Sometimes I have a moment in life where the things I love suddenly become the one thing I hate. Sometimes this may come unexpectedly, other times, it creeps up and I feel it, but hide it away for a time. Regardless of how it happens, eventually, somehow I have to deal with it.

You may be passionate about a specific sport, style or about reading, you may be passionate about a specific form of exercise and then the next moment, you could care less about your former passion. It’s suddenly not exciting or fun anymore. You have no desire to do it any longer and you simply don’t care if you’ll ever do it again. You’re in a funk and you simply don’t care, worse, you don’t even want to care. You don’t know how it happened or why, and you have no clue if you’ll ever be able to climb your way out.

Everyone’s been there. Everyone has had that moment where they spent weeks on end trying to decide, if they’d ever care about their passion again. They felt hopeless and helpless to explain it. They didn’t even care to try to explain it.

Sure, everyone’s had ups and downs in life, but this up and down is like nothing you’ve ever had before. You feel the depth of the passion is gone forever and the truth is, you don’t even really care. You’re bored and have lost your momentum. Name the symptoms of depression and you have it. That simply put, you’re in a deep dark funk. You may be angry, frustrated, others may not want to be around you any more. You’re bored and have the attitude that says, „Get the f*ck out of my way!“ and most people do just that … they get out of your way. No one wants to deal with you or your mood and that’s just fine for you. The truth is, you’re miserable this way.

Nothing specific happened to put you in this funk, it’s not something that you can put your finger on. You just woke up one day and this was it. How do you wrap your head around it? You’re exhausted and you simply don’t care. The passion is gone and you no longer have the desire. Why were you ever doing this in the first place anyway?

Deep down inside, you remember the passion you used to have for your life. You remember the happy memories but you won’t allow yourself to bring them to the surface. You pretend you hate it. You pretend it never really mattered anyway. What if you never get that feeling back? What if you’ve forever lost that loving feeling? You’re miserable and want everyone to know it as well.

Thankfully, there’s a way you can have the feeling back. You can pull yourself out of the slump and make things better than ever.

Here’s how:

Give Yourself a Breather.
Sometimes in life we all get a little bit burnt out. We need to take some time off and give ourselves a break from whatever it is. Whether it’s a sport, a job or simply our former favorite activity, a break can make all the difference in the world. You can rekindle the spark of life you had when you once enjoyed the hobby, job or passion. Just a brief respite can often change our perspective.

Start Over.
Start over, completely over from the beginning. Allow yourself time to relax and the freedom to dwell upon what you once enjoyed and give yourself the freedom to explore a new way to enjoy your job, hobby or passion. Start with the basics and go from there. There’s no need to make things more complicated than they already are, life itself is already complicated enough. Talk a hike, go for a walk in the woods, relax at the river. Get back to the beginning and simply start a new.

Reconnect with Yourself.
Reconnect with the passion you once felt. Why did it leave? Perhaps it was because it became a chore rather than something you enjoy. Try a different method. Change it up. Do it somewhere else. Enjoy it with a friend. Whatever you can do to reconnect with yourself and change out how you’re doing your hobby, job or passion, make it something fresh while still maintaining the integrity of your passion.

Seek a New Direction.
Sometimes we stay so focused on things that we lose sight of why we began something in the first place. We block out the parts that we love and forget how to enjoy it. Look at it from a new perspective. Volunteer at some events where your favorite hobby or sport takes place. Offer to help the new guy at work learn the ropes. Redirect the focus and chances are that you’ll find you still love it, you just became so focused that you lost sight of your passion.

Share.
If you’re truly passionate about something, don’t keep it to yourself. Branch out and share it with others. It’s easy to keep things to ourselves but when we open up and share, we truly branch out and become whole. Others can often benefit from our knowledge if we only take the time to share it with them and show them. Don’t wander around aimlessly, take the time to break out of that shell and explore your options and all of the possibilities you have at hand. Imagine the joy of watching someone else learn your skills or talent. Imagine the smile of a child that discovers the fulfillment of your hobby.