English for Stress, Rest and Overthinking — Talking About How You Feel

You can describe your job in English, order food, argue about a bill. Then a friend asks how you're really doing and you produce I am tired — a true sentence that says almost nothing.

This is a genuine gap in most people's English, because coursebooks teach happy, sad, angry at A1 and then move on to the passive voice. The vocabulary of modern stress arrives nowhere.

Saying you're not okay

English has a ladder here, and the rungs matter.

"I've got a lot on" is the most useful phrase on this page. It's the standard English way to say you're overloaded without dramatising it, and it works with a boss, a friend or a landlord.

"Burnt out" is specific — sustained exhaustion from overwork, not a bad week. Using it casually will worry people.

Note how much of this is understatement. I'm not coping brilliantly often means I am not coping. English routinely dials the words down and expects the listener to dial them back up — which is why learners who translate directly can sound either alarming or oddly unbothered.

The vocabulary of worry

Structures you'll use constantly:

• I can't stop thinking about it.
• I keep going over it in my head.
• I know it's irrational, but…
• I've been overthinking this all week.
• I just can't switch off.

"I know it's irrational, but…" is worth memorising whole. It's how English speakers introduce a worry they can't justify, and having it ready means you can talk about the feeling without having to defend it. Overthinking: Why We Can't Stop is built on exactly this at B1–B2.

For fears specifically — the ones that don't respond to logic — Phobias covers the vocabulary at the same level.

Rest, and why English is strange about it

There's a whole register for rest that learners rarely meet, partly because English-speaking cultures are ambivalent about it. Notice how many of these quietly apologise:

• I'm having a lazy day.
• I'm doing absolutely nothing today, and it's glorious.
• I need a proper break.
• I'm going to switch off this weekend.
• I'm taking it easy.
• I've earned this.

"I've earned this" is culturally revealing: rest gets framed as payment for work rather than as a normal human requirement. You don't have to agree with that, but recognising it explains a lot of what people say.

Useful distinctions:

• a break — short, within a day
• time off — days away from work
• annual leave / holiday / vacation — booked days (UK: holiday, US: vacation)
• a day off — one day
• sick leave — off because you're unwell
• downtime — unstructured free time

The Art of Doing Nothing takes this whole idea at B1–B2, and Seated Stretch: A Mini Yoga Break covers the body-and-movement vocabulary that goes with it.

When someone else is struggling

This is where learners freeze hardest, because the wrong phrase is worse than silence.

Say:

• That sounds really hard.
• I'm sorry you're going through that.
• Do you want to talk about it, or would you rather be distracted?
• Is there anything I can do?
• That makes complete sense.
• I'm here if you need anything.

Avoid:

• At least… — however kindly meant, it dismisses
• Everything happens for a reason.
• Just try not to think about it.
• Others have it worse.
• Immediately offering a solution

"Do you want to talk about it, or would you rather be distracted?" is the single best sentence here. It offers help without deciding which help they need, and most people don't know which until asked.

At work

Where the register tightens and the words get more careful:

• I'm at capacity at the moment — could we push the deadline?
• I want to flag that I'm stretched a bit thin.
• I'm going to need to take a day.
• Could we look at priorities? I don't think I can do all of this well.

"Could we look at priorities?" is the professional version of this is too much. It states the problem as a shared planning question rather than a personal failure, which is how it gets heard as competent.

Common questions

How do I say I'm stressed in English?

There's a ladder: "I'm a bit run-down" is mild, "I'm shattered" is exhausted, "I've got a lot on" means overloaded, and "I'm burnt out" is serious and specific — sustained exhaustion from overwork, not a bad week.

What does "I've got a lot on" mean?

That you're overloaded with commitments. It's the standard, undramatic way to say you're stretched, and it works equally with a boss, a friend or a landlord.

What does overthinking mean in English?

Turning something over in your mind far past the point of usefulness. Related expressions: "spiralling" (thoughts escalating), "stuck in a loop" (the same thought repeating), "dwelling on it" (unable to leave the past alone) and "I can't switch off".

What should I say when a friend is struggling?

"That sounds really hard", "I'm sorry you're going through that", and best of all "Do you want to talk about it, or would you rather be distracted?" Avoid starting with "At least…" or offering a solution straight away — both land as dismissive however kindly meant.

How do I tell my boss I have too much work, in English?

Frame it as planning, not complaint: "I'm at capacity at the moment — could we push the deadline?" or "Could we look at priorities? I don't think I can do all of this well." Both read as competent rather than as a personal failure.

Where to start

Overthinking: Why We Can't Stop is the B1–B2 course on the worry vocabulary, and the natural companion to this page.

The Art of Doing Nothing covers rest and the strange guilt attached to it at the same level, Phobias handles fear and anxiety, and Seated Stretch: A Mini Yoga Break gives you the body vocabulary at A2–B1.