5 Types of Slumps 🗒️😮‍💨 (and How to Get Out of Them)

May 11

We all experience slumps — seasons where motivation is low, energy is off, and things just feel harder than usual.

But not all slumps are the same.

Sometimes you're tired.
Sometimes you're overwhelmed.
Sometimes you're carrying something heavy.
Sometimes you're growing and transitioning.
And sometimes you've simply lost momentum.

In this episode, I break down 5 types of slumps women commonly experience and walk you through what might be causing them, what they look like, and what you actually need to find your way forward.

Because getting out of a slump isn’t about pushing harder — it’s about understanding what your mind, body, and emotions are asking for.

We also talk about:

How to identify the type of slump you're in
Why pushing harder often makes things worse
Practical ways to gently rebuild momentum
When it might be time to seek additional support
How to move forward with compassion instead of criticism

If you’ve been feeling stuck, drained, or disconnected… this episode will help you understand why — and give you a path forward.

LET’S DIVE IN 🖤

I think we all experience slumps.

Periods where we don’t quite feel like ourselves.
Where motivation is low.
Habits slip.
Everything just feels a little heavier than usual.

You're not necessarily in crisis… but you're also not thriving either.

And when we find ourselves in those seasons, the natural instinct is to either try to snap out of it or we stay stuck in the same patterns that are keeping us there.

We tell ourselves:

I just need to get motivated
I need to get back on track
I need to push harder

Or…

We scroll more.
We disconnect.
We avoid.
We stay in the same loop hoping something will shift on its own.

And honestly, ya’ll. Neither extreme is really serving us.

Snapping out of it often creates more pressure.
And staying stuck keeps us cycling through the same patterns.

What I want to offer today is something different — I want to help you understand yourself.

Because what I’ve been learning — both in my own life and in coaching women — is that not all slumps are the same.

And if we don’t understand the kind of slump we're in, we can end up trying to fix it in the wrong way.

Think about it:

If you're exhausted… pushing harder is not helpful
If you're overwhelmed… adding more is a recipe for disaster
If you're disconnected… productivity won’t magically bring your spark back
If you're emotionally drained… powering thru isn’t healthy or healing

Instead of beating ourselves up when we face the inevitable lows of life, I want us to learn how to dig in and acknowledge/identify the slump and then decide what your body, mind, and spirit actually NEED right now.

Slumps are signals. And when you learn to listen you gain agency.

You can make your next best choice.
You can support yourself in a way that actually helps you move forward.

And today I want to help you do just that, so let’s dive in. 🤍

The Five Types of Slumps

I tend to see five broad categories of slumps:

Energy Slumps
Emotional Slumps
Mental Slumps
Growth & Transition Slumps
Momentum Slumps

And within each of these there are different experiences that can show up. Let’s walk through them together.

1. The Energy Slump

This is one of the most common.

This is when:

You feel tired
Everything feels harder than usual
Your motivation is low
Your body feels sluggish
Your mind feels foggy

Energy slumps often show up as:

exhaustion
burnout
decision fatigue
overextended seasons

Friends. We usually don’t fall into an energy slump overnight. We slowly get there.

Maybe you’ve been:

in a busier, more full season
managing a lot emotionally
leading at work or at home
sleeping less than you need
pushing yourself for a long time
having late nights or early mornings with little margin inbetween

Eventually your body catches up with you.

Sometimes it's not just physical exhaustion, either.

You might be emotionally tired.
Decision tired.
People tired.
Caretaking tired.

Energy isn't just physical it's emotional and mental, too. Regardless of what type of energy depletion you’re feeling, though, pushing harder doesn’t help.

What you actually need is:

rest
nourishment
hydration
sunlight
gentle movement
lowered expectations

Sometimes you're not unmotivated. You're just tired.

In these seasons, instead of asking:
"How do I do more?"

The better question becomes:
"How do I restore my energy?"

2. The Emotional Slump

This is when things just feel heavy.

You might feel:

low mood
sadness
irritability
disconnection
loneliness
more sensitive than usual

And truthfully, as women, our emotions naturally ebb and flow — especially in sync with our cycles.

Hormonal shifts throughout the month can impact:

mood
energy
patience
resilience
motivation

Sometimes what feels like a slump might actually be a natural emotional dip.

You might notice:

feeling more emotional before your cycle
feeling more introspective or withdrawn
feeling less motivated or more sensitive

And instead of fighting that it can be helpful to recognize that this is part of your rhythm.

Beyond our cycles, though, ladies, emotional slumps can also show up during:

stressful seasons
disappointment
grief
friendship shifts
loneliness
disconnection from yourself or others

It is very human to carry something heavy.

And in those seasons, it’s really easy to try and power through our emotions…
to put on a smile…
to say everything is “fine”…
to distract ourselves…
or suppress what we’re actually feeling.

But sometimes the reason everything doesn’t feel fine is because it isn’t. And maybe you’ve been pretending that it is for far too long.

So instead of pushing through maybe what you actually need is:

permission to feel what you're feeling
space to process instead of perform
honest conversations instead of surface-level ones
quiet time to reflect and check in with yourself
journaling or prayer to work through what's underneath
emotional release — whether that's tears, talking, or simply slowing down
reducing emotional load instead of adding more to your plate

Emotional slumps don’t always need to be fixed. Sometimes they need to be felt.

And often, when we allow ourselves to actually feel what's there we create space for things to shift naturally. Not because we’re forcing it, but because we stop resisting what we we’re carrying.

3. The Mental Slump

This is when your brain feels overloaded.

This might look like:

overwhelm
decision fatigue
scattered thinking
procrastination
avoidance

Mental slumps often happen when:

you have too much on your plate
you're making a lot of decisions
you're juggling multiple roles
you're constantly "on"

Sometimes I think the mental slumps come bc we're overloaded. Our brains are carrying too much.

Too many decisions.
Too many responsibilities.
Too many open loops — input, information, all this noise from the outside world.

Sometimes your brain isn’t overwhelmed by responsibilities, it's overwhelmed by constant input.

And when your brain is overloaded, even simple things can feel hard.

Deciding what to make for dinner.
Responding to a message.
Starting a project.

It's not because you're not capable. It's because your mental capacity is maxed out.

What I’ve realized when I find myself in mental slumps is that I don’t need more effort. More doing. I actually need less.

Less decisions.
Less pressure.
Less expectations.

And sometimes a practical step forward that can help me offload the mental noise.

This might look like:

writing down everything swirling in your mind to clear mental clutter
choosing your top one or two priorities for the day instead of ten
simplifying meals, workouts, or routines for a season
creating structure so you're not deciding everything in real time
stepping away from your phone or constant input to give your brain space
asking for help or delegating the household load to your family

When your brain is overloaded, clarity doesn’t come from powering thru and doing more. It often comes from creating space. From getting help. From organizing what’s swirling in your mind onto paper and a plan.

4. The Growth & Transition Slump

This one is sneaky.

Because sometimes you're not in a slump because something is wrong…

You're in a slump because something is changing.

This often happens in seasons of transition. When you're no longer who you were… but you're not quite settled into who you're becoming either.

Maybe:

you’re coming up for air out of a full season
you're growing or evolving
your priorities are shifting, redefining what matters, or seeing old ways of living that no longer align
you moved or relocated or changed jobs
you stepped into a new role (leader, business owner, parent, caregiver, etc.)
you're letting go of an old identity or version of yourself
you're entering a new life season (motherhood, empty nest, marriage, new business, new rhythms)
you've accomplished something big and now you're asking… what’s next?
you're pulling back from hustle or pressure and learning a new pace
your relationships are shifting as you grow or change
you're starting to want different things than you used to

And what's tricky about these seasons is that they're not necessarily a negative. They're actually rooted in growth and often things we’ve prayed for our wanted to accomplish. That doesn’t mean the changes aren’t hard, though. Growth doesn't always feel exciting.

Sometimes it feels:

unclear
slower
uncomfortable
like you've lost momentum

This is what it’s like to live in those in-between seasons.

The space between who you were and who you're becoming.

And in those seasons, what you often need isn't pressure to move faster or show up like a previous version of you did (hello comparing our today selves to our younger selves!)

You might need:

patience with the process
space to reflect
permission to move slowly
curiosity about what's changing
gentle steps forward instead of big leaps

This is probably counterintuitive to what we expect, but growth seasons don’t always feel like forward motion.

Sometimes they feel like stillness.
Sometimes they feel like uncertainty.
But often they’re quietly shaping the next version of you.

5. The Momentum Slump

This is the slump where you feel… stuck.

Not necessarily exhausted.
Not necessarily overwhelmed.
Not necessarily emotional.

Just… stuck.

You might notice:

procrastination
avoidance
difficulty getting started
low motivation
things piling up that you keep putting off

And the longer this goes on, the heavier everything can start to feel.

Momentum slumps often show up when:

you’ve lost your rhythm or routine
you’re unsure of your next step
you’re feeling intimidated by something ahead
you’ve taken time off and are trying to re-enter
you’re carrying pressure to do things “right”
you’re avoiding something that feels uncomfortable

Sometimes we call this laziness, but more often than not, it isn’t.

Think about Newton’s Law of Motion — objects in motion stay in motion. Objects at rest stay at rest.

And the same is often true for us.

When you're already moving, it's easier to keep going.
But when you've slowed down… or stopped… it can feel really hard to get started again.

This isn’t about motivation. It's about action.

Once momentum slows down, it can be hard to restart it.

Small things begin to feel big.
Simple tasks feel heavier.
And the longer you stay at rest, the harder it can feel to begin again.

In these seasons, what we actually need is gentle momentum. Small actions. One small step forward. Your next BEST choice.

This might look like:

starting with the easiest task instead of the hardest one
setting a timer for 10–15 minutes and just beginning
doing one thing that moves the needle instead of trying to do everything
returning to a simple routine that once worked for you
celebrating small wins instead of waiting for big breakthroughs
brain dumping everything you need/want to do into ChatGPT and asking it to help you figure out your next best step (seriously — use modern tools to help you simplify your life, ya’ll!)

Remember: Motivation doesn’t come before action.

It comes after you begin.

And sometimes, the most powerful thing you can do in a momentum slump is take one small step forward. And often, that one small step is enough to help you find your rhythm again.

And once momentum begins to build, you start to feel like yourself again, too.

If there’s one thing I hope you take away from this conversation, it’s this:

Not all slumps are the same.

Sometimes you're tired.
Sometimes you're overwhelmed.
Sometimes you've been carrying something heavy.
Sometimes you're growing and evolving and seasons are changing.
Sometimes you've simply lost momentum.

All of this is normal and human, friends.

Slumps don’t signal failure. They are simply information.

It’s your mind, your body, and your emotions asking for something different.

Maybe you need:

rest
space to process
less tabs open in your mind all at once
patience and grace with yourself in seasons of transition
or simply one small step forward to get you out of stuckness and into momentum

When you start responding to the inevitable slumps we all face with curiosity instead of criticism, you begin to find your way back to yourself.

Gently.
Slowly.
One best self choice at a time.

Before we wrap up, though, I also want to say this, especially bc it’s Mental Health Awareness Month —

Sometimes what you might have been calling a slump is actually something deeper.

Especially if you’ve been feeling:

persistently low for months on end
disconnected from things you normally enjoy
overwhelmed in a way that feels really hard to manage
anxious, discouraged, depressed, or emotionally drained for a long stretch

It might be time to talk to someone and that is one of the strongest things you can do for yourself.

A therapist.
A doctor.
A trusted professional who can help support you.

Because you don’t have to figure everything out on your own and some slumps are beyond your control to support.

Asking for help isn’t weakness.

It’s awareness.
It’s advocacy.
It’s taking care of your mental and emotional well-being in a meaningful way.

Sometimes the most powerful step forward is realizing you don’t have to do it alone, so I want to tread gently for the woman who is in more than a slump. There are tools that can support you. You just have to be brave enough to ask for them.

Wherever you find yourself today, I hope you can see some light in this episode for your situation. I hope you feel seen and supported.

Start small.
Be gentle with yourself.
Listen to what you need.

And trust that with time, support, and a few small steps forward, you’ll find your rhythm again. You’ll get back to being YOU.

You always do.

I love you. I’m rooting for you. And I’ll see you right here next time, on The Self Care Sisterhood Podcast. 🤍

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