“Everything” Feels Like Too Much

There are days when everything feels like too much. The to-do list is endless: clean the house, tackle the garden, care for the kids, cook, work, plan family days, declutter, organise, manage, maintain, renovate and—somewhere in between—try to feel the sun on my face. It’s overwhelming. And when the overwhelm hits, I freeze. I shut down. I spiral into ‘there’s too much to do alone’, ‘there’s not enough time for everything’, ‘I’m too shattered’….. and immobilisation holds a form grip.

But recently, I paused and asked myself: Not enough time for what, exactly?

What am I so desperately trying to get done, to get to where? What’s driving this pressure I put on myself to keep up, to push forward, to “achieve” some ideal version of life? (Which ironically I can’t because I’m frozen)

Am I chasing a spotless house, pristine cupboards, and a picture-perfect garden for me? Or is it to meet expectations I’ve internalised from others—society, upbringing, or some invisible standard that says, “This is what success looks like”?

Yes, I want clean and comforting surroundings. I want a home that feels warm, lived-in, and loved. But more than anything, I want to live.

I want to learn, grow, explore. I want adventures. I want to try new foods and meet new people. I want to feel my life, not just manage it.

So why does the idea of “not enough time” stop me in my tracks?

This led me to my next big ‘aha’ moment, I realised something big. No one is coming to help me. For a long time, I carried the weight of hope that someone would. That maybe, if I just kept pushing, someone would step in and lift the load, with me. But that weight—the waiting, the hoping—only kept me stuck. I am frozen when what I really want is to move.

This led me to the thought that this “funk” I’ve been in, might just be about one thing? Maybe I’m not being present. I’ve been practicing gratitude, but it became another task on the list—something I should do, a means to an end. I was doing it in hopes it would bring me peace, clarity, or even the help I longed for. But I wasn’t in it. I wasn’t grounded in the now.

So here I am, in the middle of the mess and the magic, reminding myself: just breathe. Keep walking the path I’m on, with an eye on where I want to go. Because maybe the road opens, when I trust it’s already unfolding beneath my feet. ❤️

Let “the adventures of kindness, to myself” begin 💪🏼