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Calm AF | Overthinking, Anxiety & Nervous System Regulation · June 24 · 9 min

Why Working Harder Doesn't Solve the Problem

Your whole life you've been told that when something feels bad, you should do something about it. Think harder. Work harder. Make a plan. Research the solution. Figure it out. But what if all that effort is the thing keeping you stuck? In this episode, I share a coaching conversation with a client who found herself angry after realizing how much she'd been carrying in her relationships. Like most high achievers, her instinct wasn't to feel the anger. It was to get busy. To solve. To fix. To do something. What she discovered instead is something I see all the time: Sometimes you're not solving the problem. You're solving the discomfort. And sometimes the action you think is helping is actually creating more work, more exhaustion, and more distance from the thing that needs your attention. We talk about why uncomfortable feelings so often trigger action, how hypervigilance disguises itself as responsibility, and why learning to feel a feeling without treating it like an emergency might be one of the most important skills you ever build. Because sometimes there isn't actually a problem to solve. There's just a feeling to feel. 🩵 Get individualized support Get direct access to me for personalized guidance, honest feedback, nervous system calibration, and support tailored to your specific goals, challenges, and circumstances. Find out more here 🩵 Get daily support The Daily Recalibration gives you short daily reminders to help your nervous system stop defaulting to people pleasing, overfunctioning, and self abandonment. Get the Daily Recalibration 🩵 Get community support The calm AF community is the place to practice what you're learning alongside people who are doing the same work. Join the list for the next cohort of the Calm AF Community.

0:00-9:36

transcript

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show notes

Your whole life you've been told that when something feels bad, you should do something about it.

Think harder.

Work harder.

Make a plan.

Research the solution.

Figure it out.

But what if all that effort is the thing keeping you stuck?

In this episode, I share a coaching conversation with a client who found herself angry after realizing how much she'd been carrying in her relationships. Like most high achievers, her instinct wasn't to feel the anger. It was to get busy.

To solve.

To fix.

To do something.

What she discovered instead is something I see all the time:

Sometimes you're not solving the problem.

You're solving the discomfort.

And sometimes the action you think is helping is actually creating more work, more exhaustion, and more distance from the thing that needs your attention.

We talk about why uncomfortable feelings so often trigger action, how hypervigilance disguises itself as responsibility, and why learning to feel a feeling without treating it like an emergency might be one of the most important skills you ever build.

Because sometimes there isn't actually a problem to solve.

There's just a feeling to feel.

🩵 Get individualized support

Get direct access to me for personalized guidance, honest feedback, nervous system calibration, and support tailored to your specific goals, challenges, and circumstances. Find out more here

🩵 Get daily support

The Daily Recalibration gives you short daily reminders to help your nervous system stop defaulting to people pleasing, overfunctioning, and self abandonment. Get the Daily Recalibration

🩵 Get community support

The calm AF community is the place to practice what you're learning alongside people who are doing the same work. Join the list for the next cohort of the Calm AF Community.

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