Advice for the chronically overwhelmed. A framework to help you develop clarity of thought and break the cycle of confusion.

Feeling overwhelmed is like being stuck in quicksand. The more you try and escape, the deeper you sink. Your anxiety increases, your stress increases, your confusion increases. You know that you want to escape, you're actively trying to escape. But despite all of your efforts, you make no progress.

This is how a lot of us feel with regards to our own lives. We have high aspirations and want to achieve something meaningful with our lives. But almost paradoxically, the more we try to escape the quicksand, the deeper we sink. Our hands are unable to purchase onto something substantial, handfuls of sand just slip through our fingers.

I've always chased this idea of freedom. Wanting to escape the quicksand so that I'm able to live my life according to my own terms. The idea of being told to do something that contradicts my values and interests made me angry (and still does). So, in my attempts to escape this quicksand, I too frantically tried to grab onto anything that I could to help me. I started a t-shirt business, I started a print of demand mug business, I started a property business, I started a digital prints business, I started a SaaS business, I started podcasts... and Allah only knows how many things that I've missed out. At the end of the day, I was flailing around in frustration. Trying to grab onto anything that I could, only to see it fall though my fingers like sand.

Discovering the Power of Slowness

The times I've felt relief from these feelings of ambient anxiety and frustration is when I've had prolonged periods of slowness. The first time that I experienced the benefits of prolonged rest and slowness is when I stopped using social media for 29 days. No YouTube, no Instagram, no Twitter. Nothing. I would walk in silence, I would eat in silence, I would commute in silence. And after about two weeks, my mind felt silent, my mind felt rested. I no longer had this feeling of suppressed panic, worrying about what I'm supposed to do next. Not because I had lost my drive or ambition, but because the quality and clarity of my thoughts had increased. I realised that there is a correlation between what my mind consumed and what my mind produced. I realised that my mind was overstimulated, not broken. You need to realise that too.

To escape quicksand, you need to move with calmness and clarity. You need to stop panicking, and you need to let your mind rest.

A framework to develop calm and clarity. The slow protocol.

1. Unplug Stop consuming digital media for a month. This isn't the easy answer your nafs is looking for. But you have to decide what you value more. Cheap dopamine, or mental clarity?

2. Journal Write down your thoughts and analyse them critically. Journaling allows you to rationalise your thoughts and makes it easier to comprehend the cycle of confusion we often get stuck in.

3. Reintroduce Stimulation Mindfully After 1 month, reintroduce media consumption, but be mindful of what you allow your mind to be affected by. Remember, low quality input = low quality output. Cut the fat.

4. Maintain Cycles of Rest and Reflection Develop your daily slow protocol. Slipping back into bad habits is inevitable, we're human. Now that you're reintegrating media back into your information diet, it's incredibly easy to fall back into bad habits (I did). To prevent this, establish a routine of rest and reflection. A small and regular portion of time where you allow your mind to slow down and decompress. See what works best for you. A morning walk, no media 2 hours before bed, only using social media on your computer etc.

Dedicate some time to allow your mind to decompress from consuming digital media.

Tune out the static noise in your mind.

We live in a time where there are so many paths, projects, and ideas to pursue that it can become paralysing. That fact that there are so many options ironically results in us often not doing anything. And if we do decide to take action we frequently flip-flop between ideas due to shiny object syndrome.

Once you reset from overstimulation, you’ll find it easier to comprehend the higher leverage thoughts that have been buried in your mind. It's like changing the radio frequency from a channel of high static, to a channel where you can actually hear something clearly.

So commit to a month of unplugging and journaling. Understand yourself.

I pray that Allah allows you to benefit from this form of recovery. And I pray that he protects us from losing ourselves in anxiety and panic and confusion.

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السلام عليكم