Ruts occur when we get settled too securely into our routines. What initially has the look and feel of comfort gradually becomes boring, stifling and eventually confining.
Some ruts are shallower than others and with a little extra effort, one can manage to pull out of those in a relatively short period of time. Others can go on for years with no end in sight, and these ruts eventually effect you completely. You can become literally physically ill when imprisoned in an ongoing rut, your body railing against the confines of that pothole. Your head aches, your resistance to colds is weakened, your stomach churns and worse, long term depression can set in.
If you are clinically depressed, you owe it to yourself to see your doctor. He or she might have the tools you need to heal your mind and in turn break out of your rut.
However, if your rut is manageable on your own, try to stir things up a bit to jump start a way out.
If it's work related, try something as silly as changing out your pencils and pens that you use everyday. Give your office a mini makeover. Redecorate your surroundings by switching out photos that have been in frames on your desk since you started working there umpteen years ago with fresh, more current ones you took within the last few months.
Talk with your supervisors about assembling a creative think tank. Sometimes bouncing ideas off of others can be the starting point toward a new, compelling direction.
Make plans for your next getaway. Even if you do not have vacation days available for the next 12 months, map out where you want to visit in the mean time or square away a relaxing "stay-cation". Just thinking about your break can be the ticket to escaping the doldrums of a rut. In other words, there is a bright light at the end of your temporary tunnel.
If you feel like your home is in a rut, buy some flowers, or a new house plant. Sometimes the scent of fresh flowers or the act of watering a plant can be soothing and spirit lifting. Buy new, fun sheets. Rearrange your living room. Dust or deep clean your furniture, floors, windows and belongings. Seeing your surroundings all clean and shiny can lift your mood instantly, not to mention remind you of the happy occasions in which you brought those items into your home. On the flip side, sorting through your stuff can also allow for the opportunity to round up what you no longer use or have room for. Donate these items to the needy. Now you have a clutter-free environment and the great feeling of knowing someone else can start fresh with your once cherished items.
If your relationship is in a rut, surprise your significant other with something romantic at an unlikely but much appreciated time. Offer up a candlelit bath for her on a Monday night after a hectic day or arrange for the kids to have dinner with grandma on Wednesday night so the two of you can enjoy a quiet romantic dinner together. Reminisce about the early, halcyon days of your courtship and remind each other of all the reasons you fell in love in the first place...
Carve out a little pocket of time each week to nurture your connection.
A common rut that afflicts anyone who has the task of penning something on a regular basis is the dreaded writer's block.
Try as you may, the more you stare at that blank piece of paper or pulsating cursor in a sea of white monitor, the longer it takes to spit out anything worthy of hitting the save button.
Just as it's better to get up out of bed instead of laying there for hours on a sleepless night, you must get out of your chair and move around. Look or go outside. Watch life taking place around you. What do you see? What does it remind you of? Is it cold, raining, snowing, scorching hot? Describe it in your head. Get a drink of water, or get out of your surroundings altogether. Go to the gym, the park, the grocery store, a coffee shop, anywhere you can that will offer a change of scenery.
Sometimes just driving around in your car or taking a taxi or the subway can help break up the monotony. Sit on a park bench, or spread a blanket out on a patch of grass and observe life around you, see the grass, the insects, the people near by, the clouds floating past, birds, sounds, scents, the flow of everything. Scribble out notes and try to connect them in an order that makes sense. Or go existential and jot down a stream of consciousness poem. Before you know it, a trickle of ideas will begin seeping out, followed by a thrilling gush of creative thought.
If you are in a rut physically in terms of being stuck at a certain weight, once again, you need to change up your tactics. Try a new exercise routine. Lift some weights along with your cardio sessions. Skip rope. Throw in some treadmill time in addition to practicing yoga. Anything that is out of your ordinary set schedule can jump start your body into a new, more satisfying shape.
But regardless of the rut you're in, you must be patient and get through it with at least a mild sense of humor. Don't take any of it too seriously. Don't freak out. Start with little steps. Things could be worse. Recall the good days you delighted in previously and assure yourself there are many more to come once you cross the threshold of your temporary rut.
And through it all, just keep singing with a brave, determined beat, "This too shall pass, this too shall pass, I'll get through this, THIS TOO SHALL PASS!"
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