How to Get Mentally Unstuck is the list to use whenever you feel mentally drained, dim, or defeated.
Life can be messy and confusing at times, and our mental capacity is stretched to the fullest to cope with its demands. We all know that because we all live it.
But this is why we need to recharge and refresh our minds to avoid becoming mentally stuck.
The hints I recommend below are simple to follow. As with any information, it is worth trying to apply them.
HOW TO GET MENTALLY UNSTUCK – 8 HINTS TO FOLLOW
ALLOW YOURSELF TO BE STUCK FOR NOW!
Feeling stuck sometimes is normal and unavoidable. But being mentally stuck can be a red flag to warn you that you are mentally overworked.
This fact is not surprising, considering that every day, 50,000-70,000 thoughts go through your head. In addition to those, you also have all the daily personal or professional duties that require your full attention.
All these actions, without the necessary break, can lead to stress and fatigue.
Because of this, it generates a kind of protective shield through this mental blockage to not make the situation worse than it is already.
Also, the lack of proper sleep and good hydration accentuates the state of blockage even more.
So, allow yourself to be stuck for now. Take advantage of the situation to give yourself a well-deserved rest break. It may be what you need at the moment.
Sometimes the easiest way to solve a problem is to stop participating in the problem.
– Albert Einstein –
CONNECT THE DOTS
When you feel mentally stuck, it is good to trace your thoughts back to the last time you felt good, resourceful, and productive and to catch the WHY.
Pay attention to what is going through your mind and why this is happening. Connect the dots (your thoughts) by looking backward to the root where the blockage was created.
In this manner, you recover, refresh your mind, and restore its proper functioning to move forward productively.
DO A CURE WITH NEGATIVE IONS
If you take advantage of a break, also do a cure with negative ions. When negative ions are predominant in the atmosphere, general well-being is activated.
It clears your mind, raises morale, and reduces anxiety and stress. The mountain air contains this type of ions, but they are also generated in areas of moving waters, such as waterfalls, seas, oceans, or flowing springs.
On the other hand, when the concentration of positive ions predominates in the atmosphere, as in the case of cities, we can notice irritability and persistent fatigue.
So, for a while, get away from “the jungle of the city” and do a little self-reflection, lost in the simplicity and uniqueness of nature.
EXPLORE MORE:
BE MINDFUL (RAINBOW EXERCISE)
By being mindful, you turn off your autopilot mind and thus leave no room for those automatic negative thoughts to be created. As a result, you free your mind, start being present in your life, and focus on the things that matter.
I want to propose to you a simple but effective awareness practice by applying the Rainbow exercise. The rainbow has seven colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet, as you know.
Do these colors refer to something in particular?
Maybe you guessed or already know the answer. If not, I’ll tell you.
The rainbow colors follow the same pattern as the chakra’s colors. By applying this exercise, you will not only be attentive and present to everything that surrounds you, but at the same time, you will also activate each chakra individually.
RAINBOW EXERCISE:
Assign a color to each day of the week:
Monday – Red
Tuesday – Orange
Wednesday – Yellow
Thursday – Green
Friday – Blue
Saturday – Indigo
Sunday – Violet
Start the exercise on Monday, and on that day, wherever you are: at home, at work, on the street, in the park with children, or on a terrace, focus your attention on things that contain the red color. ( a red scarf, a bird with red feathers, a jewel with a red stone, a flower, a mug, or any other things around you.)
Try to mentally collect a minimum of 20 red items on that day. The more you focus on doing this exercise, the more you will pay attention to details.
Thus, you refresh and stimulate your mind, and you will turn your day into a funny one full of positivism.
You can do this exercise alone, but also you can be mindful when you are with your kids, involving their attention too. What could be more beautiful than being a child again for a moment?
EXPLORE MORE:
Living a Mindful Life – Be Aware of Your Present
Mindfulness with Kids – How to Be Happy and Present
SHAKE UP THE THINGS
For new results, bring new energy. The energy of change breaks the daily monotonous cycle, and here I refer to making small changes that will get you out of that mental routine.
In this way, you will give your brain a much-needed workout to improve your cognitive skills.
• Try a new route, not the usual one
• Listen to a different genre of music
• Visit new places you wouldn’t usually go to
• Engage in discussions with people who have different perspectives from yours
• Change the place of things around the house to set the energy in motion
• Try new activities that you are not quite top-notch at
• Take the stairs instead of using the elevator
• Walk or ride a bike instead of driving
• If the right hand is predominant, start changing your hand when you engage in different activities.
The idea is that to give the brain enough stimulation, you must shake up things and do something unusual for you.
FREE YOUR MIND (EXERCISE)
Another exercise proposed is to let your mind be free to create what it wants. For an entire minute, write on a piece of paper or the computer everything that comes to your mind: every word, idea, or phrase, without forcing them, without logic or a particular order.
Write what comes to your mind at that moment.
Perfect. Now that you have a list of random words, ideas, or phrases, take them, one by one, and associate them with an image that conveys exactly what the word or phrase refers to.
This freedom of expression seems to bring adrenaline to the stenography of information. It sets your wheels in motion and can serve you with new ideas for a business, profession, or personal life.
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
– Albert Einstein –
CLEAN THE PHYSICAL SPACE
It is proven that by cleaning the surrounding space, you send a message on a subconscious level that you want more flow in your life.
In general, messy things have the power to keep you stuck.
A messy room, with many things piled up and thrown here and there, barely lets you breathe, and above all, it in no way allows mental fluidity, focus, and creativity.
So, tidy up your space, and you will see how you will free your mind.
EXPLORE MORE:
How to Clean the Clutter from Your Life – Follow These 7 Steps
ASK FOR HELP
To ask for help is nothing to be ashamed of. To feel more comfortable, you can turn to someone you trust and think is resourceful. It can be a family member or your best friend.
Just ask them what they would do if they were in the same situation as you. They could give you new perspectives.
When all your mental decongestion attempts have no positive results, I recommend you turn to a professional who will help you discover why you are mentally stuck.
He will provide solutions to overcome the situation.
Being mentally stuck can be a cause of the reasons listed at the beginning of the article or, in the worst scenario, be due to a mental health disorder.
Sometimes, asking for help can be the most hopeful step to positive solutions.
BOTTOM LINE
The one-size-fits-all approach does not fit everyone. Although these suggestions are efficient and to the point, they could not work all for you.
In this case, let me know in the comment below if you have tried any of them or if you have different ones that could be effective.
Till next time…
Find the “door” that keeps your mind free!
Founder of Dare and Be.
Contact: support@dareandbe.com
Wow this is so good ! So many great tips for making the difference! I love the different ways of changing the every day behaviour like trying out new kinds of music. And that a messy home can hinder your thoughts , amen ! I think this also applies to physical blockings in the body. Thanks again for a most interesting post !
I like that it’s something you can do with your kids. Makes it a family thing. Or trying a different route or new music. Simple, but sounds fun. But it’s interesting…this whole idea of waking up your brain by collecting red stuff is kinda cool.
But I’d love more weird or funny ideas to try if it maximize my mind to be smooth sailing.
I find myself mentally stuck a lot between multiple tasks, that makes me get very aggravated. These tips you have provided, I am going to try and hope it helps. Especially travel new route never gone before to see new things. I am also going to share your advice on social media.
Hi Jannette,
Thank you for stopping by. Try the hints from the article and just let me know how they work for you.
Thanks for this valuable and comprehensive post. I really like this kind of thing and always try to put it into practice. I already meditate when I wake up in the morning, which helps me a lot and gives me great relief. But I haven’t heard about this Rainbow exercise before. Definitely a must try. Keep posting like this, you are doing a great job.
Hi Dimanka,
I am glad that you are open-minded and you like to apply the information you receive. If there is something I vehemently support and recommend to every person, it is to meditate daily, even if only for a few minutes. Regarding the topic of the article, meditation is definitely a MUST-DO. Try the Rainbow exercise, and let me know your experience with it. Surely you will enjoy it.
I went through such a situation and it would have been much easier for me if I had known about these methods.
Now that I came across your article, I have more means to overcome such moments.
I was surprised to find out how many thoughts we can have per day.
The fact that I started doing sports daily helps me free my mind from the accumulated stress. I realize now that sleep deprivation and good hydration are vital.
I did not know about negative ions and where they are found, and the exercise in
finding 20 red items, for example, is something special that I also didn’t know about. Thanks for the info.
Respectfully,
Vasile.
With pleasure, Vasile. I am glad that the article provided you with new information. I hope that you will not have to face the situation where you get mentally stuck, but if it happens, at least you have some suggestions to help you.
Mental fatigue is one thing that makes me sick when it occurs. Like you right said over work usually leads to be mentally stucked. Although one may feel it is avoidable, but with ones desire to meet up with our daily responsibility, over work many times is unavoidable. I usually stop participating in the schedules when I am fatigued and it has helped a lot. Thank you for the rainbow exercises, I will give it a trial
Hi Ayodeji,
It is good to see you back. Indeed, when our mind is overworked, the first step is to detach ourselves from everything we are doing, to give the mind a well-deserved break. It works for you, and it definitely works for everyone. I am glad that the Rainbow exercise catched the attention of both you and other readers. Try it and let us know about your experience.
Hi Diana, I’m also a Certified NLP Master Practitioner. I loved your article. I especially appreciate the rainbow exercise. I haven’t heard of that before. I’m definitely going to implement it into my daily routine. I think it will help me be more focused and less distracted.
I do have experience with the Free Your Mind Exercise. I call it a brain dump. I usually just write everything that pops into my head until I have nothing left. I then set it aside for a few weeks, then I re-read what I wrote. I circle the keywords, phrases, or ideas that still resonate with me at that time and I take action steps to reach those goals. ( I also encourage my clients to do the same if they have too much mental chatter.)
Hi Jariel,
I am happy when colleagues in the same branch interact with my articles. That’s why I appreciate the time allocated and the input provided. Rainbow exercise is one of my favorites, and not only that. Even my clients appreciate this awareness exercise, which definitely gives positive results every time. I would like to know that you also put it into practice, and maybe even come back with a feedback on it.
Regards,
Diana.