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This metaphor was given to me by a client while we talked about how to use metaphors and images to represent feelings. This imagery was so powerful to me that I knew it would help others, and thus, asked them if I could share it. Years later, here I am, passing on this insight to others in hopes it will help them the way it helped my client.
Most of us can quickly recognize what “overwhelmed” feels like. It’s this sense of wanting to give up and scream at the same time. Our brain feels pulled in 100 directions. And it is that feeling my client connected to when they said “it feels like an I-Spy page.”
Think about it, when you look at an I-spy page, your brain is inundated with a mess of items on a page. Nothing seems connected and the page just feels like a mess. Even the thought of an I-Spy page feels overwhelming to me.
But there’s beauty in this metaphor too. Because in the same way we just put a picture to a feeling, we can also see a solution. That I-Spy page is made up of many items. But, if I tell you to find the boat, your eyes are quickly drawn to that one item. And often, you can find the boat even more quickly with each glance at the page. The boat no longer feels like it’s part of the mess. I could ask you to do this with other items as well, the key, the shovel, the shells. And each time, you’d find these images and the page would feel a little less messy.
In life, when we feel overwhelmed, it can help to imagine that our life stressors are like that I-Spy page: various items throw together with no common theme. When we begin to focus on one single piece though, it feels a little easier. It feels manageable.
If you are more visual, like me, it can help to actually write all of these stressors out. Put them on different strips of paper or post-it notes. Spread them out like an I-Spy page if you want.
Then, choose one, single piece of paper and pick it up. Decide if that is a task or stressor you want to focus on right now. If yes, ask yourself what you can do about it and do that thing. If no, then set it down and choose a different piece of paper. It may feel silly, but writing things out and organizing them is a great way to help your brain also begin to organize the thoughts swirling around.
Before you know it, that I-Spy page will look more like a list, and lists can be checked off. Feeling overwhelmed is often a product of “too much stuff” and if you can decrease the stuff, you can lower that sense of chaos in your mind.
Try out the exercise above. Let me know if/how it helps!
