It is rainy and gloomy here today . And I am in a bit of a funk .
Ever happen to you?
Nothing in particular …just feel BLAH.
I am a pretty private person. This is not the say that if we sat down to catch up on our lives, I would be withholding and make you pry things out of me…but I tend to prefer to work though my “issues” privately.
What are my issues you ask? …probably much the same as yours…just LIFE, marriage, kids, family , work, house, money, health, friends…I don’t like burdening people with my “stuff” because I feel like everyone has their stuff.
There are always pressing matters.. REAL problems…the stuff that keeps me busy and often distracts me…raising kids is one sure fire way to put your needs on the back burner… And often in a good way you are distracted from too much thinking . I find myself saying “In the BIG PICTURE” this is NOTHING…but sometimes the little picture can become a big picture if left untended.
and Sometimes I just feel BLAH.
anyway… one advantage of my age is that I am well aware that “this too shall pass”. In fact, quite often it is when I am in these EXACT BLAH moments of discomfort that I find REAL change happens. Like an egg hatching.
I THOUGHT i would share with you have found some ways I manage MYSELF when I hit these emotional mud puddles… They do work…and have brought me out of many a funk. Or at the very least – have taken me outside of myself and the next thing I know – I am back IN MY LIFE and no longer on the outside looking in a sizing things up.
1. I paint. write. create. make something…even dinner. This sounds so easy…but often it is not. But the simple act of putting one foot in front of the other…is a step in the right direction. MOVE.
2. Exercise. I do not exercise because I am trying to have a perfect body or be skinny – I exercise because EVERY SINGLE TIME I do – I feel better. I sweat. I get out of my head. I see friends at the gym and have little conversations. It is a win win. It is my sanity.
3. EAT WELL. Some people stress eat. I tend to lose my appetite when I am stressed and quickly become depleted. Then I will eat something sweet or gross. Last year, I changed how I eat inspired by my brother-in-law who lost over 50 lbs totally by changing the way he approached food and exercise…Jason inspired me to take stock of my eating habits and when I did – it was eye opening! I have never liked to cook and to make a meal and sit down mid-day felt silly! BUT – I changed that – I started making SURE that I ate a healthy lunch which included protein (I am a bar for breakfast eater) and I removed as much sugar from my diet as I could. I replaced Power Bars with “real protein” like a hard boiled egg or a tuna sandwich and ate more than I had in years and I lost 15 lbs that have not come back. And I have never felt better. I had NO IDEA how bad my “not eating” was making me feel. By the way – Congrats to Jason – A week ago today he ran the Boston Marathon!!!!
4. Make a Lunch date. Or a coffee date. Expanding on the eating thing – what better way to kill two birds with one stone than to make a lunch date with a friend at favorite little place that serves delicious healthy food. Or a great burger ! I can get in a rut and it can sometimes take weeks to land on a day that works for both of you – but lunch with a friend is such a great way to feel better.
5. DO SOMETHING FOR SOMEONE- One of the BEST ways to come out of a funk is to leave yourself and do something for someone else. Volunteer. Open a door. Pay the toll for the person behind you. Make someone dinner, or paint them a painting, take them flowers from your garden – or just send them a card. I keep a stock of cards for all occasions in my drawer and I always feel so good when I drop one in a mailbox. The art of letter writing is alive and well and cards are a relatively inexpensive way to cheer someone up and remind them that they are special to you. Email and texting is so much faster but it is so nice to get a piece of mail out of nowhere!
6. CLEAN OUT A DRAWER. This is one of those things I discovered accidentally a few years ago when I was moving. Just do ONE DRAWER. Once I found a check I thought I had lost! It just feels good.
7. Walk a DOG. Or dogs. And if you don’t have a dog you can do #5 and walk someone else’s dog. There is something refreshing about spending time with a dog…on a walk. Dogs are just so happy to be out and about…you get some fresh air and exercise…and is is a great distraction from all the THINKING and PONDERING…
8. Take a NAP. Have you ever noticed how refreshed kids are after a nap..and how tough it can be if they don’t get one? Do we ever outgrow the need for a nap? Sometimes I have been surprised to find out that I am simply TIRED. And I take a nap!
9. Get a massage or a pedicure or a facial. Manicures are great too. Treat yourself to something special . You deserve it.
10. Phone a friend , your Mom, someone who always makes you feel listened to and loved. It is not a cure-all but sometimes the simple act of talking about things can be a step in the right direction.
I know this funk will pass. Maybe it the shedding of some kind of skin. Maybe I just miss the kids . Maybe I am at a crossroads with work , this blog , my art and am taking stock and trying to see what is next. Maybe it is raining.
XO
Great post, we’ve all been there. If you feel like meeting someone new I can always meet you at Barracks road or Stonefield for coffee or weather permitting walk the Monticello Trail. I’m pretty sure you know Wendi of Leftover Luxuries who just helped me with a guest bedroom two weeks ago so might not be quite so strange! Just email me if you want to get out of the house!
Hi Gwen ! So nice to meet you virtually and I hope to meet you in person ! Wendi is the best! Do you ever go to her “first Thursday” events where she is open late?
Love this. Great ideas and thanks for sharing. Very inspiring about your BIL. Does he recommend any plan or he just did his own type of program or just clean whole food and exercise? Inspiring to hear he is running a marathon.
Thank you. Jason initially did a very strict zero carb thing but eventually just kept to very limited alcohol and sugar and breads. He looks amazing !!!
For myself I started paying attention to carbs and quickly realized how many I was eating – I changed Power bars from one that had 50 g carbs to one that had 24 and that made an incredible difference. And for the first three months I had no bread or pasta or anything like that but eventually work that back into my diet I just try not to overdo it. I never feel deprived. Sugar is just the culprit in so many cases.
Maybe it is raining, no matter where the rain is coming from or falling on! I understand what you mean. I am never often funk, but sometimes I am and had several “tasks” that help me releasing that. Taking from your list I must tell which ones work for me, as others I don’t even think of it – creating something, usually writing, I love writing anyhting just to let my feelings out; meet a friend or phone a friend; clean drawers – I also do that; take a walk, even by yourself; do something by someone who is nothing expecting that; and walk a dog, I also do that! But when I’m so funk, I haven’t even willing to one of those I have a special one, I sit on a quiet place and pray! Let my heart talk and it works, after a while! Wish you the best: Enjoy the rain!
Thank you Maria. I sincerely hope that we meet in person one day. You have such a wonderful heart! Xo
This is brilliant. It’s vulnerable, practical, and wise. It’s everything so much of the internet is not – it’s a selfie of real life, with help. Thanks!
Wow Karen … thanks . I think #11 might be – open up and share – it lightens your load!
Hi Lesli! It’s raining here in Oregon, too, and even die-hard pluviophiles like me are craving sunshine. We’ve had day after day after day of rain – with the exception of a glorious sunny Friday, which will have to sustain us for a while. I’m looking out my kitchen window right now at a deep pink camellia in bloom with rain-drenched fir trees in the distance. I don’t feel blah but I’d sure like a jolt of fresh air and blue skies. Over the weekend, I unpacked a cute new little loveseat – the Kiara – from Cost Plus for my 1940s era front room. It’s darling. I don’t know why it took me almost a month to open the box that hogged the pathway from the front door to the kitchen. That got me to thinking about why I live with so many piles of stuff. I’m not a hoarder, and I’m well aware of the lightness that comes with purging (I’ve purged in the past and I’ve witnessed my best friend purge her Portland house for her upcoming move to Denver), but it’s almost as if I’m afraid to “finish” my house. Am I afraid that it won’t live up to my vision? Does living in a semi-mess protect me from something? This is what I’m contemplating today as I go to the gym, have a work meeting, take kids to appointments/pick them up from school and do the myriad tasks that come our way every day! I know you’ll find joy in your Monday. Let us know when you do. 🙂
It’s funny , I was actually wondering if BECAUSE we really had NO winter , no downtime to just unplug and have the opportunity to reboot – because of that I have been secretly hoping for a short rainy stretch so I can feel like the outdoors matches my indoors . But I do know that in a day or so I will ache for sunshine . Hope you get yours soon. XO
Thank you so much Caley. We have sunshine today! It woke me up and I thought I had overslept!!!!
I love your list and each one is so important! I’ve been in a deep funk, especially over the weekend. I cried most of Saturday and Sunday. I normally don’t “allow” myself to do that but it is very cleansing. My precious Shih Tzu crossed the Rainbow Bridge 4/3 and the past 2 weeks I’ve had a horrible upper respiratory issue. A dear friend passed away early this morning from the big C. I was scheduled for back surgery today & of course, that’s been postponed. Today, we have sunshine…I feel a bit better…my daughter had ladies to come and clean for me so things are much brighter! 🙂 I love to do RAOK’s and a time like this is perfect for doing so!
I’ve enjoyed reading other’s comments and wish everyone a blessed day!
Pat , you are so kind to respond with all you have going on. I am so very sorry about your dogs passing and today your friend. Ugh . The heart is a very strong muscle but boy sometimes it is taxed beyond capacity. I am grateful that you shared you experience with me and us … today’s post ha been incredibly cathartic and so many of you have been so kind. Sending you a big hug. XO
Thank you for your sweet wish on the end of your comment Pat. I wish you feel better know and I wish the sun will shine thgough your life, even when it’f full of clouds. God be with you!
This is GREAT advice! I You mentioned cleaning a drawer…I couldn’t agree more. I work from home and at times it feels I’m always at work. I have those days when I can’t focus and I just stare at my computer and feel frozen and completely blah. Cleaning something, in my case, doing the dishes, always brings the energy that like you mentioned, putting a foot in front of the other seems to bring. Exercising…definitely! Thank you for this beautifully written post.