Dealing with stress and overwhelm to keep on being creative
As artists and creators, we may often be driven to do more, accomplish more, make more content - but all that passion can lead to overwhelm.
At times I have felt 'obsessed' to get more projects done than I could really handle emotionally and energetically, and my body would seriously protest and shut down.
Trauma healing specialist Aimie Apigian, MD notes in a video it is helpful to distinguish this from stress:
"Overwhelm. Overwhelm. There was a time when I thought that overwhelm just meant stress, and I even used words like "chronic stress." That was one lesson I had to learn, and I want to share with you guys because it's a very important distinction.”
She says “stress is not the same as overwhelm.
“Anxiety is something where you have this actual threat, you have an increase of energy, because there's a threat, there's a danger: 'What am I going to do? Let me figure out what I can do.'
“Stress is actually an increase in energy.”
But "when you say 'It's just been too much. I'm overwhelmed.' What do you notice happening in your body right now as I say that? Do you get an increase in energy? Or do you get a decrease in energy? Decrease in energy. That's the overwhelmed state. That right there is your trauma response."
She notes "once you go into overwhelm, the survival mechanisms that comes out in humans is very predictable. If you don’t have any control, a major survival mechanism that emerges is becoming very passive and emotionally numb."
This video is an excerpt - see longer video plus links to free classes and other resources by trauma healing specialist Aimie Apigian, MD, in article:
How We Can Heal Trauma Using Our Nervous System with Dr. Aimie Apigian
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“If you are continually activating your supercomputer brain, you will burn out."
HSP psychotherapist, and author Julie Bjelland adds: "Most people whose motor is too fast experience feelings of anxiety..."
See more and listen to related podcast episode in article How to Relieve Stress and Anxiety When You’re a Highly Sensitive Person.
The image at top is from my post Overcoming Overwhelm When You’re Creative and Sensitive :
People in various careers and professions can be vulnerable to overwhelm – especially with the personality trait of high sensitivity. Coaches and psychologists offer suggestions to help deal with it.
Many creative people are highly sensitive, often more introverted than extroverted, and possibly gifted and intense. These traits can sometimes lead to emotional challenges including anxiety and overwhelm.