important.

Organize what you write down. Unfortunately, an out of control to-do list can be just as overwhelming and become information overload. I mean, if I had a hypothetical to-do list that was 5 pages long, that would be so overwhelming. So break down that list. Take a look at what you’ve written down, and make a shorter list that you’ll look at for the current day. After you do this, set the longer list aside, just focus on the shorter list. We have a tendency to tell ourselves that things have to be done earlier than they actually have to be, which is one way that information overload can happen. So really check in with yourself: does everything on that list actually need to be done today? Usually you’ll find that the answer is no. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to get it all done in one day, but only write down the things that must be done today on your shorter list. That will help you manage your information overload, and when you finish the things on your list, you can go back to look at other things you can do. You can do this idea with calendars and organizers too, but the general idea is to make it so that you don’t see everything in your list all at once.  

Put the phone down. Our phones and the texts, emails, and social media on them are extremely distracting. It can make it hard for us to focus on our work. Not only that, but these things are huge gateways to being overloaded with information overload. We get hit with ads, friend requests, updates, and other alerts constantly throughout the day. By limiting our contact with all of these aspects of our life, we can restrict the amount of information that reaches us, which helps prevent information overload.

Schedule time to pick the phone up. Didn’t I just say not to look at these things? Yes, yes I did. But I’m also being realistic here, and we’re in the digital age. Social media is here to stay, and email is a huge part of how our modern workplaces function. Completely eliminating these aspects of our life isn’t realistic for a lot of people. We can certainly reduce these things, but we may not be able to eliminate them. If you find yourself in a spot where you have a hard time reducing or limiting your time with technology, then scheduling your time is a good alternative. That can make it easier to reduce the information you’re receiving while being realistic about what you’re willing to do and not do.

Find something you find calming. Ideally we have ways to cope that work for us. But there are times when life throws us a curve-ball, and we may not always be prepared. It’s a good idea to have a plan for how you can handle the unexpected; that way if you’re hit with information overload when you’re out of the house, stressed, or overwhelmed, you’re prepared. Things that are calming are often helpful for instances like this.

You do not have to accept that information overload is a fact of life. There are things that you can do to recognize when this is going on and manage how much this impacts your life. You can take control of your life. And remember that if you feel like you need more guidance than what you’re seeing here, you can always talk to a therapist.