How to Get Out of a Slump

You know that feeling when you’re a little tired, bored, slightly (or majorly depressed), purposeless, and like feeling a minor or major failure in life…? Cool. Glad I’m not the only one cause this happens to me at least once a week.

Although I joke, slumps can be the worst, especially when you don’t know how to get out of one. As I’ve learned to make the larger life changes that help improve my mental health, slumps get fewer and more manageable. I also know that coupled with other major life changes, stressors, and hardships, a slump can easily become a full on anxiety spiral, depressive episode, or mental health crisis. So all jokes aside I get how serious these states can be if they aren’t handled properly and in a timely fashion. Which is why I’m here to offer some experience and wisdom on what helps me tackle my worst slumps before they get out of hand.

One important thing to notice here is that the recommendations I give here aren’t complicated mental exercises or anything that even touches the mind directly. Most of them address the body — which in my experience, is the fastest way to feeling better mentally. But don’t worry — remember I’m just as sensitive and scared as you, so there will be no recommendations for strenuous physical exercise or anything of the sort. Not that those things aren’t great. And if by some stretch of the imagination you feel a genuine motivation to go for a run (shivers) or go to the gym (gags), then absolutely, you’re ten steps ahead of me which is great, as long as you’re not ten steps ahead of you. Frankly, the best advice I can give you is to be gentle and accept where you are. Trying to escape will only tighten the grip of the slump. Struggling (or even worse, wrestling against it) isn’t necessary.

Okay, now that we’ve taken care of that little intro, it’s time to get un-slumped. And maybe even before we get un-slumping I wanna say — hey, you’re in a slump and that makes you inherently a strong human. Slumps are really hard and painful, and you’re here, reading this. So I already have major respect for you. Now, let’s get going.

First things first, get up from where you’re sitting and do a big stretch. You’re doing great, and I can guarantee you that in my experience, getting up is the hardest step by far because you’ve used your personal will to change the direction of your energy from one of stagnancy to one of success.

Next step, put on some music. Music is one of the key things that always helps me overcome a down mood. I think music is so powerful because it makes us feel like we’re not alone. I suggest putting it on out loud rather than in your ears because it will help you feel more connected to your surroundings rather than being in a personal bubble. But of course, if your circumstances don’t allow for this, that’s perfectly okay too.

Most of the time when we’re in a slump it’s because the body has needs that haven’t been met. If you’re anything like me (an ADHD hot mess) then doing simple self-care acts like brushing your teeth, showering, eating healthy food or even getting dressed are really challenging. But remembering to do them doesn’t exactly scream road to enlightenment. But, they are! And it doesn’t matter what time of day it is. This stuff is super helpful at any time of day. So take stock.

If there’s anything significant that jumps out at you like needing a shower, meal, hair brushing, shave, change out of your pjs or something else. Do that. If not, move on to the next step.

One of the craziest things I’ve found that improves my mood significantly is brushing my teeth — unexpected, I know. I think brushing your teeth does this because our taste receptors in our mouth are connected to the ones in our gut. And as you may have heard, our gut is a very important part of what regulates our mood. Our gut is almost an extension of our brain and plays an important role in our nervous system. I believe there’s something about the taste of mint that cleanses our palette of old tastes, and therefore old emotions, leaving us more focused, opened, and ready to face the next task.

Side note, one of the contributors to your down mood could also be from eating too much or the wrong types of foods (I do this ALL the time). Whenever this happens to me I tend to go into my familiar negative spiral of, “why did I eat that?? That was so stupid and not worth it.” or “I knew I shouldn’t have done that. Why didn’t I stop myself???! I deserve to feel like this because I’m so lazy….” And on and on… If you can relate, feel free to push pause on that critical inner voice because everything’s gonna be okay. Try brushing your teeth. In my experience it has a way of quickly settling my stomach and helping me forget my mistakes and move forward with confidence.

Okay, so your teeth are brushed and you’re dressed and ready for success. Now what?

Now clean something.

What?? You might be thinking. How does that have to do with anything? Well, it does I promise.

First of all cleaning is great because it’s physical. It puts you in your body and using your five senses and that means it helps get you out of your head. Why else? Because it gives you a clear sense of purpose that emerges over the course of the task. Starting out doesn’t always feel great. Usually it feels kind of awful. But as you progress and eventually finish the task, you’ll feel a significant boost of satisfaction and an increase in your self-worth, and that’s what we’re going for.

If you’re like me, you might be wondering, “Shouldn’t I not be relying on external stuff for my self-worth? Isn’t the whole point that I’m already worthy exactly how I am, mess and all? After all, I don’t want to feel reliant on cleaning to feel good about myself.” This is an excellent point, and yes, you absolutely are worthy exactly how you are, mess and all. But you’re not cleaning because you’re trying to prove something to yourself or the world. You’re doing it as an act of self-care, to give yourself the joy and satisfaction of completing the task and enjoying the result.

Another reason why cleaning is helpful is that cleaning helps us get in touch with and participate in the world around us. Normally, when we’re in a bad place, it’s because on some level we feel we’re alone. But the truth is that we’re always part of the whole, working in rhythm with the world around us even we’re not aware of it. Cleaning up your space helps you tap into the realization that you part of a home, a family, a community, and it cultivates a sense of gratitude for having these wonderful things.

So, check in with yourself. How are you feeling? Hopefully you’re feeling at least a bit better than you were previously and even a little better is a big win. Usually our mental state improves one step at a time rather than all at once. If you’ve done all or any of these steps, give yourself permission to be proud of yourself.

One of the things I’ve learned is that most of time in life, we hold ourselves to very high standards only to realize we’ve forgotten the easy stuff.

Now you can choose to do something for yourself or something you don’t want to do but will help you move forward.