Inflation at record highs
Stop spending to be able to buy petrol
House prices slump
Worst wave in the pandemic
These are just some of the headlines at the moment. Honestly, it’s a miracle people get out of bed some days.
I’ve had those days recently where it has all been too much. Well, it’s felt too much. I’ve thought it was too much. If I’m being really brave, I’ll admit that it’s been for most of 2022.
I’ve really struggled.
I asked my therapist – was it depression, anxiety, burnout, a combo or something else?
We settled on burnout being the primary issue.
I have been suffering from ‘too much-it is’.
I’ve still ticked boxes, but my eye has been totally taken off the ball of so many things. Business, money, good habits etc. have been way down my focus list.
It’s not like I haven’t done things. I mean some things simply need to get done – like paying bills. But, proactively doing things, nah, that could wait.
It started at the end of 2021 when I lost all my social media, then I got covid, then my house had significant water damage, then my mortgage went up blah blah. I could go on. I was scared to exercise while my heartrate was so high (thanx Covid) and I developed tinnitus when I had Covid (nothing can really be done about it), so some days I literally felt like I was going mad with this noise in my head.
It’s a vicious cycle.
The more stressed I would get about money / weight / the house / business etc, the louder the noise would be, the worse I would feel and the less I would do. Guess what? That then made me more stressed. Around and around I would go.
I would watch people I know or follow online going from strength to strength, while I just kept ticking boxes but not actually getting anywhere and in some cases going backwards.
I would make excuses day after day.
Then I would get up and try as hard as I could to follow my Daily Success Formula and the wheels would fall off at some stage.
It’s only one glass of wine.
It’s raining.
I have nothing to write about.
I didn’t sleep well.
I don’t know who to call.
I was almost paralysed towards doing things that would add to my success.
Then I would be angry with myself and speak to myself in those scolding tones.
Snap out of it.
You have nothing to complain about.
Other people are having a much tougher time.
Stop being pathetic.
You’ve come so far and now you are f’ing it up.
I had turned a few lemonades that life had thrown me, into the sourest concoction and was drip feeding it into my soul.
The stopping happened slowly and is now (I feel) complete, so I thought I would share the things I have done and thought in order to turn those lemons into a really yummy lemoncello!
Bottom line for me was going back to the basics with the things that made me feel good (yes even the morning m’s).
I did lots of thinking and journaling about how I was feeling, as well as talking to my therapist and some friends (I am notorious for simply saying ‘I’m ok’).
I forgave myself for taking my eye off the ball.
I understood that I had been genuinely sick with covid and was scared (terrified) that I was going to drop dead from a heart attack.
I allowed myself to totally switch off on our holiday.
I read more fiction!
I asked myself in moments of sadness or apathy when I wanted to reach for or do something to ignore the thoughts and feelings what I was really going through.
I cried. Lots.
I asked myself what would make me feel better and tried to do that.
I prioritised the ‘musts’ and took a lot of ‘wants’ off my to do list.
I have spent more time with friends and done lots of baking and cooking.
I have reassessed what I can and want to achieve in the next 3, 6 and 12 months and am working on a realistic plan for all of it.
The bottom line is everything about what has or hasn’t happened this year is based on what I was thinking. Now I know that life is 50/50 and I am so ok with that, but for the first time in a very long time, I was finding it hard to find the fab 50. So everything I did was about my lens switching back to a better more positive view.
Here are my top 10 things to do to get out of a slump:
- Turn off from as much negativity as possible (news etc)
- Find things to be grateful for
- Exercise
- Sleep enough
- Eat well
- Have people to talk to
- Focus on how you can turn a situation around to be more positive, or find a solution (and no you can’t always do it, and that’s ok)
- Take steps each day towards a goal (even the teeny tiny things help)
- Practice self-compassion
- Take time for the experiences and people you enjoy
Remember that this will pass.
Lastly, have a loving conversation with yourself.
As for me, I know I can drop the weight I’ve put on through my decisions (or lack thereof) this year. I know my clients (and those that aren’t clients yet) need the work that I do. I know I am loved. I know I’ll survive with the issues in the house, and when I can get it all fixed, I will. I know I’ll be running up those stairs again. I know my mortgage will keep going up for the time being, and I will figure out how to make it ok.
I believe in me.
I believe in you.
We can do hard things, so go, make some lemoncello.
This month in The Samantha Leith Show, I dive deeper into managing our mind so check it out.
