How has coronavirus lockdown impacted you? Have you used the time at home to tick off lots of tasks and create new and exciting projects? Or has the pandemic experience left you feeling rather flat and depleted? In short, do you feel you’ve lost your mojo?
If so, you’re not alone. The stress of lockdown was persistent and ongoing. The stress may have been low level or heightened for you, depending on how you were feeling on any particular day. It was because of these up and down emotions that is was often called the “coronacoaster”. You just had to ride the emotion of the day until it passed.
Research from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed a rise in anxiety levels during lockdown. The ONS says: “When a shock event occurs, such as the impact of the coronavirus, wellbeing is temporarily impacted. People then quickly adapt so that wellbeing partially bounces back – though not necessarily to the same level as it was before the shock.” This may go some way to explaining why you might be lacking motivation, energy and enthusiasm – and why you may not have just bounced back to how you were before.
How to get your mojo back…
Don’t beat yourself up
It may feel disheartening to look back at the optimism of your lockdown to-do list and note that the DIY jobs are unfinished, you haven’t learned to speak a new language or play a new instrument, and that novel remains unwritten. Your motivation may have been zapped at the time. Let that go.
Tackle everyday stresses
What depletes you and what replenishes you? These factors could be external (work, other people, basic things such as shopping and travelling, relationship dynamics). Or they could be internal (how you talk to yourself, how much sleep you have, how you fret over tiny little things). Make an inventory of the times you feel stress and what the causes are. Assess the issues/situations you can change and the ones you can’t. Once you’ve made that differentiation, start to tackle the areas when you can make changes.
Accomplish one thing
One of the best ways to get your mojo back is to remind yourself of what it feels like to accomplish something. This may be a work project you keep delaying, a household chore you keep putting off, or a tricky conversation you’ve been avoiding. The feeling of ticking that off your list may give you a boost.
Energise your self-care
Have you let yourself get into a rut where you’re not really prioritising yourself and your personal needs? What can you do to boost your energy levels? Are you eating and moving enough? Is your personal grooming up to scratch? A focus on feeling and looking the best you can is another step towards recapturing your enthusiasm for life.
Make an effort socially
Your social interactions may have been rather restricted during lockdown, unless you’ve made the effort with friends and family to connect online. As we ease out of lockdown there will be more opportunities to re-connect face to face, albeit in a socially distanced way. Speaking to your friends, to like-minded people, about how you’ve been feeling may go some way to helping you re-gain your energy and motivation. You may feel less alone and more inclined to re-enter life with new vigour.
Focus on what brings you joy
There’s nothing like a new hobby, project or interest to get your mojo back. You don’t need to set your sights high. Pick something you’ve wanted to do and give it a go. Most importantly, this something has to be just for you. In lockdown (and perhaps even before that) life may have been full or ‘have to’ and ‘should’ and ‘duty’ and ‘responsibility’. Too much duty can drain you of energy and motivation. Try focusing less on duty and more on joy – and see how that reinvigorates your zest for life.
If you’d like professional therapeutic support to help you reconnect with your energy and motivation then get in touch with us by calling 020 8673 4545 or emailing [email protected] We have an increasing number of appointments available face to face at our centres in Clapham and Tooting, seven days a week, as well sessions via phone or online video.
