(Dear Vywamus,)
Why am I feeling so unmotivated?
L.J.
Dear L.J.,
Feeling unmotivated is a phase many of you go through at different times in your lives, and it usually means a transition is happening. And at this time in human evolution, many of you are in transition. Perhaps the things you used to be interested in and passionate about no longer seem important, and you have not yet found anything new to engage you. Or perhaps you have never found a purpose to be passionate about. To any of you who are in one of these phases, I say: Look first to your body and your emotions as guides.
Your physical energy may be low, or bound up in some way so that the bodily energies cannot support any kind of enthusiasm or urge to be active. It is important, and just common sense, to first check out and treat any medical condition that may be depleting your energy flow. (e.g., low thyroid, sleep disorder, chemical imbalance resulting in depression, and so on). Do this first, and you may need nothing else.
Often, however there is an emotional reason for feeling unmotivated – whether or not you also have a physical cause. So look at your emotions. There is likely some war going on inside yourself between the parts of you that want to move forward and the parts of you that are resisting. So the result is a stalemate, or stuckness. And sometimes all emotions “go underground” so that you are not even consciously aware of the conflict. And then life seems very flat indeed.
The solution, of course, is to bring those emotions up to your awareness again, and to fully feel all of them. It’s often easier and quicker if you do this work with the help of a therapist or other wise counselor. Whether you do this work with a counselor or by yourself, it is important to give all the parts of you a hearing. Find a private and secure place where you can let out and express your feelings in a physical way. If you would like more detailed suggestions on how to do this, look at my letter this month to Gold (November 2013).
As you do this work, honor all the feelings that come up from the different parts of you. Do not try to get rid of them. They all have something to contribute. Listen to their messages. It will gradually become clearer to you as to what the stalemate is, and then you can ask those parts of you how it can be resolved. If you are consistent in staying with this process, the energies in your emotional field will begin to come together. Instead of making war, they will get together to power your will and enthusiasm toward a goal that you can become excited about.
Now what about your mind? The role of your mind is to bring up good ideas and possible goals, and help you explore their practicality, but your mind alone can almost never be certain which goal is most right for you, and your mind alone can never give you true motivation. Motivation is the sphere of the emotions. Liberate them, listen to them, guide them with whatever wisdom you have achieved, and you will find that you are feeling alive and ready to move in whatever direction you need to go.
For more about how to work with and benefit from emotions, see also my letters to H. Kim (5-21-10) and Anthony (Nov. 2012).
Thank you for your question, and especially during this transition, call on us for help any time.
We are always available,
Vywamus