How to Pick Yourself Up from a Slump

I have been feeling really sh*tty in the past few weeks. I got sick and all (not COVID) and didn’t have the energy nor the motivation to do anything else. I put my online selling gig on a halt but I tried my best to keep on writing for this blog because I find it really relaxing and therapeutic to do so. I’m trying to pick myself up in the past few days and fortunately, after almost a month of being in a slump, I’m feeling a bit better now.

I’d like to share with you some of the things that I did to help pick myself up from a slump.

Photo by Hasan Almasi on Unsplash

Rest and Relax

I just felt so very tired in the last few weeks. Tired of the never-ending bad news, of being stuck at home, of feeling limited, of not earning what I used to earn (pre-pandemic), etc.

I’m also feeling physically and mentally tired from my hustles. I have a few side-hustles and it eventually got the best of me in the past few weeks.

So when I started having what seemed to be a never-ending headache and back pain, I just put everything on hold and decided to give myself some time to rest and rejuvenate.

I’m feeling a bit better now but I’m still getting headaches every now and then but they’re more manageable now compared to what I was feeling a couple of weeks back.

I think I got stressed too much by thinking and working towards what I want to achieve this year.

Take a Walk

Luckily, I live in a town with lots of open green spaces where I could take a walk or just sit and be close to nature. It did help me a lot in clearing my head.

And also, fortunately, the population in this town is not as big as compared to the city, thus, social distancing is very easily done.

Drink Plenty of Water and Eat Healthier

I also make sure that I drink plenty of water and I eat healthier food (veggies, fruits, etc). Even if I don’t feel like eating, I didn’t skip meals to ensure that I don’t aggravate what I was feeling.

Sometimes when we’re feeling down, we lose our appetite (which always happens to me when I’m feeling down) but I made sure that I still eat on time even if it’s just a smaller serving of what I am used to.

Photo by Louis Hansel on Unsplash

Talk to Friends and Family

Luckily, I grew up in a very social community wherein talking about almost anything under the sun is very common among friends. I have friends that I can talk to at almost any time of the day.

Although, personally, I usually stay quiet if I’m going through something and I will only initiate to share whatever I am going through once I have figured things out for myself.

But it helps to know that I have friends and family around me that are willing to listen to whatever I have to say.

Rethink Schedules and Activities

I work hard so I can earn more and live a comfortable life in the future. We all do the same, don’t we?

However, in the past few weeks, I realized that I don’t want to wait for the future to live a comfortable life. Tomorrow is not a guarantee to anyone. We may have varying definitions of what a comfortable life is, but fundamentally, we want to live a stress-free life on a day-to-day basis.

Having said that, I’m now figuring things out on how to re-schedule my tasks and activities to minimize burnout without affecting too much my target results. This will definitely be a work in progress as I experiment until I find the optimal solution for my situation.

Break Down Goals into Workable Pieces

One of the reasons why I get stressed is when I’m not meeting the goals I have set for myself. Since the goals I’ve set are what I really want in my life, I have decided to break down the goals into smaller pieces and perhaps even adjust them to a longer timeline.

I’m thinking that if I do this, I will still meet my goals but I won’t be stressed that much. At the end of the day, our personal well-being should be our main priority. It would be very difficult to achieve what we want in life if we’re going to have ‘mini breakdowns’ every now and then.

Perhaps, I’ll be trying out the old cliche, ‘The slow and steady, wins the race!”

Photo by Patti Black on Unsplash

It’s All in the Mind

This is something that I always remind myself of but I always fail to follow. The things that I frequently worry about (which probably got me so stressed) are usually things that are non-existent yet. Most of the things that I think about are worries about my future life.

F*ck, this is easier said and done but I think I should exert more effort in living in the present instead of being trapped in my future plans.

Count the Blessings

Again, this is something that I always fail to do consistently and this is also something that I need to remind myself frequently to avoid getting stuck in a slump.

However, every time I try to focus on counting my blessings, it does help make me feel better.

Focus on the Solutions

Luckily, I grow up with this kind of mindset. Perhaps because I grew up in a very poor family and the only thing we can afford to do is to focus on the solutions to our problem.

However, when I got older and when I started experiencing an easier way and a more comfortable life, it made me a bit more ‘softie’ in dealing with various problems in life.

I guess, I just have to revert to my old self – being a solution-oriented person to minimize becoming too emotional towards any issues that I have to deal with.

Photo by Glen Carrie on Unsplash

Something to Look Forward To

Since vaccination is now slowly being implemented in our country and traveling locally is now gradually being open, I’m also thinking of making travel plans for the next few months just to give myself something to look forward to that is not related to my hustles.

Having something fun to look forward to will take my mind away from worrying about the deliverables and results, etc that I have to meet.

In my experience, whenever I have something fun to look forward to like travel, for example, my productivity increases and my worries lessen.

Although, to be honest, I know that this is just a band-aid solution to the core of the problem – which is my incessant worrying. But I know that this is still a great help to just keep myself moving forward until I find the best solution for my main issue.

 

Final Thoughts

I’m also considering getting a professional help if in case I don’t get to manage my anxiety by myself but for now, I think I can manage on my own.

I think this is just a bump on the road that I have to deal with and perhaps my mind and my body are just sending a signal to myself to rethink the way I live my day-to-day life.

If you’re also experiencing something similar, I hope that you get through it as well. We will all get through this 🙂

Sending you hugs and good vibes!!!