How to get out of a funk

(even if you wake up that way!)

I don’t know about you, but I wake up in a funk on a semi-regular basis. 

Working with teen and tween girls and their moms for the past two decades (and just being a human) I have discovered that many people, wake up in a funk! Our alarm goes off, or we feel the sun on our face, kids get loud … 

However it happens, we end up realizing it’s morning. We realize we’re awake… and we’re already in a bad mood. 

Maybe we’re angry at someone for waking us up. We are still tired.. perhaps didn’t get enough sleep? Sometimes we are anxious about things that are going to happen that day.

It even happens that on occasion we wake up we are just kind of feeling down and blue and don’t even know why. 

None of these situations make us feel excited about getting out of bed. FIRST of all, it happens to all of us – you are NOT ALONE! 

And luck for you, I have a fast formula to help you get out of that funk in the morning. 

FAST FORMULA

F is for FEEL GRATITUDE

If you’ve ever been a part of any of my programs, you have heard me say this over and over and over again. Gratitude practices scientifically have been proven to make a difference in our set level of happiness. Here is my pro tip for starting your gratitude practice if you don’t currently have one. 

In the VERY FIRST moment that you realize you’re awake…

when you haven’t even opened your eyes yet…

the moment we just recognize we’re coming into consciousness…

Right at that moment, reflect on three things you’re grateful for. 

This guarantees that you are telling your mind that you want to start the day on a right foot before your feet even hit the ground. 

A is for ADD WATER

It sounds so silly and so simple. But when I am in a funk, if I take a long hot shower, if I take a bath, or if I am lucky enough to have a dip in the pool…it always helps. But also, if I just take a minute to intentionally drink a large glass of water, it helps. 

We are so dehydrated, as a people, as a population. If you Google “how much water should I be drinking everyday?” I guarantee that most of you are probably not getting the amount of water that you need. When you have been asleep for a certain number of hours (hopefully seven to eight at the very minimum) you automatically wake up dehydrated! Getting that water in you –  before you get coffee or any sort of caffeine will start to make you feel better. Again, it’s science. I mean, I’m not the scientist. I didn’t do the studies and whatever but I can help you Google it. If you want more information. 

S is for SUMMON JOY

To do this, start by thinking back to a time in your life where you felt complete JOY PEACE and SAFETY.  It could be last week it could be last year it could be five years ago or more. Close your eyes and return to that moment. Smell the smells, feel the feelings, see the colors, and relive that experience in your mind. When you put yourself back in that moment, you are signaling your brain that this feeling IS POSSIBLE, and it jumpstarts your morning in a positive way! 

T is for TIMER

What do I mean by Timer? Allow me to explain.

TO BE CLEAR: I WANT you to feel your feelings. When you wake up, and you are not at your best, I am not in any way asking you to put on a fake smile and a fake front for the world. I don’t want you to do that. That’s not genuine, it’s not real. And at the end of the day, it’s not helpful to you or others. 

I want you to feel your feelings, however, I also want you to fulfill your unique purpose in this world. I want you to be a good sister, or friend, or parent ,or coworker, or student. I want you to have life-giving and thriving relationships with people around you. 

To this end,  there are times where putting a time limit on our more difficult feelings can help us. 

What does this look like? For me, when I am feeling especially anxious, or down, I want to give myself permission to feel that way because IT IS TOTALLY OK TO FEEL THAT WAY. But I also want to move forward and make an impact in life. So I will set a literal time limit on my feelings. Sometimes it’s five minutes, sometimes it’s an hour, sometimes it’s a whole day. I allow myself to dwell in this feeling if I need to, for a certain amount of time. But once that timer goes off, or once that amount of time has passed, I take action forward in spite of how I feel in the moment. 

FAST FORMULA!

F…EEL GRATITUDE

A…DD WATER

S…UMMON JOY

T…IMERS

These four tools can be used at ANY TIME, but can be especially helpful to run through first thing in the morning when you wake up in a funk. You can utilize them to help you decide … what’s next? It might be deciding to take a mental health day from work or school, because you have been working too hard or dealing with tough stuff #COVID. Or perhaps after this you decide to reach our to get therapy or coaching. Maybe you will find that having some discussions around boundaries is the right next step. YOU MIGHT even find that implementing a couple of these tools on the regular will be just what you need to make the mental switch each morning and move forward. 

TRUTH: You have the power to choose thoughts that are grateful and joyful … that will be productive in your mind. You have the power to create a life that you want to live, that you’re excited to live. And when you do those to things you can also go out and make the changes in this world that you are uniquely created to make. I’m so excited to watch you do it. Have a great day.