We’ve all been there before. Had an hour, or a day, or a week where you’re just not feeling it. You can look at dishes on the kitchen counter crusted over with this morning’s fruit rings and think, Not today. There’s a fight breaking out over who gets the last stick of gum and you just think, Nope, not dealing with it.

If the term ‘mom funk’ is not in the dictionary (which it’s not–I just checked), then who do we call to get it in there because mom funks happen. They are real.

Mom funks are times when you feel sluggish, unmotivated, overwhelmed, or just plain exhausted. Here are seven ways you can conquer that mom funk and get back to doing what you do best!

 7 Ways To Pull Yourself out of a Mom Funk

1. Crank up your favorite tunes.

You know when your favorite jam comes on, even if you didn’t feel like dancing before, your head starts bobbing and your feet start tapping to the beat. Music has the power to heighten your mood and flip your switch from “zapped” to “energized!”

When I’m in a mom funk, I’ll leave the kids in my husband’s capable hands, get in my car and crank up some Lady Gaga, then drive to Target where retail therapy awaits. Try the songs on our ultimate feel-good playlist for an instant mood-booster.

2. Exercise the demons.

Although it may be the last thing you feel like doing, exercise is probably the best thing you could do to pull yourself out of a rut. Just don’t want to? Put your workout clothes on and point your car toward the gym. Chances are, once you get there, you’ll get your heart pumping, endorphins flowing, and you’ll feel so much better by the time you leave.

3. Call a pal.

Stop. Take three seconds right now to think of the one person you’d want to talk to when you were feeling a bit down. The first person who came to your mind should be the one you call when you’re knee-deep in a mom funk.

Calling a friend who can empathize, encourage, and leave you feeling lighter is an excellent way to shrug off a funk. Avoid those friends who like to bounce complaints back and forth. That type of negativity isn’t what you need right now.

4. Go outside, get some fresh air.

If you want to forget the banalities of mom-life that are weighing you down—the never-ending laundry, the diapers that aren’t changing themselves—then get outside. Oxygen is nature’s Xanax and the outdoors are full of it.

If you’re feeling blah and don’t know why, try taking a walk. Cruise your block or even better, explore nature. Nothing cures a mom funk better then getting outside of the house. Take a hike and lose yourself. When you get back, that mountain of laundry is easier to tackle once you’ve scaled actual mountains.

5. Stare your issues in the face.

On the other hand, sometimes you need to grab your issues by the shirt-tail and say, “Hey, we’ve got some unfinished business to deal with here.”

Address the reason or reasons you are feeling sluggish, unmotivated, and generally down. Facing the cause instead of trying to ignore them is sometimes the best way to work through a funk and view the sun peeking out the other side.

6. Take a break.

Maybe one of those issues causing your funk is too much work, stress, or too many drumsticks on your plate. (Seriously, no one can eat that many drumsticks.)

Give yourself permission to take a break. Say no to the next three drumsticks someone offers you. Want to head up the Muffins with Mom committee at school? I think I’ll pass this time. Can you watch my kids for the afternoon? Not this time, but ask me again another. Mom, can you finish my science project for me? No, I’m afraid that would rob you of a valuable learning experience.

The art of keeping a well-balanced zen is knowing your drumstick threshold. If two big drumsticks is doable, but a third will tip the plate, stick with two.

7. Seven minutes in heaven {alone}.

Moms can’t even go to the bathroom alone; it’s no wonder we get burnt out from time to time from all the constant neediness we face.

If you’re feeling yourself sliding into a mom funk, sneak away for seven minutes alone. Close your closet door and take a quick power nap. If the kids are playing happily in the playroom, go to the cleanest spot in the house and just sit there for seven minutes and breath. Don’t fold clothes, don’t turn on your phone. Just be alone and relish every single minute of it.

Moms, you are incredible. You power society and represent everything good that comes out of it. Thank you. You deserve an award, but until they start giving out Mammys, none of us will be walking down the red carpet soon. Love yourselves, give yourselves a break, and know that we’ve all taken on a few too many drumsticks in our day, just like you.