Let me guess.

You love your family with your whole heart… but lately, you’re just not feeling it. You’re exhausted before the day even begins, your to-do list is longer than your patience, and somewhere along the way, you lost a piece of yourself.

I see you, mama. You are not alone.

A few weeks ago, I sat in my parked car in the Target parking lot wondering how the heck I became this version of myself.

Hair in a knot (and not the cute kind), yoga pants that hadn’t seen yoga in weeks, and a blank stare that screamed, “Is this… it?”

I love my kids. Truly, fiercely, endlessly. But I had to admit it: I didn’t love how I was feeling.

I wasn’t sad, exactly. I wasn’t angry. I wasn’t even burnt out in the dramatic, fall-to-the-floor kind of way. I was just… blah. Stuck. Uninspired. Like someone pressed pause on who I used to be and forgot to hit play again.

That feeling? It has a name.

It’s called a rut.

A deep, quiet, soul-sucking rut that sneaks in when you’re so busy being everything for everyone else that you forget you’re someone too.

Motherhood has a way of wrapping us up so tightly in everyone else’s needs that we forget we have our own. We become the lunch packer, the appointment scheduler, the problem solver, the bedtime enforcer, the everything-to-everyone. And while it’s beautiful to be needed… it’s also heavy when you forget who you are outside of it.

So if you’re in a rut—mentally, emotionally, maybe even spiritually—I want you to hear this loud and clear:

You’re allowed to want more.

More energy.

More joy.

More you.

And no, that doesn’t make you selfish. It makes you human. It makes you a woman who knows her worth.

Here’s the truth: Ruts don’t mean you’re failing. They mean something inside you is ready to shift.

So let’s talk about it. Let’s name it, so it doesn’t own you anymore.

You’re not lazy. You’re not broken. You’re just on autopilot—pouring, serving, showing up for everyone else—without checking in with yourself.

And now? It’s time to reconnect. Not with a full-blown life overhaul (we don’t have time for that), but with small, steady acts that bring you back to you.

Here’s what helped me start to climb out:

1. I asked myself one simple question: “What would make me feel more like me today?”

Some days it was as simple as putting on mascara. Other days it was texting a friend and saying, “Can we please go do something that doesn’t involve sippy cups or grocery carts?”

I used to think self-care had to be this whole spa-day situation. But honestly? One hot coffee sipped slowly in the quiet carpool lane felt like a freaking vacation.

2. I stopped waiting for a big moment to feel better.

I kept thinking, “Once this season is over… once school calms down… once we get through the holidays…” But life doesn’t work like that. The calendar isn’t going to hand you a golden window of time labeled Now You Can Be Happy.

I had to stop waiting and start choosing.

Choosing joy in the middle of chaos.

Choosing to rest before I hit empty.

Choosing to laugh at the mess instead of lose my mind over it.

3. I told the truth.

I opened up to a friend I trusted (shout out to the real ones who keep us sane) and said, “I don’t feel like myself lately.” Not in a dramatic, “my life is falling apart” way—but in a quiet, honest, “I feel kind of lost” way.

She didn’t try to fix it. She didn’t tell me to be grateful. She just said, “Same. And I’m here.”

And that? That was everything.

4. I said “yes” to the small things that sparked joy.

That book I kept putting off. That walk in the sunshine. That podcast that reminded me I’m not alone. That phone call that turned into laughter. I stopped waiting for the big things and started reaching for the little ones that made me feel alive again.

5. I reconnected with my body and breath.

I went back to the basics: a stretch, a journal, a quiet moment. Maybe meditation or yoga isn’t your thing—but I promise, there’s a way to come home to yourself.

Even three deep breaths before unloading the dishwasher can be enough to ground you in you again.

6. I started asking: “What would feel good today?”

Not “what should I do?” but “what would feel good?” Some days it was rest. Others, movement. Sometimes it was a solo Target trip (this time, on purpose). The magic came from listening and honoring that answer without guilt.

Mama, ruts don’t last forever—but they do leave clues.

They whisper, “It’s time to come back to yourself.”

So if you’re feeling stuck, uninspired, or like you’re just surviving the days—let this be your reminder: you don’t need a master plan. You just need a first step.

So if you’ve been feeling stuck, uninspired, or like you’re just going through the motions… let this be your invitation to begin again. You don’t need a full plan. You just need a first step.

A little space. A little softness. A little time to remember who you are beyond the chaos.

Because the truth is, she’s still in there—you are still in there. That version of you who laughs a little louder, dreams a little bigger, and feels like herself.

She’s waiting.

You’ve held everyone else for so long.

Now it’s your turn.

One small act at a time.

You’re not stuck. You’re recalibrating. And you’re allowed to rise.