Getting into a funk sucks.

I’m sure you are no stranger to it.

It’s honestly part of the ebbs and flows of being a human being. Sometimes you get stuck, feel off, or just need to shake something up.

When this happens, you don’t have to accept defeat and just sit there feeling blah.

You don’t have to let this feeling ruin your mood or day either.

Instead, you can move through it.

When you’re stuck, it means you’re facing a difficult problem and the tools your have in your arsenal don’t seem to be helping.

Maybe you’ve been staring at a certain problem for too long. Your energy has gone stale. You are starting to feel frustrated and it’s just not going anywhere.

This can be small or big scale too. Something as simple as writing a report, figuring out your taxes, or something as big as figuring out why you are depressed or how to get the finances flowing better in your life.

Either way, you’ve been sitting with it for a while, you aren’t getting anywhere, and your energy is taking a hit.

If this sounds like you, here are five steps you can take to move this energy.

1. Deflate.

To move through anything, you first have to start where you are.

Step one is about honoring the stuckness in you. This means you can’t just go suppressing the way you feel, even if you don’t like how you feel. Instead, you have to let it out.

When you blow up a balloon, but don’t tie it, you can let it go and it will deflate, swirling around, blowing air out and making a funny sound.

Imagine you’re like a balloon full of frustration, funk, and other feelings.

Let yourself go.

Let it all out, let the air out. You can grab a journal, talk to a friend or loved one, you could send a long winded voice memo, you could just scream or cry.

Whatever weird and funny noises, whatever swirling around, whatever air you need to release, RELEASE it.

They are serving you no purpose staying within.

Once you let it all out, with your minds eye, visualize two angels coming and collecting this energy. They turn it into liquid gold light, dispersing it as healing for you and anyone who needs it.

Filling you up, gently, with warm, loving, and calming gold light.

2. Sooth and Reaffirm.

Step two is about wrapping yourself up with a warm blanket, hugging yourself, and telling yourself you’re going to be just fine. You are fully capable, the problems are already working themselves out as you release, and it is safe for you to relax.

Find some items that bring you comfort. Focus on soothing sensations: touch, smell, taste, sound, and sight.

Do something that soothes you. Create a couple affirmations. Hold space. And love.

Take your time. There is no rush.

Let yourself unwind.

This will help ground you, bring you back to center, and allow you to act from a place of calm, rather then panic.

3. Laugh and Find Joy.

Step three is all about activating your core through the power of laughter.

Once you are well hugged and held, create some space for laughter and joy.

You may want to start small and watch puppy videos or text a friend, but you could also put on a funny show, invite a friend over, or break out something messy and fun.

Anything you can do to allow yourself to relax and experience joy works.

You’ve been pretty depleted dealing with the stress of what’s weighing on your back.

It’s time to refill your cup with something joyful.

4. One Small Victory

Once you are feeling a little better, more relaxed and happy, step four allows you to make a little bit of progress, while not overwhelming or forcing yourself into anything.

The goal here is that by this point, you WANT to take some action. If you aren’t feeling up to it yet, spend some more time in steps 1-3, you may have something more left to release.

If you’ve already been spending some time revisiting steps 1-3, maybe consider what it would mean for you to make some progress.

Sometimes the idea of success can be kind of scary. If you can resonate with that thought, take your fear to a journal. Explore where that belief came from, and if it’s the best belief you could chose to believe in. Make adjustments and shift as necessary. Chose a new belief.

Once you are ready and motivated to go, pick one SMALL task you could do today that would help you feel better or take care of a responsibility.

This could be straightening up your office, taking a shower, doing your laundry, responding to emails, or setting up a much needed appointment.

Once you are done, celebrate!

5. Make a Plan

Step five is all about using your momentum and creating a plan for channeling your excitement.

Accomplishing that small victory probably felt good and you may find that you want to keep going!

However, I invite you to use this energy and direct it towards setting yourself up for success tomorrow.

Sometimes, once we get one good thing going, we try to push ourselves for more. The goal is to make sure you wake up with excitement tomorrow too, rather then feeling burnt out and deeper in the hole of energy once this fire runs out.

So, grab a pen and paper, and make a list of three things you could do tomorrow that would make some progress on both your long term and short term goals, keeping your fire going.

These should be simple, and don’t be tempted to add more to the list.

Once you start flowing again, take some time to integrate and implement what you learned about yourself through this funk in your routine.

Do you give yourself room to express how you feel?

Do you take time to sooth yourself when you are worked up? Do you reaffirm yourself of your capabilities regularly?

Do you make room for fun? Do you laugh often enough?

Do you create enough breaks away from work? Do you give yourself permission to step away enough?

If not, how can you integrate these actions into your routine?

Keep in mind where you want to go, and pace yourself. You don’t have to rush this process. Getting out of a funk or a rough patch takes time, especially if you’ve been there for a while!

Stretch yourself, but don’t hurt yourself.

Move with love towards what feels like love.