It started on New Year’s Eve. Maybe it was your birthday, an anniversary, or just a random Tuesday. No matter when it happened, you got MOTIVATION and got out of your rut!!!

You did amazing things with that motivation, didn’t you? Cleaned the house more, stayed on top of household chores, work tasks, your fitness regimen…but now that’s over. Your motivation suddenly disappeared and you’re left in this huge rut. You’ve losing progress and maybe even digressed a bit into old habits. It happens to us all.

Friend, I’m here to tell you that I’ve fought this battle more times than I can count. I’ve got depression and several times a year…S%&t gets REAL. I’ve recently clawed my way out of a rut that was so bad that it was difficult…almost impossible…just to shower. There’s no reason to sidestep this or pretend that I always have it together. I don’t at all!  That’s why I call myself The Decent Mom and not Super Mom, right? We all have battles to fight.  Your struggles might aren’t mine but they are very real.  So how do we get back on track and feeling more like ourselves?

Motivation doesn’t work.

Motivation is like sunshine. It feels amazing, and really can brighten your mood and make things feel warm and nice. Swoon. Here’s the thing though:  it’s not always sunny outside, is it? No, we have thunderstorms, and up north I hear they still have snow storms this time of year. It’s not always sunny. That doesn’t need to stop you from living your life. You still need to press on and get things done with your tools to help. Up north they get outside and put those snow shovels and blowers to work. Here in Texas we grab the umbrella.

Discipline

Discipline is the biggest tool you can use to help yourself out of this rut. Motivation will come and go but if you have discipline you can get things done, no matter the weather. If it’s hard to shower then use discipline to make yourself shower. It’s okay to skip shaving your legs for a few weeks (hey, this is a judgement free zone). With consistency and practice, your discipline muscle really will feel stronger and it’ll be easier to use. For more help flexing that discipline muscle check out wanderlustworker.com where author R.L. Adams lays out very solid and do-able steps to getting started.

Baby steps To Get Out of Your Rut

Start small. If your house is  a wreck and needs to be cleaned from top to bottom then clean just the stove top. Clear just the counter. Whatever tiny task it is that you feel like you can do, just do it. Even if that tiny task feels like it won’t amount to anything. Trust me, once you see a tiny bit of improvement it’s so much easier to keep going. It’ll at least give you a bit of accomplishment and pride that you were able to do something and get you out of your rut!

I haven’t worked out for weeks. It started out as completely legit, I was sick. Then I stopped being sick but still didn’t get to the gym. Or walk. Or ride a bike. Seriously I just didn’t move as much as I should have. The longer I was sedentary, the harder it seemed to get moving again. This morning I went to the gym and told myself that even if I was only there for a few minutes at least it was a start. I ended up doing 25 minutes on the treadmill and even ran for a few minutes. That might not sound like anything but I feel pretty great knowing that I set a goal and actually exceeded it. I’ll go again Wednesday because I feel so good going to the gym, and I needed to be reminded of that.

Hang in there

Melissa at Avirtuouswoman.org did a great piece on self-discipline and I really loved reading it. I think you will too. She knows that we aren’t perfect and how hard daily distractions and procrastination can be.  Getting online can be a distraction, but when you are fighting a hard depression, it can honestly be amazingly supportive as well.  There are Facebook groups and subreddits dedicated to supporting one another through depression.

I know it’s hard. I’m not trying to make this sound easy because it’s not. I’ve just fought this battle before.

If you ever need help, let me know. I’m not a life coach or guru…but I’ve been there and would love to support you. We all need love and support and you’ll always find it here.

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