I Feel Powerless” | Why You Feel So And What to Do About It

There could come a time when you’ll feel out of control and helpless to change what’s happening around you. Trust me, I get it. Feeling helpless and powerless is the worst thing you can imagine when you’ve always been the one to be in control. Maybe you feel stuck or are experiencing a loss that makes you think, “I can’t do this anymore” or “This is what it is”

That, I get too. Feeling powerless in life is a devastating experience that many of us face at some point in our lives. Sometimes, the helplessness stems from personal challenges while other times, global issues can make us feel powerless. Regardless of the causes, the feeling is enough to make us bend to our knees in despair.

If you’ve ever experienced this kind of powerlessness and helplessness, then you are not the only one and I see you. To overcome this feeling, it’s first important to understand where it comes from.

Once you know what makes you feel so powerless, you can take effective action against such feelings and come out with a regained sense of power and control.

Why Do You Feel So Powerless?

Various factors can make you feel powerless in life such as injustice, oppression, discrimination, health issues, career setbacks, and even psychological issues such as learned helplessness.

1. Global And Social Factors:

Factors such as injustice, global crises, or discrimination can make you feel powerless. This feeling comes from being unable to do anything to change these circumstances.

2. Life Challenges:

Challenges in life such as financial difficulties, health crises, relationship problems, or career issues can also make you feel helpless and powerless to change your life. It can make you feel stuck in a place where you can’t do anything to change your circumstances.

3. Learned Helplessness:

Learned helplessness develops due to previous negative experiences. When you face negative responses and failures constantly, it can create a mindset that can make you feel out of control and powerless.

What to Do When You Feel Powerless?

1. Focus on Your Strengths

You can regain power by focusing on your strengths and skills instead of what holds you back. When you become aware of your circumstances and what triggers the powerlessness you feel, you can then take measures to change your circumstances.

You can consider your body’s reaction when you feel powerless, what thoughts cross your mind, or what actions you take when you feel powerless or helpless in life. Answering these questions can help you focus on what you can do instead of what is out of your control.

2. Try Visualization

One of the best ways to focus on the future is to practice visualizing. When you think positively, you work positively. To change your circumstances, you need to change how you think about them first. Visualization can help you focus on creating a calm and healing headspace where you are in power and not feeling helpless.

It is also reported in various studies that imaging exercises and visualization can help ease depression symptoms. Feeling helpless constantly is a sign of depression, so practicing visualization can help you kill two birds with one stone!

3. Question Your Thoughts

Try questioning your thoughts when you feel powerless. More often than not, it’s our cognitive distortions that can contribute to us feeling powerless. When you challenge your thinking, you get answers that can help you come out of the trap.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself;

• How do I know this thought is true?
• Is there evidence that says that what I’m thinking is true?
• Am I too worried about this when there’s no reason to?
• Can this have any other explanation?

4. Assess Your Helpless Situation

If you’re thinking, “I feel so powerless” then here’s what you need to do; assess your situation, objectively. Take a step back and look at your situation from an objective and specific view. If you’re feeling powerless, then assess the factors contributing to the feeling of powerlessness.

If you can figure out the cause of your powerlessness, then it can become easier to address it head-on.

5. Adopt a Growth Mindset

Once You have what is causing you helpless emotion. Next, you can try to adopt a growth mindset where you take time to understand the setbacks and factors of powerlessness as a part of the journey. You take this time to look at the challenges as opportunities for learning and growth.

This is where you embrace and work towards building resilience and belief in yourself that you can change your life for the better.

6. Take Action. Start Small

Sometimes, all you need to do is take small steps and act to change your life. Small steps and actions can leave a big impact on your life. Figure out what actions can help you take back control and power and incorporate them into your life.

Regardless of the intensity of the action, you can feel a sense of power and control that will help you start a ripple effect from there. Don’t think too much, just take small steps.

7. Seek Support

If you’re struggling with feelings of powerlessness and helplessness and don’t know where to go from there, then seek support. Friends, family, and even therapists can be a good source of guidance and support. They can offer fresh perspectives, and encouragement, and even help you figure out the cause of your feelings.

If you want, you can join support groups – online or offline – to feel connected with others and less alone in your struggles. The best part is that by doing this, you can learn a lot from what others share!

Wrapping Up

It can be quite challenging to lose control and power over something as significant as your life. If you’re thinking, “I feel so powerless” then you’re not alone. Feeling powerless and helpless is a natural response to adversity and challenges. You can learn to overcome feeling powerless by understanding the factors contributing to such feelings.

With the ways I’ve listed above, you can learn to overcome feeling powerless and regain control of your life once more. Remember, that the ability to make a change lies in your hands. So embrace the power you carry, learn to believe in yourself, and let your mindset change how you view your life.

I hope this article helped you learn what to do when you feel powerless. For more, you can write to me at info@calmsage.com or leave a comment in the section below.

Take Care!