5 Hacks to Reset the Brain and Overcome Feeling Overwhelmed
By Joyce Thom M.P.A.
In the high-pressure, high-stress environment that many leaders live in today, feeling overwhelmed is all too common. According to a 2022 Harris Poll commissioned by the American Psychological Association,1Â 33% of respondents reported feeling overwhelmed in the previous month.
Leaders experiencing overwhelm often report feeling out of control, incapable, and hopeless because…
- They have too much work, responsibility, or pressure…
- And not enough time, resources, or energy to get everything done.
Neuroscience shows that the nervous system can interpret such stress as a threat, leading to a fight-or-flight reaction. When that occurs, the amygdala (the area of the brain responsible for threat response and emotional processing) can hijack the brain and shut down important cognitive functions in the prefrontal cortex. Hormones related to fight or flight are released and, at the same time, the brain’s ability to plan, make decisions, access the working memory, and think rationally becomes impaired. That explains why it is so hard to get things done when you feel overwhelmed and why it is so difficult to ‘think’ your way out of overwhelm.
About the Author – Joyce Thom M.P.A.
Speaker, Executive Coach, and Catalyst for Change
Joyce Thom is a Speaker, Executive Coach, and Catalyst for Change in the fields of resilience, wellness, growth, and conscious leadership. Joyce holds a Masters in Public Administration from Princeton University and received her BA from Yale University. She has studied mind-body wellness for over 40 years and teaches seminars around the world on meditation, Qigong, yoga, healing arts, somatic embodiment and emotional intelligence work.
