How to get yourself out of a funk
Real talk. I was in a funk last week. So, I’ve decided to jump on here and share some of the things I did to pull myself out, in case you might find yourself in the same place. I shared this as an IGTV story too if you would rather watch than read!
Before we get started, it’s important to realise that nothing has to happen for you to be in a funk. You might just wake up one day, and your energy might be off, it might be your time of the month, you might not be feeling inspired or be struggling to find motivation.
If you follow the cycles of the moon, you might be in a phase of ying, rather than yang phase which is masculine and doing. As you can see, there are plenty of different things that can trigger these feelings, but you don’t need to understand it in that moment. Instead, you can honour those feelings and focus on moving yourself out of the funk.
Tips to get yourself out of a funk
Habits
I am a big believer in the power of habit. I have habits for my business, my personal life, my health. For example, in my business, I rely on systems that spit out who I have to talk to and who I need to follow up. I also batch content so that I’ve got photos, videos, blogs, podcasts and ideas ready to go for the days when I’m really struggling to find the motivation and inspiration to create something new.
In my personal life, my body wakes up at 6am now naturally after training it to with the habit of using an alarm. My next morning habit is usually to head to the gym at 7am or 7.30am, and then I always find time during the day to listen to a podcast, training or some type of brain fuel to help with my mindset. I don’t feel the need to go and actively do these things - they’ve just become part of my daily habits.
It’s important that we cultivate these habits in our everyday lives because it’s pretty hard to pick up a new habit when you’re in the middle of a funk! By taking the decision out of it, I don’t need to find the motivation to go and do something, instead I lean into my habits that I’ve spent years cultivating.
Credit: Lauren Kerr out with her girlfriends dressed by Baby Lemonade.
Speak it out
Sometimes you might know that you're in a funk or a strange mindset, but you can't actually put a finger on what you're really feeling. I find that journaling is a really good way to work through your thoughts and find some clarity.
Chat with friends
It can also help to chat with family or friends. When I was struggling last week, I had no idea why I was feeling the way I was until I opened up to a couple of my close girlfriends.
After I word vomited my thoughts, I felt so much better, and it stopped my thoughts from spiralling around in circles in my head. Going over and over things in our minds is something that plenty of women struggle with, and I can't stress enough how much speaking through everything can help!
Sitting with your emotions
I allowed myself to sit with my emotions for a few days last week. You don’t need to make sense of your feelings, because sometimes they just are.
As women as we move through our cycle, our hormones will change, and that means some days we will have more testosterone and others we will have more oestrogen which will mean we will move through periods where we are inspired to take action and others where we are required to rest..
You’ve also got the phases of the moon that can impact your feelings, energy and perspective in everyday life.
Rather than trying to judge yourself, find something wrong or justify your feelings, I encourage you to just sit with it. Don’t try and push them away, suppress them or hide them. Just allow yourself to sit.
One of the biggest things I focused on last week when I was feeling a bit ‘bleh’ was not to be annoyed or angry at myself for feeling like that. It’s simply not normal to feel happy and elated every single day, and it’s okay to have lower days.
You can sit with your emotions by visualising your feelings as a wave. Imagine the wave coming in and then flowing back out again. Instead of becoming attached to the feeling or assigning a meaning, simply watch the feelings as an observer, a third person. When we tell ourselves that “this too shall pass”, it’s easier to show yourself the compassion that you need in the moment.
Intuitive Movement
Although I always rely on my habit of movement, I’m always mindful of pushing myself too. If you’re not feeling inspired to go to the gym, ask yourself:
How you do feel like moving your body?
You might feel like walking, doing a stretch at home, putting music on to dance around the kitchen or maybe just putting your headphones in and going for a long run.
Listen to your body and lean into what feels good, rather than forcing yourself into something that just doesn’t feel energetically aligned right now, and your body will thank you for it.
Nutrition Support
Every single morning, I have my nutrition support. I have my wholefoods shake and awesome wholefood capsules. But many of us are guilty of relying on emotional eating when we’re feeling sad, down or uninspired – I still do it too! The problem with this is if you eat sugary and processed food, it ends up making you feel worse than when you started. That’s because 70% of your serotonin is made in your gut, so if you’re eating like shit, you’re going to feel like shit.
Credit: Lauren Kerr Juice Plus
The easiest way to keep your health in check when you’re in a rut is to rely on your nutritional support. Whether it’s a powder or a capsule, whatever it takes to help you feel clearer and calmer will also help you pull yourself out of that funk.
Another way of getting around these cravings is to make healthy alternatives of your favourite sweet treats, like healthy cookie dough or healthy pancakes (I love my plant-based powders for making so many of the dessert recipes in our program!).
Credit: The Healthstyle Emporium
Meditation or Prayer
For some people, their spirituality comes in through their prayer. For others, like me, I meditate for my spirituality. I make a conscious effort to sit in a quiet place and I use guided meditation programs from our holistic program, The Healthstyle Emporium but you can also use free apps like Insight Timer. By allowing yourself to get out of your own head and into your body, you can be still and present – which is a great way to reconnect with yourself and reignite your motivation.
Schedule Joy
Inside the Healthstyle Emporium, one of the things we do with our clients is help them create a joy menu. You may not be able to be happy all of the time, but you can definitely cultivate happiness more often by knowing what brings you joy and making sure you prioritise that in your life. When I was in a funk, I was having baths or a sauna, getting a massage, listening to music rather than podcasts, I rang my Mum and I had a day to myself down at the beach.
Credit: Lauren Kerr Babes in Business
Today is enough
A lot of us in the 21st Century run one million miles an hour, and when you’re in a funk it’s so common to feel guilty for not being productive, on track for your goals or doing what you need to do. When you find these thoughts creeping into your mind, just tell yourself that today is enough. Think about what you can do today to find joy, to be gentle to yourself and to ride through the emotions.
I find that when I start to implement some of these strategies, I generally begin feeling better by the second, if not the third day. I would encourage you not to rush back to life without having made time to reflect.
I'm guilty of trying to hurry back to work and wanting to skip the reflection stage, but I also realise that when I feel this way, it's usually a sign that I'm not ready to move through the emotions yet. That's when it's essential to be patient and give myself more time to sit with the emotions and feel it all, before trying to understand what it all meant.
But when you are at the other end of the funk, and you're starting to feel inspired and get your energy back again, get your journal out and do some self-reflection.
What did you learn from this?
What did it teach you?
What can you do better next time?
What do you love in your life right now?
You'll know in yourself when you're ready to unpack your emotions and work through everything. All you need to do right now though is trust in the process and be kind and compassionate to yourself.
P.S Please know not everything has to mean something - don’t feel like you need to analyse everything from every angle. Some things just are what they are. Breathe in. Breathe out. And let it go... tomorrow is a new day.
This too shall pass.