You wake up, but you don’t get out of bed. You just stare at the ceiling. There’s nothing going on in your brain. No thoughts are present as if your brain had stopped working. It’s just a void of nothing when you try to visualize it. You just lay on your bed still and stare at the ceiling without thinking of doing anything nor do you do anything. You don’t try to think. You aren’t worried about life and you don’t care. You’re not sad. You’re not happy. You’re apathetic.
Imagine that everyday you’re like that. You’re just empty. The goals you had and were excited about seem to have become targets without reason and you don’t even think about why it is. You’re just a black simple dot on a white simple page of paper that is the world. There’s nothing else. That is what apathy feels like. Would you want to feel that way?
What is apathy?
Apathy is defined as the absence of emotions; a feeling of no enthusiasm, interest, or concern. It’s nothing, just emptiness and non-existence. Now apply apathy to a person and the result would be someone who doesn’t feel anything at all due to the absence of emotions. Their life could be a mess, they can turn on their computer, see that the report they spent an enormous amount of time and effort on is gone, even if it’s due tomorrow, and they still wouldn’t be sad. They would just accept the fact that they lost it and move on.
What can it lead to?
You are not to be ignorant of apathy. It’s a serious state of indifference and it shouldn’t be left alone. It should be rid of. Often times, apathy will trap you in its cage of ’emotionlessness’, then it will lure you gradually into depression. If you neglect it, you’ll find everything to be daunting when you finally crash into depression. There are ways to prevent or rather, mitigate this however. Someone who’s apathetic is like a dead light bulb. It just needs some energy to turn on! So if you’re in apathy’s cage, I implore you to use whatever energy’s left in you to try and break out of it! And this guide will give you the fuel you’ll need to tear those bars down!
Where does it come from?
Apathy can be caused by anything. Identifying the cause can be important. In the process of getting rid of apathy, it might help to identify the cause and then make changes based off it. It will help you out with deciding the things you want to change when you need to get rid of apathy. When you feel apathy, think about yesterday. It’s mostly likely that recent events are the cause of your apathy. Think about what happened before you became apathetic.
How do you know if you’re apathetic?
What you can do to know whether you’re apathetic or not is to compare, to look at the traits of an apathetic and see if you have them. You’re not interested in anything when you’re apathetic. You may be somewhat bored. There’s no rhapsody in you and you don’t have any concerns. You just feel nothing – emptiness and void. One of the easier ways to know you’re apathetic is when you get bored of the things you thought would spark the light inside you. Your hobbies don’t bring you pleasure anymore or hanging out with your friends is now a waste of time. Everything bores you. Just look at the traits of an apathetic and see if you have them. Look at the introduction of this guide, the traits.
How do you get rid of it?
There is never one way to solve a problem. Try to get rid of apathy in different ways or in ways you prefer – if you’ve ever been through it before. Getting rid of apathy means finding something that will interest you once more and spark that flame of excitement and motivation inside you. The initial goal is to create change, get you occupied and get you energized!
What I conventionally do first is do what I always enjoy doing – a hobby! Invest some time into your hobby and see if that brings you happiness – the pleasure you always found to be comforting. Although becoming apathetic means you’ve probably already lost interest in it, it never hurts to give it a shot and see again.
If that doesn’t work, what I encourage you to do is ‘kick it up a notch’. Make lots of changes. Change your routine! Change the order of the things you do in your routine! Reverse the order! Maybe all you need is some revitalization. Change your schedule and see if there are spaces left. If there are, fill it! With everything and anything. Spend time at the park if you live near one. Go to the beach. Run a marathon. Do yoga. Learn a new language or instrument. Whatever! Change things up! Just freshen up your schedule and live a new life with new energy!
Don’t stay inside too much, get some sun and fresh air! According to studies, spending time in the sun increases the release of serotonin, the happy chemical, in the brain, which makes you happy! This will somewhat slow down or even halt the process of you crashing into depression and get your a bit more prepared. You might even just become happy and not even become depressed. Try to spend about 10-15 minutes in the sun, you’ll feel much better! Or try to see if there are any free events in your area. Join them and meet new people. Make new friends! And ask them to the movies or to hangout. Building new connections can also make you happy and bring you pleasure. You just need to feel occupied and alive! Maybe get out, run around, and just have fun!
The best way to get excited again is to explore and discover something new; see what the world has to offer. If you’re someone who stays inside a lot, go hunting on the internet. Play a new game, start watching a new series, learn something new, read a new book, start a diary, listen to new music, just explore! There are more than enough things on the internet and in the world that’ll help you get excited and happy again.
Feel apathetic? Need some energy? There’s free fuel here! Whenever you feel apathetic or know someone who is, take a look at this short guide and see if it can help you. When being apathetic, keep in mind that the ultimate goal is to renew, revitalize and reorganize as well as get occupied! Switch things up! Change your gears! Even though apathy is the feeling of emptiness and the absence of emotions, you can always get rid of it and fill that hole of nothingness with excitement and ecstasy again. And this guide’s your help-out buddy!
Sources:
Davenport, Barrie. “10 Ways To Snap Out Of Apathy.” Live Bold and Bloom, 19 Mar. 2019, liveboldandbloom.com/06/self-improvement/apathetic-person
“What Are the Benefits of Sunlight?” Healthline, Healthline Media, www.healthline.com/health/depression/benefits-sunlight#mental-health