Feeling Stuck? Stay In Motion

One of the main things you realise as you get older is the importance and power in the present moment. It’s easy to understand logically but still miss it entirely the next moment, as ironic as that is. The present moment is all that we have, and the only way to really remember that is through consistently and diligently becoming aware of it as often as you possibly can.

The reason that time is slipping away is partially and largely due to the fact that we are everywhere but really and truly right here, in our bodies, in the now with full-blown presence and awareness. Feeling everything and noticing each second that goes by. That sounds exhausting but it’s the opposite. It’s freeing because that awareness gives you back control by forcing us out of autopilot and into the driver’s seat of our bodies and our minds and our entire being. It makes us realise and get back in touch with free will and autonomy. We have choice again, we are no longer running away from time and caught in a hazy dreamlike state of living, we are so so present that it feels like living.

Feeling stagnant and stuck

Stagnancy and feeling stuck are natural parts of the cycles we experience in life, they are bound to happen. More often than not, it’s accompanied by overthinking or distractions that take our attention away from what’s really bugging us deep down, sometimes numbing us enough to not have to face any of it until you’re met with the present moment once again and it’s unbearable to stay there. It’s an uncomfortable feeling, but it’s necessary. It’s showing us what isn’t working and that’s what we’ve been doing so far.

Combating stagnancy means integrating its opposite, staying in motion. The first step of that is looking at what you’re currently doing and asking if it’s keeping you stagnant. Do you really need to be doing what you’re doing right now? How are you being? Are you in the fetal position, rotting? Is this really what you need right now or do you feel that this isn’t the way you need to be holding yourself right now? There are times when the fetal position and rotting are necessary and the only forms of comfort we can give to ourselves, but that’s not every time. It’s down to you to assess if your positioning, as your way of being and what you’re currently doing right now in this exact present moment, one to the next, is the way you want to be. Since this moment is all you ever have, focusing and readjusting this moment and every present moment you can possibly engage with is the only way to create full-on change.

Staying in motion

Staying in motion is the easiest way of combating this issue. Starting with awareness, bring your attention to the tiniest little changes you can make right now, maybe to yourself, maybe to your external space. Start small, maybe put your phone down if you’re doom-scrolling and focus on your breathing, or shoot up without thinking at all and start there waiting for your intuition to notice and give you direction. The first thing that pops up in mind (if it’s crowded, this will happen easily and quickly) take notice and move before evaluating it and thinking around it. As you do this more, your analysis of doing will become more natural but right now, focus entirely on the action. Staying in motion and not judging it or analysing it, just get shit done, small to big to bigger if you can manage it. It creates momentum and a flow that is easier to ride than the initial decision to become aware enough to do it. It creates natural healthy serotonin that lasts longer than quick hits of dopamine, it rewires your mind to focus on your surroundings and becoming practical and motivated instead of letting that stagnant energy build up and up into a cloud of overthoughts and heavy tension. With each task, you feel lighter and lighter, more space will be created, more insight and creativity will be cultivated and new paths and decisions will be made. You are slowly creating a compound effect that will change you and therefore your life. There will be no time to overthink as you can do it as you can, but as a result, the thoughts will be healthier and nicer and more constructive.

Just keep swimming

Overcoming stagnancy is difficult but it all starts with what you’re doing in the present moment and making a decision to change that right now. Finding your flow and keeping yourself moving, and only stopping when you’ve intentionally given yourself the time for rest and rejuvenation. Taking control over your time and yourself again means getting back in touch with yourself. Being yourself, being you with intention and awareness. The benefits on your mind, body and spirit are unlimited. Keep moving and you’ll soon notice a ricochet of changes behind you.