How do I keep up when the catch volume and conditions get overwhelming?

You can process the catch, and that competence was hard-won on a deck that forgives nothing. When the volume surges and the weather turns, it still overwhelms you, and no wonder. Those are the moments the job pushes anyone to their limit. Feeling overwhelmed there is not softness. It is being human in a brutal setting. When everything hits at once, the mind wants to do all of it and freezes. The way through is to stop looking at the whole pile and fix your attention on the fish in your hands right now. Speed comes back when you narrow down to the next motion instead of the mountain. Build your rhythm one movement at a time and let it carry you. And know your limits honestly: rest when you can, keep your footing, watch the crew. The sea rewards steady hands over frantic ones. Handling the next fish well, again and again, is how you get through the worst of it.