BECAUSE I have the privilege in my work of talking to lots of people, I also get to hear different descriptions for what are often very similar states of being. Recent example are ‘my head is fidgety’, ‘my brain feels like spaghetti’, ‘my thoughts are all mushed up’, ‘everything feels tangled’, or ‘there are just so many balls in the air that I can’t catch any of them’.

Although each person’s set of circumstances will be unique to them, the phenomenon they are describing here is quite commonplace. It’s that feeling of being so overwhelmed with everything that is going on that you hardly know where to start anymore. This can often feel very uncomfortable and anxiety provoking.

If any of that resonates with you, one really helpful tip can be to get it all down on paper. This may sound ineffective to anyone that hasn’t tried it – but actually it can bring an enormous amount of relief. I like to think of the subconscious mind as being like a best friend who is trying hard to help but who doesn’t always get it right!

In doing its best to keep us well it will keep reminding us of things it thinks we need to take notice of. When we have a lot of things to consider it will get concerned that we might ignore something important so it will send constant mental reminders to us in an effort to be helpful.

Sometimes this will be in the form of a direct thought, sometimes through restless dreams and sometimes in the form of a physical symptom like butterflies in the stomach or tightness in the shoulders. The result, though, is that with all these thoughts and physical sensations floating around it can feel worrying at best and at worst completely overwhelming.

Writing your thoughts down and creating visual lists can often help to reassure your mind that in fact you have not forgotten what needs to be done. Once it knows that, you are less likely to be troubled by those constant worrying reminders. I have met with many people who have felt a sense of relief simply by talking through everything that is on their mind and then seeing it in front of them in written form.

Some people ask to see me just to have what they describe as a ‘brain dump’ as they know it will help clear their minds and allow them to move forward instead of remaining overwhelmed.

Whilst a list such as this may still be a long one – once it is on paper it is no longer swirling around as much in your brain. You can see what you need to do and also start to break it down into manageable steps. Each item that you are able to tick off will be a reminder that you are getting on with things and that they are moving in the right direction.

We often talk about the benefits of decluttering our physical space, thereby making our material possessions easier to find. In the same way – taking the time to put your jumbled thoughts onto paper can be a great way to declutter a crowded mind and give yourself some badly needed headspace.

In the busy and demanding world we are all currently living in, having a little bit of headspace is likely to be of benefit to us all!