You may have heard you need to “feel your feelings” in order to overcome anxiety or depression or to process trauma. But what if your feelings feel too overwhelming? For many people the idea of feeling their emotions is terrifying. Perhaps you’re flooded with too many emotions at once and the sensations become too much to manage. If you’re feeling this way, it makes sense that you’d want to avoid tuning in to your body and emotions. It is your body’s way of protecting you.

So how do we get into this state? How do we get ourselves to a point where we feel just enough, but not too much. If you find yourself either too overwhelmed or feeling numb and disconnected, here are some tips to help you find more balance and connect with your emotions more clearly.

Many of us with anxiety struggle with indecisiveness. It could be decisions about school, such as deciding what classes to take. For a lot of high school seniors, the decision about what college to attend can feel paralyzing. For young adults, it might be the decision to take a job, make a move, or decide if it’s time to end a relationship. Whatever the decision, there are ways to approach it that can reduce anxiety and increase your confidence and trust in yourself.

When you combine this developmental reality with the real stress that teens have been under since the pandemic, it is understandable that they can become easily overwhelmed by emotions. There’s even a recent study that showed teens’ brains aged faster in the first year of the pandemic due to increased stress.

So how do we help our teens at such a crucial time? How do we help teens cope with anxiety and depression? Teens need us now more than ever to guide them through how to cope and help them to feel they’re not alone. Here are some tips to help your teen when they are overwhelmed by big emotions:

For many people, anxiety is most intense first thing in the morning. You may find yourself waking with symptoms of anxiety as soon as you wake up, even before your feet hit the floor. If you find yourself feeling the most anxious in the morning hours, here are some strategies to find relief.