We are living through some challenging times right now. Many of us are operating with less structure in our lives than usual, the anxiety of the pandemic, and less contact with others than we normally have. You may also be facing additional stress due to personal or family concerns, concern over social or political events, or both. All of this can make it hard to stay motivated.
Getting Motivated Again
Oftentimes when our routine changes, our schedule is the first thing to go out the window. If you no longer need to wake up at 7 am to get ready for your daily commute, it can be easy to just roll out of bed in time for your first Zoom. But oftentimes this lack of schedule can make us feel disorganized and unfocused. Give yourself a routine that you can follow even if you’re spending most of your time at home.
When creating your schedule, make sure you set aside some time for self-care. When you feel unmotivated you may find yourself caring less about hygiene and exercise. It can become easier to throw on some dry shampoo instead of showering or watching tv instead of doing something active. If this is becoming your routine, start to track how you are feeling during the day. Maybe you notice that on days that you’re not making time for self-care, you feel lethargic or your mood is low. Try adding a walk and a morning shower to your schedule. A morning shower can help you feel invigorated and fresh for your day. A walk in the afternoon fights off the 3 pm slump and energizes your body and mind.
So that takes care of the day to day, but what if you are feeling burnt out in pursuit of bigger life goals? Maybe it’s a career goal or a personal goal, but sometimes when you’ve been working towards a goal for a while, you can start to feel a little stuck and start to lose motivation. This is an important time to go back to your goal and remind yourself what you are working towards. Maybe the career change you’re working towards has better hours or allows you to tap into your creative interests. Remind yourself of that end goal, and in the meantime, track all the little ways you’ve progressed towards your goal so far.
Sometimes self-motivation is challenging. When you have goals you’re working towards, make sure you share them with the people around you. Keep them updated on your progress, and when you find yourself lacking motivation, reach out to those supportive people. They know how far you’ve come already and they can remind you where you’d still like to go. It can be helpful to be held accountable by other people when you feel that motivation is lacking. Right now, that can be through text messages, FaceTime, or Zoom meets. Keep connected to keep moving forward.
blueFire PulsaR Can Help
At blueFire PulsaR, clients have the chance to gain a better sense of themselves as individuals and begin forming goals with the guidance of therapeutic professionals. Through exciting adventure-based activities like mountaineering, bouldering, and canoeing, clients step outside of their comfort zone and build translatable skills such as leadership, teamwork, and accountability. As clients take part in wilderness programming, we are able to assess their needs and begin to form a plan for transitioning away from past negative behaviors. Our transition planning helps identify key points as your child heads home and uses the wilderness to gain the confidence needed to no longer make the same mistakes.
We utilize wilderness therapy in coordination with a strong therapeutic component and family involvement to help young adults launch themselves into a brighter, more successful future. For more information please call (208) 269-7407.