LIFE IN FOCUS

  Breathe in deeply to bring your mind home to your body.  - Thich Nhat Hanh Emotional and cognitive overload is the feeling you get when everything seems to be coming at you at once.  The speed feels relentless and the demands are escalating exponentially.  Almost everyone can identify with the pressure of the feeling of overwhelm. Too much to do and not enough time! The question, in that  moment,  becomes-  What do I do?  Unless we are talking about circumstances in which your training has prepared you for rapid-fire decision making and execution, such as  working in the emergency room or on military special operations missions, your personal situation in which you are feeling the stress of overwhelm is likely due to a life that has  snuck up on you. Your To-Do list that once felt manageable has now grown to include a  plethora of responsibilities with strict deadlines that you did not entirely anticipate. Or, an  unexpected and serious situation developed that will now require your

  Mind Wandering WHEN YOUR ATTENTION SHIFTS AWAY FROM THE CURRENT  ACTIVITY TO AN INTERNAL STREAM OF THOUGHT You are actively working on a team project, in conversation with your neighbor, or sitting in a lecture hall learning about art history and, all of a sudden, you "space out." Your mind  left the project, the conversation, or the room; taking it upon itself to exit the current situation in lieu of staying, attending and focusing.  Conscious experience is fluid and rarely is one focused on a particular topic or action for very long.  Upon returning to awareness, your short trip away may have been experienced as good, bad, rewarding, energizing, concerning and/or a plethora of other feelings.  Mind wandering is considered a normal and typical cognitive process and human experience that occurs throughout the day.  Sometimes this works to your advantage, helping you to solve a problem by seeing connections that have previously been elusive, and at other times, it creates a