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Feeling overwhelmed– I need ideas to cope!

Sometimes, I think I agree with my spouse who maintains that I bite off more than I can chew.

This month I have family duties, visits, two books to finish writing (yes, I did really say that) as well as keep up with my blogs and so I stay friends with all the fab new folks I met during the A to Z Challenge.

Time is short, and I feel totally overwhelmed– and feel suffocated cos I can’t get in enough reading time.
~~~~~~~~~
Do you ever get into phases like this? What do you do to cope? Do you emerge a star, or do you drop a few balls by juggling them?

Damyanti Biswas

Damyanti Biswas is the author of You Beneath Your Skin and numerous short stories that have been published in magazines and anthologies in the US, the UK, and Asia. She has been shortlisted for Best Small Fictions and Bath Novel Awards and is co-editor of the Forge Literary Magazine. Her literary crime thriller series, the Blue Mumbai, is represented by Lucienne Diver from The Knight Agency. Both The Blue Bar and The Blue Monsoon were published in 2023.

I appreciate comments, and I always visit back. If you're having trouble commenting, let me know via the contact form, or tweet me up @damyantig !

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29 Comments

  • brucethomasw says:

    Hi Damyanti – you liked a post over on my wife's blog Disappearing in Plain Sight. In this post you write about getting overwhelmed and too busy at times. You ask – Do ever you get into phases like this… I am a building contractor and renovator, and there are always chores to do around home too – so at times I don't know if I'm coming or going. Then you ask – what do you do to Cope? I recently did a short review of a book called Take Your Time – by Easwaran – take a glance . . . here's the link – http://throughtheluminarylens.wordpress.com/2014/05/21/on-the-move-take-your-time-and-works-of-art/ And good luck with getting those two books out.

  • When my plate gets overloaded, first to suffer is housework. LOL I have to remember to continue to give me time to recharge, refresh, renew. That may mean sleeping in late, or it may mean totally relaxing one evening, or a visit with my sister. But me time helps me use the other time more wisely. But I do drop a ball now and then.
    Barbara
    Life & Faith in Caneyhead

  • Nima Das says:

    Yes i feel like this most days. i feel 24 hours is too less. I want to read other blogs, I want to read newspaper articles, watch current documentaries on tv,have time with family, I always feel i am running against time to achieve more. can relate totally.

  • B says:

    I stop everything .. get out and then come back in a day or two and look at everything again .. sometimes i win sometimes i lose ..

    Bikram

  • D Biswas says:

    Thank you, everyone. Part of being overwhelmed is not being able to visit enough blogs, return visits, or even respond to comments individually. I thank each one of you, and I'm hoping to find some answers soon.

    I know something has to give, and it will be a bit wrenching, like shutting down one of my blogs (both will be 7 years old come January)– but I'm hoping to stay afloat.

    I'll probably reduce the number of posts on my blog, and stop visiting new blogs– it is all I can do to cope with the combined audience of my two blogs– if I manage to keep the 50 good blog friends I can name, I'll be more than grateful.

    Once the books are done, I'll go back to spreading myself thin on my blogs again.

  • ALWAYS. Yes. I'm constantly reevaluating the number of obligations I've taken on and cut them back. I think it pretty much goes with this day and time–which is why we have to really focus on what's of most value.

  • I've definitely bitten off too much at the moment. I always feel less overwhelmed after a good night's sleep, but the feelings always return during the day. I hope you find some answers 🙂

  • Mark Murata says:

    Getting back into the daily slog of writing feels like a relief after everything goes to pieces.

  • abbiescorner says:

    With all my writing obligations, I'm lucky if I get through one book a week, but so what? I have over ninety books on my device, and I'm always getting more, but if I don't read them all in my lifetime, it's not the end of the world.

  • klahanie says:

    Hi Damyanti,

    The juggling act that is life can find oneself in that place that makes you feel overwhelmed. You have to set a comfortable pace and lower the stress levels. You know I don't promote what I do. However, please know that Penny's and my good natured satirical leanings in our alternatives to the A to Z was actually trying to help you cope through the A to Z. All we tried to do was create a relaxed place so you could take some time out from the demands in your life.

    Please, my dear friend, find some quiet moments that are just for you. Snuggle up with a good book and relax. There are situations in life that can wait. Less pressure and you will cope better.

    In kindness and goodwill, your friend,

    Gary 🙂

  • A step-at-a-time… and breathe.
    Sending you positive vibes all the way across the blogosphere——————

  • Keep going…Much love!!

  • In times like that I make a (realistically doable) list each day. And as I complete things, I physically cross it off. Nothing is more motivating than seeing things accomplished.

  • Just keeping up with one blog, visiting all the blogs of those who were kind enough to visit and follow my blog, reading email, checking Facebook and twitter can be exhausting. Sometimes I just have to sit back and prioritize. Of course, it goes without saying, family always takes precedence. At times you will find my house is a bit dustier, the laundry needing to be folded, and endless other things not done in a timely manner. I try to deal with what is most pressing first. Reviewing books is a tough one though. Right now I have a long list of books I would love to read, but I have quite a few author requests for review that I need to get through first. So that is tops on my to do list for this week.

  • I too get overwhelmed often.. as I like to try my hands into what not- writing, painting, gardening and then yes, there's motherhood and yeah my IT job 😀
    Love to read your blog.. do visit mine – http://www.roohibhatnagar.com

  • Susan Scott says:

    Yep, it can be overwhelming … the responses so far are all good. I can totally get my knickers into a knot when all is too much. And balls do get dropped. Sometimes I wonder how I will look back at those hectic times, in say, 6 months time. This puts it a bit in perspective for me. Damyanti, don't burn out. Take time to smell the coffee, know that your books will be completed and your family duties will still be carried out in love.
    Garden of Eden Blog

  • Wow good luck with the books. And yes..its coping time for me too..blogging and blog reading is my private escape 🙂

  • Al Diaz says:

    Funny. I often get overwhelmed too. I was given the advice to not try to do more than I am able to. It can get really frustrating.

  • mooderino says:

    I've noticed a number of bloggers who try to go full tilt all the time and then give up blogging when it's too much, an all or nothing approach. I think when real life imposes it's okay to visit blogs less frequently or focus on chores that need to be done. A short time being not quite so ubiquitous is better than a long hiatus you never return from. And July August is pretty quiet in the blogoverse so maybe take a small break then?

    mood
    Moody Writing

  • Andrew Leon says:

    I always feel like that. I just keep going with the vain hope that one day I'll come out on the other side.

  • It really isn't easy juggling so many chores and writing assignments, and the AtoZ challenge proved that. I am now trying to catch up, and have completed a couple jobs that had been pending for awhile. My freelancing schedule has been re-organised so that I can spend more time writing more for myself, as I discovered that I was doing too much for clients. My personal time has improved because of that, but still busy.

  • cleemckenzie says:

    I'm only in your spot most of the time. Here's some tea and sympathy and another ball to juggle, just in case you come up short. 🙂

  • Angela Brown says:

    I didn't participate in the A to Z challenge and still find myself with so much going on. Juggling is a habit. Every now and then I drop a ball, but I grab that bad boy and get it back into rotation so I don't lose momentum.

    Good luck as you work to complete your tasks.

  • I think we all definitely feel that way from time to time. I think the best thing to do is realize we're human and we can only do so much. Maybe we have to learn to ask for help from time to time.

  • shelly says:

    I know how you feel. Busy people always bite off more than they can chew.

    Hugs and chocolate!

  • I think we all need to manage expectations, and the expectations we most need to manage most is our own. It is always better to do three or four things well, and to see them through to completion, than to half-do ten.

    One of the key things is time for yourself and your family. Forgive yourself for the things you can't fit in without knocking yourself out.

    After al, what's the point in having a back burner, if you can't put things on it occasionally?

    See how easy it is? How easy it is to say, anyway. All I need to do now, is to persuade myself to follow my own words!

  • Trisha F says:

    I feel that way and I'm not even really doing anything! I think I burned myself out a long while ago and I'm still struggling to recover. 😉

    I hope you take a moment to … breeeaaaaathe. 😉

  • Most days I feel as you do now. Simply admit that you can only do so much and do what you can. The rest will have to wait for another day. Hope things get better soon.

  • I went through most of March and April like that. Still trying to recover.