Why Everything Feels So Overwhelming Right Now: Collective Trauma, Emotional Burnout, & the Nervous System
- Katie Carhart, PhD
- Jan 28
- 4 min read
Updated: Mar 8
Why What We’re Witnessing Feels So Traumatic (It's Collective Trauma)
Many people are asking themselves:Why does everything feel so intense right now? Why am I exhausted, anxious, numb, or overwhelmed just trying to exist?
The answer isn’t that you’re “too sensitive.”It’s that your nervous system is doing exactly what it was designed to do.
As humans, our nervous systems are constantly scanning for danger and safety. This process, often called neuroception, happens automatically and beneath conscious awareness. When we witness injustice, violence, suffering, or systemic harm, our bodies register this as threat. Sometimes you may feel anxious and frozen at the same time.
Even if it’s happening through a screen.Even if it’s not happening directly to us.
Watching violence or injustice doesn’t just affect our thoughts, it activates our bodies.
This is why so many people are experiencing:
Emotional burnout
Chronic stress
Anxiety or panic
Emotional numbness
Difficulty focusing
Sleep disturbances
A sense of dread or helplessness
These are not personal failures. They are trauma responses.
The Nervous System Cost of Constant Exposure
This pattern isn't just something I see in clinical work. I was recently consulted by Cosmopolitan on the psychological and nervous system impact of consuming highly distressing news content, particularly how repeated exposure can dysregulate the nervous system even when people aren't directly involved. Impacts can include: emotional overwhelm, heightened anxiety, shutdown, and a growing sense that the world feels unsafe or unmanageable.
There Is No “Right” Way to Respond
There is no normal, correct, or morally superior way to react to what we’re witnessing. We're all witnessing and experiencing collective trauma in real time. This can lead to feeling eomtionally overwhelmed.
You might feel:
Activated, anxious, or on edge
Frozen, numb, disconnected, or shut down
Overwhelmed by sadness, rage, grief, horror, or shock
All of the above, cycling unpredictably
These responses are signs of a nervous system under strain, not a broken one. And for many people, this becomes even harder when the world around them minimizes what’s happening.
When media, institutions, or people in our lives dismiss, gaslight, or downplay injustice, it can feel deeply destabilizing. Your body is saying something is wrong, and when others deny that reality, it creates internal conflict.
That disconnect, between what your body knows and what you’re being told, is profoundly activating.
It can lead us to:
Doubt ourselves
Stuff or suppress emotions
Disconnect from our bodies
Push ourselves toward “normal” before we’re ready
You Don’t Have to Ignore Your Feelings to Function
Avoidance can feel tempting. Many of us were taught, explicitly or implicitly, that big emotions are dangerous, inconvenient, or something to get over quickly.
But emotions are energy. And energy that isn’t allowed to move doesn’t disappear: it gets stored.
Over time, this contributes to:
Burnout
Chronic tension
Emotional shutdown
Increased anxiety or irritability
Physical symptoms
If it’s safe to do so, giving yourself space to feel, even in small doses, matters.
This might look like:
Naming what you’re feeling without judgment
Letting yourself cry, shake, or sigh
Writing without trying to “fix” the emotion
Talking with people who can hold your reality without minimizing it
You deserve to be witnessed.
How to Ground and Move Big Emotions Through the Body
Because emotions live in the body, somatic (body-based) tools can be especially helpful.
Some gentle options:
Walking, stretching, yoga, or any rhythmic movement
Shaking out your arms and legs
Taking slow, intentional breaths with long exhales
Pressing your feet into the floor and noticing sensation
Cold or warm water on your face or hands
Movement doesn’t have to be intense to be effective. The goal is to signal to your nervous system: I am here, I am moving, I am not trapped.
Action Can Be Regulating, Too
Another powerful way to support the nervous system is taking action. When we feel helpless, our bodies register immobility as danger. Action, even small, imperfect action, helps restore a sense of agency.
This might include:
Donating if you’re financially able
Calling or emailing your senators and representatives
Sharing resources
Showing up in ways that align with your values
Action doesn’t have to be everything.It just has to be something.
I’ll be including some organizations and resources below for ways to take action if that feels within your capacity right now.
A Final Reminder
If you’re feeling exhausted, emotional, shut down, or overwhelmed—there is nothing wrong with you.
Your nervous system is responding to a world that feels unsafe and unjust. Care for yourself isn’t disengagement. Feeling doesn’t mean you’re weak. Rest doesn’t mean you don’t care.
You are allowed to tend to your body and care deeply about what’s happening.
If You're Wanting to Take Action
Contact your senators and representatives to speak your voice:
Donate:
Other ways to help:
Share mutual aid links or donation pages with 1–2 people
Forward an action alert to someone who cares but may not be plugged in
Donate to or volunteer at a community food pantry
Help someone fill out a form, make a call, or navigate a system
Check in on elders or isolated community members
If You're Wanting Support Beyond What You Can Do On Your Own
I work with people who are feeling burned out, emotionally overwhelmed, activated, or shut down, often in response to ongoing stress, trauma, and the state of the world. My work is nervous-system-informed and body-based, with a focus on helping you feel safer, more grounded, and more resourced in your day-to-day life.
If working together feels like it might be supportive, you can learn more about my work here or reach out when you’re ready.
About the Author
Dr. Katie Carhart, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist and founder of Align & Empower Therapy. She specializes in trauma-informed therapy, adult ADHD evaluation, burnout, and nervous system regulation.
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