Hello and happy Monday! If you’re new here and want to read what I’ve talked about in former newsletters before diving in today, you can do so here.

Just as I do at work, I like to keep a detailed content calendar for this newsletter that is planned out for months – so I know what I’m writing about when and have plenty of time to put it all together. But over the past two weeks, I’ve been a little off. You know, where suddenly taking a vitamin in the morning feels like the most energy consuming task in the world? Like when it might just be depression but you don’t know for sure so to avoid sounding too vulnerable we just describe it as “ungrounded” or “off”?

In the nature of listening to and trusting my intuition, I couldn’t follow the plan for today’s newsletter, given how “off” I’ve been lately.

So today, we’re talking about how to get back on track after a few days of being off. Of course, I want to be very clear that everyone’s mental health is different. What works for me may not work for you, and of course, if you’re in a really dark place, I encourage you to talk to someone about it.

I’m talking about recovering from those times when you fell off the horse and now you’re dragging through your week with no clear intent or purpose. That’s what I’m diving into today.

So how do you get back on track? What do you need to do to reground yourself?

Let me know! I can’t wait to hear about it.

Talk soon,

Emily

The Recipe Breakdown

Lemon: Getting back on track. Now, this will look different for everybody, but I know when I come out of these funks all I want to do is jump right back into where I was before….but all the missing pieces can get a little tough to manage.

Ingredient #1: Ending the down period with a bang. And by bang, I mean a full self care refresh – we’re talking long shower, face mask, your favorite easy meal, sleepy tea, and a true crime documentary. After days or weeks of not feeling myself, I like to fully lean into the fact that I hadn’t been honoring body or mind by going on an internal apology tour by treating my body the best I can.

Ingredient #2: Over-planning the next week. This ingredient is what I expect will be the least relatable – but after all this time of just bopping around and not being cognizant of my time, I like to sit down for half an hour (or more, tbh), play my favorite record, and plan out every hour of every day of the upcoming week. I also put together my master to-do list – everything from my work tasks to taking my multivitamin. My trick with this is to not stress myself out by trying to follow this schedule and complete this to-do list, but rather use it as an exercise in remembering how I like to spend my time and the tasks I need to do in order to feel grounded and ready for the day.

Ingredient #3: Listening to your intuition. Sometimes, those down weeks are necessary. In our capitalist world, it’s hard to allow yourself to take a break. After coming out of my down periods, I try to sit in silence for a few minutes and reflect. Was this all because I was working too hard and trying to do too much? Did I need a break? Or was it just an off week? From there, I ask myself what I need. Do I need to hydrate? Do I need to move my body? Do I need to read or learn something new? Do I need to talk to my doctor about increasing my meds? Do I need a vegetable? Often times, it’s all of the above – but learning what your body needs is an important way to get back to feeling okay.

Want to talk about your own lemons, ingredients, or lemonade recipes? Feel free to reply to this email!

🍋 Lemon Zest 🍋

The Little Things that help make my days a little brighter 💕

🎵 I’m way too into the You series, so I’ve obvi been binging the latest audiobook in the series.

💐 Apparently I’m not alone in my quest to buy myself flowers literally all the time. I’m signed up for Bouqs monthly subscription and love being able to get a beautiful bouquet each month – but Trader Joe’s flowers are also beautiful!

📝 This simple journal gives me dot pages and cute layout of a bullet journal without the (admittedly self-induced) stress of having to make the pages cute myself.

💸 Embarrassingly way too into these dishwasher and stair covers. What’s so wrong with wanting things to look pretty?

💭 Can’t stop thinking about these Notion templates. I haven’t given in just yet, but I’m one-too-many coffee’s away from moving my paper planning system digital.

💜After a particularly down day, this essay by Marianne Eloise hit home hard. But, of course, I’m keeping her final point in mind: “I feel bad, and one day I’ll feel better.”

🧘Putting it into the universe that I honor my body and do one of the Underbelly Yoga’s online classes this week. Jessamyn Stanley is an idol of mine and her classes are the only ones where I feel like my large body actually finds the poses or stretches without causing strain.

☕ If you’d like to support my work and Making Lemonade, consider buying me a coffee! ☕