Sometimes, life kicks the shit out of you. It can be hard to stay focused, motivated, or even convince yourself that there is a point to any of this. This past year has been a whirlwind. For about six months I had some kind of doomed domino effect going on all around me. I seriously needed to:
Get My Groove Back
One of my best friends died, I found out both of my dogs had died, my ex-boyfriend from home (we broke up because he never wanted to get married)… well, he got married, my grandmother was in and out of the hospital, my ‘dad’ here in Thailand had a stroke, and on Christmas, I found out my cousin had cancer.
It was a pretty shit six months. And those are just the highlights. There were other bumps in the road, and normal stuff too that I had to deal with. Come January I found myself just staring at the ceiling and asking myself:
“What the fuck is the point of any of this, ANYWAY?”
For the record, this is not a good question to ask yourself when you are not in a healthy state of mind. Most of the arguments in my head were against life, rather than for it. I have never been a negative person or thought of myself as depressed. But, I can sure identify with what people go through because, for those six months, I was struggling just to have something positive to hold onto.
And, I can tell you straight off…
What Didn’t Help:
Reading inspiring things — I wanted to strangle people. Especially since they sounded so happy they could burst.
Going out a lot — Bad idea… I couldn’t even fake like I wanted to be there.
Writing — I couldn’t even gather my thoughts together long enough to string along a sentence. Let alone be sarcastic, fun, or funny which is how I typically like to write.
** This also explains my absence from blog-writing, as I’m sure most of you wouldn’t enjoy reading something like
“Today I counted the cracks in my ceiling. There are a lot.”
Anyhow…
Over the past year since the shit storm began, I have done little things to get out of the funk and get my groove back. I am happy to say that last night, I was actually so happy and excited about things that I couldn’t even sleep!
If you find yourself in a funk, and life is throwing continuous shit grenades in your face, here are some things that might help…
- Stop asking yourself WHY questions. This one is a total head-spin and really is not productive, or healthy. I am a huge fan of self-assessment, but at a certain point, you need to realize that here on earth. Bad things happen and people get sick and die.
- Let yourself stare at the ceiling. You are in shock. It takes awhile to wear off. Drool some.
- Realize that most of the things you normally do, you might not be able to do… for a while. Not forever, just for a while.
- Tell people around you that you are fragile and not to tell you any bad news. This one was HUGE for me, as I realized that I was close to a breaking point. I didn’t want to actually burst into a million pieces. So I started a No Bad News Policy. I wouldn’t even let my own mother give me people’s health reports because I simply couldn’t take any more bad news.
- Run. I was not a runner, but I am now. I find it is one of the only activities that can actually go faster than my brain. It simultaneously slows down my thoughts, and exhausts me to the point where I could again sleep at night. This is also a good counter for the junk food you will invariably be stuffing your face with and helps to burn off the chips, Cheetos, and chocolate.
- Slowly, slowly, let yourself accept what has happened. It is too much to swallow at first, but over time, you will start to process everything and come to a point of acceptance. I’m hoping peace is right around the corner, but I haven’t got that far yet… I will keep you posted!
- Get away. Of course, this is something I can do more easily than others, but if you get a chance, do take a break from your natural environment. I had an opportunity to work with a bigger company and do some business stuff in Malaysia, and I took it. I don’t know if that was the right thing to do, but it has been something to take my mind off of the above and helped me to get even more focused about what I want, and how things will be when I go back.
- “What do you appreciate?” My mom asked me this recently and I was shocked that I didn’t have a readied list in my head! It really forced me to see that I need to get back gratitude. And, back into the mindset of appreciation and get focused on what I am thankful for.
- Get back to the positive things in your life. After taking a healthy break from being yourself, slowly start to integrate back into what you used to enjoy. The things that recently seemed too big, will eventually become more manageable. And you will awaken the joy within yourself that has been dormant for some time.
- How to get your groove back! Last but not least, it is fun to feel funky. If you can’t muster up the energy to go out dancing, that is ok. Download some moves from YouTube, or watch some of the amazing dancing or talent shows. Be inspired by the human body, what it is capable of, and get inspired to Shake That Ass! I love watching “So You Think You Can Dance” and it lifts my spirits to see people flying through the air or getting down with their bad selves.
Word!! This is a rather long-ish post, but I am hopeful that I will be writing a lot more lately. I’m super grateful for all of you and the fact that while I’ve gone through this slump. I’m surprised that I have still been able to get comments, new subscribers, new signups to my video course. And, happy that my loyal clients are still on board and doing awesome with their businesses. This is my favorite thing, and it means everything that you have decided to come along for the ride!
Chin up, buttercup, good things are on the way!!
