Brain Dumping
Brain dumping is a way to clear out the mental clutter that can keep you up at night, steal your focus or clog up your thinking.
This week I am challenging you to do a brain dump activity that can help with coping more effectively with stress. Stress is a God given emotion, our body revs up with increased oxygen, heart rate and alertness to act and do. When we get stuck in stress and do not make sense of all the racing thoughts, create organization and priorities all the thoughts can seem overwhelming. Effective methods of coping involve breathing, stretching, journaling, reading devotionals, meditation on God’s word, or a walk-in nature. They are all tools to help us manage the emotion of stress and use it in our favor, verses stuffing it which leads to chronic conditions and manifests in the body or the mind. Use of effective coping also improves resilience and our ability to bounce back when life happens. We can use tools to regulate our emotions like a thermostat, verses simply measure stress like a thermometer.
Sometimes when our brains are full it’s hard to accomplish a task like decluttering our desk or taking on that big project. I invite you to list everything that is cluttering your mind. Dump it out like you would your junk drawer or your purse. It’s time to sort out the “junk” and dump it all out.
This image shows a brain dump and then color coding tasks to be done. This can help organize tasks and set a plan for accomplishing them.
Don’t worry about what the thought is, big or small, if it comes, just like in brainstorming, write it down. Then after a few minutes, collect the useful thoughts/items and then sort your thoughts from there into priority levels. Some thoughts might be considered trash and can be tossed out. Others might need to be part of your prayer list, and other items need to be added to a list, so they are not forgotten.
Clearing your mind of mental clutter can help you be calmer, show you a place to start with and process things that can wait at another time. This cleansing can help you sleep better because thoughts aren’t racing around, they are on paper. They will not be forgotten; you can check in on them later.
Feel stuck with your brain dump exercise? Here are some brain dump ideas to get you thinking again:
What have you been worried about?
What do you keep forgetting to do?
What would make you happy or give you joy?
Did something go wrong with your day/week?
What really worked today/ this week?
What tasks never seem to get done?
Was there something you didn’t get time to do?
Is there an upcoming event or special occasion?
Are there maintenance tasks you keep meaning to do around the home, for the car, or other areas?
Is there someone you keep meaning to contact? Or an act of kindness you would love to do for someone special.
Are there any big goals you keep putting off that would make a big difference to your life? Maybe you want to take up yoga, start a new fitness routine or lose a few pounds.
Is there something you would love to learn?
Maybe there’s part of your routine that really isn’t working?
Is there part of your home that needs rearranging or redecorating?
Do you need to plan a vacation, party, or other exciting events?
Is someone or something annoying you?
You will know when you have done enough when you psychically feel lighter. You may even find yourself letting out a big breath.
HOW OFTEN SHOULD YOU BRAIN DUMP?
This is very personal. Some people do them daily or even weekly. My best advice is to do it whenever you are feeling overwhelmed, stressed, or drowning in the lists and tasks running through your mind.
You could also do a brain dump if you are feeling stuck with a problem, feeling emotional or issue.
You may find it hard to sleep. In which case I would suggest doing a quick brain dump before bed each evening. You will be surprised how quickly this relaxes you.
I would also advise having a scheduled brain dump maybe once a week too. Just as mental health maintenance and to start understanding your habits and gain more self-awareness.