I've been feeling unmotivated, what should I do?

Hi, and thank you for your question.

There are a number of things to consider...

Normal Human Range of Experience

You mentioned that you "have moments" where you're depressed, lethargic, unaccomplished and not motivated" and "have been for awhile." A important question to ask is, "What standard are you judging yourself against?" Are you comparing your experience to the media's portrayal of what "should be"? Your peers on social media? Your own personal history of behavior and experience? What your friends and family are telling you you should feel like? It's normal to feel the way you've described sometimes, and depending upon the underlying cause(s), there's no specific timeline for when such things might resolve. Developing self-awareness can go a long way toward helping to decipher what's really going on.

Physical Activity

If you're relatively healthy but don't get regular exercise/movement of some sort, it can negatively affect your mood, behavior and choices in ways you might not expect. Our bodies rely on regular movement to help regulate all of our systems, including the neurotransmitters that directly influence our mood and levels of motivation. No, you may not *want* to get up and get going when you're feeling unmotivated, but sometimes we all need to do things we don't necessarily *want* to do even though we know it's good for us. After a little while of "forcing" yourself to do what you know to be right, it will become self-sustaining, as you'll start to reap the benefits of your efforts.

Routine

All creatures (and even plants) benefit from structure and routine to their lives; it adds a sense of stability and connectedness to the world around us that allows for our continued growth and expansion in life. If your daily life is on a whim (in its entirety), you may be feeling directionless and a bit unhinged. Try creating some structure in your day (*what* you do isn't as important as *doing something* at various points throughout the day and week that you can rely on); it will also help to give you a sense of accomplishment that can increase positive feelings in general.

Define and Live Your Values

Are you living a life that's in accordance with your own individual, unique values and priorities? Are there any values you're either unsure of, ashamed of, or suppressing out of fear of judgment from yourself or others? Many times, if we're denying aspects of ourselves and what's really important to us, we will feel exactly as you've described. And in that context, it's absolutely *normal* and even *expected* that we'd feel the way you described, because we've deviated from what's important to us. Those feelings then become a kind of "early warning system" that we're not living to our potential or our purpose.

Each Therapist is Different

...and rapport is everything. There are SO many different theoretical orientations that therapists might bring to session and so many different personalities that therapists might have and so many different clinical areas of focus a therapist might specialize in, it's possible that you just haven't found a therapist that's right for you. If that resonates with you as a possibility, it's okay -- perhaps you've grown past your initial therapist and need someone who's area of clinical focus is elsewhere. Process that with them, and develop a plan to keep moving forward. This happens -- we understand.

Each person's circumstances are different, and you'll only know what's right for you by investigating all of the possibilities.

Best wishes!