Y’all seem to be a resourceful and motivated bunch…what tools, practices and/or states of mind do you use to get through the sluggish mire of apathy?
Exercise! I know it doesn’t sound too enticing at first, but once you get over that initial hump, your body will crave it and you will feel great. The secret is to find a type of exercise you enjoy doing. Consider practicing a martial art.
Also, the side effects of some eh…medications…will lend to apathy. Cleanse your body of unnecessary “chemicals”. Good exercise will help with that as well.
Also get good rest.
Never only do one thing, all ways keep moving and changing. For example I’m currently playing 3 games, reading 4 books, walking 5 dogs, doing house work and an occasional jigsaw. Sometimes I have music playing sometimes I don’t. I have autism and depression so some days I don’t want to do anything but on the good days I have to keep my mind occupied. It’s a great game of cat and mouse
If it becomes such a problem that it’s interfering with your daily life, definitely talk to a doctor or a therapist. They can help you figure out a treatment, be it medication, talk therapy, or something else entirely.
Thanks everyone. Exercise seems to be the most practical option right now. @KingDAP, you’re right about the initial hump though. Starting doing some light stretching in the morning, hopefully it’ll get me moving a bit more.
Thanks @Rimor, I think that is part of where the feeling is coming from, I recently left my old life, moved in with my Mum and had an abrupt (and massive) change of plans. It took me a month of recovery so the apathy didn’t really bother but now it feels like I’m living the same day over and over again.
@Bina, I’m not super keen on doctors and medication but I appreciate the suggestion. I have an idea of where its coming from so thats beneficial. It’s just getting the momentum out of the sluggishness. I’ve definitely had it worse before, hoping to nip it in the bud soon than later this time
My psychiatrist prescribed me Lamotrigine, which is a “mood stabilizer” as he puts it. I also have Adderall for my ADHD to keep me focused on my work. it’s actually the first time in years that I’ve taken my Adderall but it keeps me efficient.
I think in dealing with apathy, the most effective method would be to talk to your friends, family or those that you feel the closest to like @Bina mentioned. BUT during a conversation, you must try to understand what the other party feels and respond to that. @KingDAP mentioned exercise, which is a very good approach to keep your mentality active. Moreover, if you have some spare time, use it to meditate and reflect on your own feelings to balance your thoughts. By asking us Mountaineers, you are already resolving apathy little by little, so just keep in touch with us! Keep a record of your daily feelings and see if you are improving and what steps you took that day to improve yourself.
Honestly, the forum here helps so much. I feel a bit of a sense of purpose knowing that we are working on writing a new story to bring magiq back to this world (which I’ve always felt is a life purpose for me) knowing I can come here to talk with you all is so supporting and I’m so appreciative
@WizardAstraz I would consider taking on a project that you feel passionate in! Doesn’t have to be anything huge it could simply be writing a text to someone you haven’t talked to in awhile or something like that!
Also you mentioned “it feels like i’m living the same day over and over again.” do you mean there was an event that happened that could have caused PTS (I don’t like the D in PTSD as post traumatic stress is normal and in no way a disorder) if it is a situation brought upon by stress i’d be more than happy to simply talk about it with you if that helps!
I really hope one of these help! Let us know how it goes! Remember that my PM doors are always open if you need to talk or anything!
I don’t have too much to offer, but I’m in the same boat. I feel like my life hasn’t turned out how I wanted it, so I feel sort of trapped. But socializing really helps me, so I use this, reddit, and multiplayer games. Board games with friends in person is also nice, but it takes a lot more effort.
Taking walks also helps me, I like to close my eyes for a moment and take a big breath, and really smell how nice and fresh the air is. I guess it doesn’t work if you live somewhere smelly though, lol. A house a block from me has a really big lilac bush that’s in bloom right now, stopping and taking a deep breath near it is really relaxing somehow. Also another thing I like to do outside, when it’s dusk or later I go out into the grass with no shoes and close my eyes and meditate a little. Feeling the cool grass on my feet makes me feel good
I don’t know if it would count as apathy or apathy-adjacent, but when I was particularly stuck a few years ago, I took several free online classes. Not really anything that would necessarily count as “bettering myself,” just things that were interesting. A couple classes on the history of rock, a Beatles class, an intro to Python programming… There were a couple others I started but wasn’t able to finish because internet access/life changes got in the way, but they were free so .
I’ll be honest it’s a bit of a relief knowing that I’m not the only one wondering about this kind of stuff. I’ve grown up keeping myself busy but life still seems so empty. I think I’m just looking for something I can truly be passionate about.
Lately I’ve just been trying to find new things to do (such as using this forum), and I think setting a goal of something you want to do might help. For example, over the summer (once school stress is over basically) I hope to make some sort of exercise schedule and follow it.
I’ve heard through talking to people about my mental health that a healthy lifestyle and knowledge about your feelings and what might be causing them are a good starting point; let me know if you have any other questions or things like that and I can do my best to help.
Thank you! I’ve been doing a lot better lately, allowing myself to have this time as a “mini retirement” as I’m calling it. It’s ok to not know what I’m doing right now and it’s ok to relax and let it be.
Working out is my big goal right now, there is a gym up the street and I’m
Working up the motivation to get a membership. I know that I’ll be hooked once I start going and it’ll do me a world of good. It’ll also give me something to do, though now the weather is warming up and I don’t mind floating around the pool reading all day (I’m in Phoenix)
Luckily I have a lot of experience with self reflection as it’s been in my professional field as an energy worker/spirit based counselor for a while, so you too, let me know if I can help any way? Feel free to PM me
I change things when I start to feel ‘Meh’
Sometimes I will cut my hair into a new style (most recently I went from shoulder length to pixie cut and immediately felt a lifting of my soul)
I will rearrange furniture in one or all rooms of my house.
Or I will go through my clothes/possessions and feel the memories, if they don’t bring me any joy they go into a cupboard, then the next time I go through it all if it still doesn’t spark anything I will sent it to a charity shop.
Very good approach. Rearranging your environment and yourself can help “release built up stagnant/stale energy” in both places.
Side note: I used to love rearranging the furniture in our house and in our bedroom as a kid. My siblings and I did it all the time. Each time it created a different “feeling”.
I have to agree strongly with @KingDAP excercise is an excellent source for creating some movement in the day. As is cleansing and simplifying your living or sleeping space. I honestly say try not to rely on motivation too much it’s a whimsical and elusive partner and too prone to deserting us when we need. I’d say rely on self disciple and create some simple self rewarding rituals for the day. Small goals you know you can honestly achieve and will set you up for wins through the day;
- Make your bed every morning (win 1)
- 15-20min excercise before coffee (win 2)
- 6 deep calming breaths (win 3 and the day is yours )
You are a warrior my friend and you will stare apathy in the face and set your terms for being. You have projects and a community to help you bare the flame.
Aside from helping my wife get our son ready, this pretty much describes my morning!
Except sometimes before the exercise I’ll do a Kouksundo ki warm up, then for exercise either some push ups crunches and squats or some Taekwondo (my main art), then kouksundo ki shin beop which is meridian postures & breathing.
I really need to increase my cardio though so I need to get my butt up earlier and start running again and/or do some heavy bag work.