5 Gentle Ways Highly Sensitive People Can Reset After Overstimulation

As a HSP I have spent a lot of my life feeling overwhelmed and overstimulated. I can think of times when I would zone out mid-conversation because I was in sensory overload and simply couldn’t process what the other person was saying.

When you’re a HSP you see the world differently, because you have heightened processing responses — in fact, parts of your brain respond to threat more quickly and easily.

That’s why we can be naturally hypervigilant, take on others’ emotions as our own, and end up questioning ourselves. It’s also why decision fatigue can hit us harder.

The good news is that overstimulation can be managed with proper care. I always draw on these tools to help me, and honestly — they have changed the way I show up in the world, both for myself and for others.

Here are my top 5 gentle ways to stop overstimulation:

1. Mindfulness
I weave mindfulness into my day — a pause, a mindful walk, or simply checking in with my breath. These small moments can do wonders for bringing us back into our bodies. Shifting attention to the senses helps distract from spiralling thoughts and feelings.

2. Gentle movement
This could be somatic shaking, breathwork, or any simple way to move your body. When we’re overstimulated, it can feel impossible to just sit still. Sometimes our energy needs to be gently downshifted first. Think of it like driving a car: you can’t slam from 100 to 0 in an instant, you have to ease on the brakes. Our nervous system works in a similar way.

3. Calming breathwork
Choose breathing techniques that activate the parasympathetic nervous system. I love using box breath or a cooling breath like golden thread breath. These help bring the body into a calmer, more regulated state.

4. Build micro-routines
Being proactive is so much easier than being reactive. Micro-routines — like a short breath practice before work, or a mindful pause before meals — prevent overstimulation from building in the first place.

5. Get the basics right
So much overstimulation is made worse by everyday factors. A poor night’s sleep can make a child’s screams feel ten times louder. Skipping meals can turn into irritability or even anger. Meeting your basic needs really is a form of nervous system care.

If you’d like more tips on managing overstimulation, come and join me over on Instagram @thesensitive.space.

I’m also offering a special discount this week on The Overstimulation Reset Kit — it’s 70% off right now. This kit was designed with you in mind, and includes the exact tools I go back to again and again as a HSP.