12 Strategies To Help You Feel Less Stuck In Life Choosing Therapy

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Nov 18, 2025, 1:42 PM

12 strategies to help you feel less stuck in life choosing therapy

Allison focuses on sexual health and reproductive psychology for women in and outside the LGBTQ+ community, offering individual and group therapy. Heidi Moawad, MD is a neurologist with 20+ years of experience focusing on mental health disorders, behavioral health issues, neurological disease, migraines, pain, stroke, cognitive impairment, multiple sclerosis, and more. Feeling stuck in life can be frustrating, but it’s more common than you might think. Whether you’re caught in a job that no longer fulfills you, drained by financial struggles, or weighed down by burnout, that sense of being trapped can feel overwhelming. But there are ways to break free. With the right support system, re-evaluating your goals, and sometimes professional help, you can take the steps to regain control of your life and overcome that feeling of “stuckness.”

Online Therapy & Medication for Depression Together, medication and therapy can help you feel like yourself, faster. Brightside Health accepts United Healthcare, Anthem, Cigna, Aetna, and other major insurance. Appointments in as little as 24 hours. Personalized plans unique to you. 1 on 1 support from start to finish.

Start your free assessment. If you’re running on autopilot or going through the motions, there are ways you can get emotionally unstuck. Everyone feels stuck in life at some point — maybe from an unstimulating job, an unfulfilling relationship, or just a general sense of indifference. But you can stop feeling stuck by figuring out why you’re feeling that way in the first place, and then making a few changes to improve your mental, physical, and emotional well-being. Identifying the root cause of your feelings can help you narrow down your strategies to regain your sense of purpose and forward momentum. Here are nine common reasons why you might be feeling emotionally and mentally stuck right now:

Have you ever felt like life has hit “pause”? Like you want to move forward, but your mind and body refuse to cooperate? You’re not alone. Many individuals describe feeling stuck in life—emotionally, mentally, or physically. Whether you’re facing burnout, depression, stress, or simply a lack of motivation, these feelings are valid and deserve support. At Dare Therapy, we specialize in individual therapy and online therapy for motivation and productivity to help you pinpoint the roots of stagnation and develop strategies to move forward.

Feeling stuck can show up in various ways—procrastination, chronic burnout, lack of motivation, or difficulty making decisions. For some, it’s struggling to get out of bed each morning. For others, it might be working hard but feeling disconnected from a sense of purpose. Whether you’re dealing with stress, trauma, or burnout, our compassionate therapists are here to help. According to the Self-Determination Theory, individuals without motivation (known as “amotivated”) lack the intent to act. Interventions that explore internal values, goals, and confidence can reignite the drive.

Our CBT for burnout and depression, and DBT for emotional flatness are proven tools that help break cycles of inaction. Motivation is more than just willpower. It’s tied to brain circuits affected by trauma, stress, or negative thought patterns. When these circuits get disrupted, you may find yourself struggling to do even simple tasks. We’ve seen clients completely transform their outlook by uncovering the root cause of their mental roadblocks with cognitive behavioral therapy. One common factor is a loss of connection to personal goals and values.

Our therapists use Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and anger management therapy to reveal your internal compass and guide you toward purpose-driven action. Additionally, research shows that even engaging in small, pleasurable tasks—even if you’re not initially excited—can begin to retrain your brain to feel joy and activation again. Did you make New Year’s Resolutions for 2025? Even if you didn’t, many people create goals for themselves periodically. But what happens when you feel stuck and like you aren’t making any progress? Feeling stuck can make life seem like it’s covered in a thick fog.

You might find yourself trapped in past regrets or unsure of the next step to take, leaving your present happiness out of reach. This sensation can strike anyone at any stage of life, but the good news is that you can break free and clear the path forward. Here are seven strategies to help you regain momentum and embrace a more positive mindset. Start by putting your thoughts on paper. A technique called brain dumping can be especially useful—write down everything on your mind without filtering or judging. Let your pen move freely, capturing thoughts, feelings, and ideas.

Once you’ve emptied your mind, reflect on what you’ve written. This exercise can uncover hidden emotions or pinpoint the root cause of feeling stuck. Progress begins when you take responsibility for your life. Instead of blaming others for your circumstances, examine the role you’ve played in reaching this point. A powerful exercise is to write a letter to someone you feel has wronged you—this could even be yourself. Express your feelings fully, then let go by destroying the letter.

This symbolic release helps you reclaim your energy and focus on moving forward. Clinging to past events, whether cherished memories or painful regrets, can anchor you in place. While it’s natural to look back, dwelling on what cannot be changed drains your energy and keeps you stagnant. Acknowledge the lessons your past has taught you, and use them as stepping stones instead of barriers. Letting go creates room for growth and new opportunities. Many people seek out psychotherapy or counselling to access support and a safe place to access relief from suffering, develop new skills, or discern a way forward in life that brings greater peace.

Some seek therapy for expanded wellbeing, to increase their interpersonal capacity or the realization of lifelong dreams. At times, people report feeling stuck in life. Feeling stuck in life may prompt some to seek psychological services. Sometimes, people can feel stuck within therapy. Feeling stuck is the experience of trying to move forward, make change, or let go of unhelpful habits or patterns of behavior that no longer serve wellbeing and not being able to make any... Feeling stuck can also happen in therapy where the attempts to realize change are unsuccessful despite everyone’s best efforts.

Regardless of where this is happening, acknowledging the experience of feeling stuck by naming it is a good start. This is the basis of recognizing something new or different is needed in order to realize meaningful change and support overall wellbeing. People may be stuck for a myriad of reasons. Common psychological reasons people may report feeling stuck include anxiety and the fear of change, unresolved or complex trauma or depression and the hopelessness that anything can really change. Change can threaten our sense of stability and safety and the fear of loss associated with change and letting go of the familiar can be significant. As mammals, our nervous system is hardwired for survival and connection with others.

For some, repeated experiences of distress, psychological trauma or early attachment injuries can have a lifelong impact on the developing brain and the nervous system. An overly activated nervous system, history of concussion or head injury can also make change more challenging. Finally, significant relationships, high levels of responsibility, and other environmental considerations like a work environment or a sick dependent can contribute to feeling stuck. Some of us feel stuck because we don’t want to disappoint others. Talk therapy is a traditional approach to address feeling stuck in life. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), psychoanalysis, and solution focused approaches are traditional forms of therapy that address the feeling of being stuck.

Regardless of the therapeutic orientation, all therapy is oriented towards change, healing, and wellbeing. When feeling stuck comes up in the therapeutic context it’s important to address what’s happening. This may be a poor patient – therapist fit, but if that’s not an issue, it may be related to deeply entrenched habits that block change like how the nervous system and brain function. So much of modern, American culture is soaked in the idea of moving forward, moving upward, moving onward. How do you exist and navigate life when you just feel like you are stuck in one place? Sometimes we can experience a feeling of being stuck relationally, vocationally, or sometimes even in the therapy room.

This is a common experience and feeling for so many people- even if it seems like it is not when we look around us. Feeling stuck can cause feelings of overwhelm. It can cause our heads to spin or make our brains foggy. It can cause us to question our own worth or ability to change our circumstances. While these things may or may not be true, they don’t feel good to experience and it can be hard to know your next right step to grow, change, and heal toward the kind... The same thought keeps cycling through your head.

It’s familiar and you’re realizing it’s familiar. It’s blocking any other thoughts from making their way into your psyche and as a result, to your behavior. You’re overwhelmed, foggy, restless, and can’t pinpoint why. Things that used to matter don’t really matter as much anymore. You’re unsure how to dedicate your time and energy and what you used to spend your time doing doesn’t feel like it quite scratches “the itch.” You’re dreading seeing your therapist.

Your internal monologue is, “Nothing is working and I don’t know if it’s them or me.” You aren’t sure what to talk about or how to progress in therapy. If you’ve been considering EMDR therapy for trauma, anxiety, or distressing memories, you may have come across different treatment formats—weekly sessions, full intensives, and now, If you are struggling with anxiety or depression, I want you to know one thing: you deserve to feel better. Not just to get by, Mental health treatment is not one-size-fits-all. The most effective approach depends on the individual, their symptoms, and their goals.

12 Strategies To Help You Feel Less Stuck In Life Choosing Therapy

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