Why September can feel overwhelming and what to do about it

3:14 AM ETDeveloping

Health Desk

In Short: September often feels overwhelming due to our brain's tendency to recall past stressful experiences, making us anticipate similar feelings. Awareness and proactive gratitude can help manage these emotions.

September can feel particularly overwhelming due to our brain's inclination to recall past stressful experiences, leading us to expect similar feelings. According to The i Paper, this phenomenon is rooted in our psychological conditioning, making the 'back to...' vibes of the month particularly challenging to navigate.

Unawareness of these underlying feelings can cause them to take over and start much earlier than necessary. The i Paper advises being aware of where these feelings come from to prevent them from spiraling out of control.

For individuals of all ages, the psychological conditioning of associating September with the start of a new school year can be particularly strong and difficult to counter. This conditioning can make it hard to avoid the stress that often accompanies the month.

The current world situation can exacerbate these feelings, making it harder to find things to be thankful for. However, ironically, proactively cultivating gratitude can actually help reduce stress levels, according to The i Paper.

Being aware of these feelings and taking steps to manage them, such as focusing on gratitude, can help individuals navigate the September 'back to...' vibes more effectively and avoid spiraling into stress.

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But our brains like stories, and they respond to our memory of “Stressful September”, so they tell us to expect it.
How to navigate the September ‘back to...’ vibes so that you don't spiral September is here, and with it comes the whole “back to…” energy.
We may find our anxiety levels increase, our sleep is more disturbed, we are more irritable or just feel more agitated generally.
The world feels like a difficult place at the moment, and it can feel very hard sometimes to find things to be thankful for; when we are overwhelmed, we have less capacity to notice and reflect on the good things.

Sources

The i Paperlink