5 tips for when you feel overwhelmed with pain.

So you’ve experienced feeling overwhelmed with pain too? Dealing with chronic pain is like going on the most gut-wrenching ride within a theme park; it throws you through some hoops and drags you through some dark tunnels. Sometimes you feel supercharged for whatever comes. Other times, you find yourself deflated; with little or no hope that things will improve. Have you found yourself feeling the latter?

If so, then you have come to the right place. I’m going to share these mood-elevating, perspective-altering tips that are guaranteed to make a difference to your day. I usually do these things whenever I feel depleted; they have worked for me every time.

1)   Acknowledge & Vent It Out:

That’s right warriors. Name and shame what is dragging you down. Acknowledge your feelings – call them out.

This may seem random, but it is vital to highlight your feelings when you’re overwhelmed with pain. I say this because you can’t address or tackle something that you haven’t acknowledged. Acknowledgement triggers off the process of getting past your feelings. Once you have done this, you can now continue the rest of the process.

Let us personify ‘feelings’ or ’emotions’ for a minute. People can easily find themselves trapped by their emotions – especially when they choose to ignore the elephant in the room that is their feelings. This can cause your feelings to remain as guests that have overstayed their welcome; which can eventually end up controlling you rather than you controlling them. Some feelings aren’t meant to be entertained or accommodated for such a long time. I speak this from my own personal experience. Get them out, so you can finally kick them out.

2)  Encourage Yourself:

This is a common area where people struggle when they are overwhelmed with pain. Terribly. Although that’s understandable, this is a necessity for anybody’s survival. This is where our resilience needs to kick in. I find that the more you do this, the more it will become a reflex for you. Naturally, even if you’re the most positive person in the world – you will still have those days where you struggle to encourage yourself.

So how can you achieve this? By reminding yourself of the trials you have overcome in the past. Warrior, don’t neglect the fact that you are a warrior; that means you’ve been fighting and surviving! If you cannot recall anything you have survived, I am reminding you right now that you have survived life. You have survived everything that has been thrown at you – yet you’re still here. Hold on to that.

Another way to encourage yourself, includes highlighting the fact that things will change. Life guarantees change. It will come. But it can be hard to believe this when your circumstances have looked the same for so long. It’s really easy to lose hope and doubt this. So I challenge you to do the complicated thing; believe things will change. Because they will. Reading this will help;

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:

a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

3)  Rest Yourself:

This is a subject I recently highlighted in my last post Take Time Out! I cannot stress enough to you just how vital it is for you to rest. TAKE A NAP! I am so serious…the human race has the tendency to behave erratically when they are tired. Especially if they are overwhelmed with pain! Ever been really hacked off about something, but found that same thing didn’t bother you much once slept on it? That’s because sleeping/resting can act as a natural reset button for your brain. Lack of rest can cause us to judge things irrationally. Take a rest and see how you feel when you get up. It won’t solve all of your problems, but it’ll clear your mind. Having a clear mind will help you with the next step.

4)  Surround Yourself With Optimism:

When you have a clear mind, the materials, media, and company you expose yourself to can determine how you feel for the rest of the day. Now would be the perfect time to watch something that is ideally inspirational or encouraging. I urge you to be aware of what kind of messages you choose to digest at this time. If you fill your mind with negative or unsubstantial resources – guess what will circulate in your mind? Think of it this way – just like they always say “you are what you eat”…you also are what you read, watch, listen to and converse about. Feed your soul with something good which will impact the way you think warriors.

5)  Redirect Your Thoughts:

Now, this where the work begins. It is likely that the thoughts you had before will attempt to return. They usually sound something like “it won’t be long before you have another emotional slump”, or maybe “I’m still in pain and that’ll never change”. I urge you to either push them away, negate them or redirect your thoughts altogether. There’s that saying; “you can’t stop a bird from landing on your head, but you can stop it from building a nest”. Take this example & don’t be hard on yourself – because you can’t control those initial thoughts from entering your mind. However, you can control what you choose to do with them.

I often find it easy to negate these thoughts by pulling on gratitude; what things I am grateful for in my life that are going well. Sometimes it’s hard to think of things per se, but then I just take a moment to acknowledge that I am alive and able to function. It might not be to the same degree of others. Heck, it might not even be to the degree that I used to – but I’m still functioning, regardless.

So now that I’ve shared these tips with you – put them to good use! I am hoping they will aid you during those down, difficult days when you’re feeling overwhelmed with pain. Put these points up somewhere in your house where you can see them. They will serve as a great reminder for when those days come.

Are there any additional tips you would give to those overwhelmed with pain? Comment below and let us know! Don’t forget to share this article so it can help others who need it!

Until next time,

Tasha Marie