I’ve a small secret to tell….I haven't been practicing what I evangelise! I talk of balance and being kind to oneself and not biting off more than you can chew – but this month I overdid it. I share this with you because this situation is one we all find ourselves in, at some time or another.

I should say that I don't like being too busy , except for some stupid reason I believed it would be a good idea to take 2 classes on top of my already really full life. The classes are great, but I like – no, need – to have enough time to write blog entries, have a social life, play with my kids (OK that?s the sole thing that I would not let suffer), etc. It’s one of those situations where everything sounds really good, and you want to do it all, now.

I did not even go too far with anything that I dislike – I just piled on too many things that were fun – telling myself, “I think I will, I think I can….”

I now loathe that little blue engine that would and everything he stands for. My children have this book and I took a quick peek at it after this popped into my head and I should say – what a handful of rubbish!!!

The truth is, we can each have a lot of good activities and plans in our lives. We just can’t have them all at once.

Biting off more that you caneasily swallow is not a message that I want to share with my children. Realistically, is it truly a good idea for a little engine lacking in horsepower to tug an enormous load up an enormous hill when he could kill himself and everybody he’s pulling if he fails?

I suspect not.

While it is important to believe you can attain your craziest dreams and go for it, I don't believe it’s smart to teach our youngsters to take on stupid challenges. You do need to know your limits (we are human after all) and be clever about the risks that you take on.

There is the concept of taking moderated risks- ones where you know that you have a good chance at being successful.

I should really know better (I am a therapist and my hubby teaches folk the proper way to use tech to make their lives and their enterprises go smoothly and mechanically) and I'm taking steps to clear my schedule and remedy the situation.

I momentarily forgot the first rule of stress management – DO LESS! Even way too much of a nice thing can be exhausting no matter how captivating it can be to squeeze just one other thing in.

If you are feeling overwhelmed, take a good hard look at what you can cut out to make life simpler. Just because you could be able to do something in the short term does not imply that it is a good idea to continue to do it indefinitely.

If you work 40 hours per week, commute 5 hours (and that is on the low side for many of us most people), spend 30 hours a week keeping your place together (that's the average period of time spent cleaning, running errands, paying debts, etc), hopefully 5 hours each week exercising, and if you have kids forget about the rest of your free time – you are going to crash and burn.

Take steps now to cut out what drains you (or occasionally who drains you) and simplify your life. If you cannot cut back at work, you're going to have to scale back on housework either by hiring a housekeeper getting rid of stuff so you don’t have to spend some time organizing and cleaning it, or working out other creative solutions (e.g, I like my roomba).

Be cruel. If you're feeling overwhelmed you owe it to and to those who have to live with you to do less!

Dr. Christine Korol is a psychological therapist who makes a speciality of helping those experiencing anxiety and worry. Visit her site for tips, anxiety cartoons, and more resources on stress reduction.