How to Get Out of My Funk
In my most recent newsletter, I shared that I had gotten into a pretty low place. After sending out a distress call to hundreds of email inboxes, I realized it’s time to figure out how to get out of my funk.
I started by doing a Wheel of Reflection exercise. Doing the exercise didn’t exactly get me out of a funk. First of all, my scores were lower than they’ve been in a good, long while. Plus, I started having existential questions about what the categories should even be!
I landed on these:
- Career/Purpose
- Family
- Friends & Fun
- Physical Space
- Personal Growth & Spirituality
- Health & Wellness
- Sleep
- Time in Nature
- Social Justice
- Presence & Gratitude
Once I stuck “presence and gratitude” in there, I realized there are a whole host of other “being” intentions that I’m probably missing.
And I accidentally left “money” off, which is a huge area of concern for me right now!
But I digress. Going through this exercise gave me some concrete next steps.
Next Steps: How to Get Out of My Funk
First, I need to make more friends and connect more with the ones I already have. Matt got me started on the Bumble BFF app. We will see how that goes!
I’m also going to be more intentional about making friends in real life. I also want to get back into proactively planning events to host (like our annual Halloween party, our Friendsgiving celebration, monthly Saturday Suppers, etc.).
Next, I need to get my house in order. My soul feels like a permeable membrane. I soak in whatever environment is around me. Is it time for a 31-Day Purge Project? At the very least, I need to make a home organization list and then get started!
And now that it’s glaringly obvious that I’m not getting enough sleep, I need to make it a priority. Not getting enough sleep makes everything worse.
Next, we need to go back into budget lockdown to work our way out of credit card debt. I’m going to use the Envy app for a basic envelope system.
Finally, I need to bring some more purpose-oriented goals into my life. I put a lot of things on hold to prioritize our Family Gap Year. And I’ve come to appreciate that Mary Oliver’s phrase—”What is it you’ll do with your one wild and precious life?”—was actually about watching grasshoppers. I’m not looking to go back to my incessant goal-orientation. But I also need a little more to make me feel like my light is shining in the world.
Finally, I want to generate a list of my Top 5 Things every single day. I want to double down on presence and gratitude.
I feel lighter already. Thanks for listening!
2 Comments
Olivia
Sara, I wonder if part of this might be the massive change you’ve undergone recently. One thing I’ve found can really help this is a simple ritual to mark the transition. My personal favorite is to walk a labyrinth. I gather some stones or leaves, and as I walk into the labyrinth, I drop them one by one, thinking of what I’m releasing. In the center, I take time to reflect on what version of myself I’m ready to step into. On the walk back out, I reflect on what that would look like and try to feel that in my body. Thought I’d share in case that speaks to you!
Sara Cotner
What a lovely idea, Olivia! Thank you so much for sharing! You are absolutely right that my funk is connected to the massive changes we have undergone as a family recently. My trauma therapist tried to set me up for the transition but pushing me to think deeply about it. And I definitely spent time doing it before the trip ended. But I guess it wasn’t a “one and done” kind of thing!