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Moods

Missing Your Motivation? Here’s Why

September 28, 2021 By madisontt

Image credit: https://unsplash.com/photos/E75ZuAIpCzo

Do you ever find yourself staring at your to-do list, intimidated by its size but too overwhelmed to begin checking off boxes? Yeah, of course you do.

Motivation in our daily lives can be extremely hard to come by. There are some days where you feel like a superhero as you plow through your tasks like some unstoppable machine, and then there are days where you feel like that unstoppable machine just ran you over. Those days, motivating yourself to get things done feels impossible.

Everyone wishes on those days that motivation could come down deus-ex-machina-style and spontaneously inspire us to tackle the day. However, on the days when motivation is missing, it may be less important to focus the absence of motivation and more important to look at what other needs are not being met.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Twentieth-century psychologist Abraham Maslow proposed the theory that human needs are intrinsically prioritized and that some needs must be fulfilled before others can be of concern (Maslow 1943). He proposed that needs are more or less hierarchical in nature, with survival and safety most basic, lying at the bottom of his famous pyramid of needs, and more abstract requirements such as self-fulfillment and psychological needs towards the top.

Maslow also examined how these needs relate to our sense of motivation in life. Maslow’s original hierarchy included five layers of needs–physiological, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization–each of which must be fully satisfied before the next layer of needs could be tackled. He concluded that we are motivated by our needs, whether these needs are tangible or psychological, and that motivation to continue ‘upwards’ will be absent when lower needs are not met.

Although Maslow eventually adjusted his theories to be less rigid—he later withdrew his belief that one stage of needs must be fulfilled entirely for those above it to be acknowledged—there are many critiques of his theory and his research methods. Nevertheless, the concept of psychological hierarchies remains an arguably vital piece of modern-day understanding of psychological motivation.

Why Am I So Unmotivated?

Taking a page out of Maslow’s book, it is important to consider what other things you feel when you find yourself lacking motivation. Although motivation sometimes feels fleeting, your motivation is likely drained because some of your other physiological and psychological priorities are unmet. The unsatisfied needs could be related to your environment, your relationships, your emotions, or something different altogether.

This post by Grace Blair originally appeared here.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Mental Health, Mindfulness, Moods, Nutrition, Self Care

How to Become More Laid-Back

November 14, 2019 By madisontt

laid back

You feel like you’re always moving, you’re constantly obsessing, you have never-ending to-do lists. Oh, to be able to slow down, be more laid-back and less driven without having to get stoned or drunk.

[Read more…] about How to Become More Laid-Back

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Mental Health, Mindfulness, Moods, Self Care, Tools

Superfoods For Better Moods––And Less Depression

October 28, 2019 By madisontt

We all know hangry, and Martha from Southern California is no exception. “When my 9-year-old daughter is asking me questions, and I get irritated, I know that I’m not going to feel better until I stop and eat something,” she says.

Hunger, which deprives your brain of fuel, can trigger a stress response, which often expresses itself as irritability or anger, i.e., being hangry. Whereas providing your brain with optimal fuel, such as superfoods—nutrient-rich foods that promote health—could help ease your depression or anxiety. [Read more…] about Superfoods For Better Moods––And Less Depression

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Depression, Moods, Nutrition

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From the Blog

Aspects of Culturally Competent Care That We Don’t Talk About
(But Need To)

October 5, 2021 By madisontt

Missing Your Motivation? Here’s Why

September 28, 2021 By madisontt

Mental Health Awareness and Support

September 20, 2021 By madisontt

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