Fav Five 🖐️ | How to reset and get out of a funk
Sharing my go-to process to get out of a funk, gently
Dear friend
I wrote in my February Substack Diary that I was feeling off last month.
I was moving, but not getting anywhere. I felt directionless, overwhelmed and soooo tired. It kind of feels like I go into hibernation because my creativity, motivation and self care stalls.
Sometimes these funks could be because of hormonal imbalances, stress, and life changes. For you, it could be because you’re dealing with sadness, burnout, sleep deprivation etc (or all of the above!).
(I don’t want to minimise metal health. I am talking about a funk that might last a day to just over a week. I’m not talking about depression or a chemical imbalance etc. Also, if you’ve been feeling like this for months at a time, please reach out and talk to someone you trust. It’s ok to not be ok xx.)
Thankfully, I often get to a point where I feel like, “I can do this” or “I’m sick of this”! It’s a small glimmer that the hibernation might be coming to an end, and that I’m ready for a “reset”.
The reset is something I developed a few years ago and it helps me to get back on track, gently, and it works every single time.
I thought I would share my fav five steps in case you need it as much as I did last month!
Enjoy!
Here’s the step-by-step/day-by-day detail on how I gently return to feeling more like myself. Please feel free to ask any questions!
Step 1: Tune inwards to see if I’m ready to reset (Day 0)
It’s really important to check-in to see if you’re ready to shift. If you aren’t ready mentally, physically or emotionally, then we need to extend grace to ourselves. We do this by allowing a little bit more time, knowing that the hibernation won’t last forever and that our “spring” is just around the corner. Once we feel like there is a shift and/or sliver of resilience, then we start Day 1 of the reset.
Step 2: Prioritise sleep no matter what (Day 1)
If it is in your control to do so, try and go to bed early. (I appreciate that there are some parents with young children/pregnant mamas/women going through menopause etc).
I love that this is the first thing in the reset. I may not have the mental fortitude and energy to make huge changes, but I can try and get an early night.
In order to do this, we need to do something like: shut off our phone/laptop earlier, put on some soothing music, turn down the lights, light a candle, have a nice herbal tea, read a book, listen to a sleep meditation - it could be a combination of these things. Experiment to see what helps you to ease into sleep at an earlier time.
Step 3: Brain dump every morning (Day 2)
Grab a notebook and a pen and leave it by your bed. Every morning, wake up a little bit earlier and start dumping whatever is on your mind onto the paper.
I try and write three pages of whatever comes to my brain. It’s not a journal, Julia Cameron calls this “morning pages” in her book “The Artist’s Way”. It could be writing something like, “I’m so tired, I don’t want to get up, but I have to get up. I just want a break.”
I find it’s a great way to clear your head, troubleshoot, and get inspiration.
Step 4: Ask “what is something that will help me feel better in the long term?”, then listen (Day 3)
This is key! It’s an important mindset shift, as we start to think, “I’m going to take care of you” “I’m going to listen to you”. Try to pause and see what one small thing you need.
For me, it could be cleaning my bedroom, for you it could be getting outside or snuggling with your pet. What you chose doesn’t matter, it’s the act of listening to yourself and gifting yourself ONE small thing that will make all the difference.
Step 5: Continue to gently gift yourself one small thing each day (Day 4 onwards)
In the past, I have made the mistake of creating a complex morning routine, hoping it would be the magic bullet to cure me of my funk. That may work for you, but it didn’t work for me. It was too much, too soon.
The whole thing about being in a funk is that we are tapped out, we are on empty, we need to EASE back into it. So each day add ONE small thing that your soul needs each day (take as long as you need), this helps to break free from the “funk cycle”.
Start taking note of what you’ve been doing. This can become the blueprint to getting out of a funk next time!
Here’s my list! Since creating the list, I’ve added morning pages on day 2 onwards.
Since it’s written down, when I need to get out of my funk, I don’t use any extra energy, I just search “reset” on my Notes app and follow my plan…one day at a time.
I hope you have fun making your own list!!
✍️ I would love to know: How have February and March been for you?
Thank you so much for stopping by! You may enjoy reading these as well:
Have been thinking about this all day. I think of my mental health/self-care / balancing practices as a pyramid with a few layers. I always go back to the bottom when things get out of whack. It is always, always sleep, first as the foundation! Then water (because it’s pretty easy). Next up is moving my body for 10-15 minutes outside. And top layer is calling or texting a friend…
I am a single mum with two teenage girls, so I have learned the hard way that before I become a "mum on speed" (making coffees, matchas, breakfast, lunches...) I need to centre myself. I get up 20 minutes before my daughters to make my own coffee and read something that nurtures me (often poetry, often in Italian). Then I get my day started with my top priority: writing. I turn my phone off. I take a mid morning break for a 12 min HIIT exercise, eat a healthy lunch, write some more and check emails only at the end of my working day. it's all about concentration levels for me. When I'm sharpest, I write. When I'm less sharp, I can check emails. I end my day with yoga, before my girls get home, then it's all about them again. Then, I fall asleep to a short poetry podcast in Italian. That is how i keep sane :) Hope it helps.