Motivated Then Exhausted - What Your Nervous System Is Trying To Tell You

Our Nervous System

There is a pattern that I know many of us experience — deeply. We have a moment of clarity. A surge of positive energy. Ideas suddenly begin to flow to us from all directions. We feel so inspired. We start taking action…and then…BOOM!

We start doubting what we have created. We feel exhausted. We disconnect. And that little voice within mutters…

“Here we go again…”

“I can’t do this…”

“I’m just not good enough…”

For a long time, I believed something was wrong with me. That I was the problem…indeed, that I was the only one with the problem!

*What’s wrong with me?

*Why can’t I be consistent?

*Why do I move forward… only to let myself fall back? Again!

*Why does everything feel so clear one moment… and so heavy the next?

But what I’ve come to understand is this…

It’s not a sign of failure. It’s our nervous system.

The🔥 PUSH 💥 CRASH Cycle.

There is a veiled pattern – a hidden cycle that so many of us move through unconsciously. This cycle is known as the🔥 PUSH 💥 CRASH cycle. Let’s see how this cycle, and its stages move…

🔥 Push / Expansion

We feel inspired, motivated, clear. We feel driven to expand our lives, achieve our objectives, fulfil our aims. We constantly push forward. We learn, we create, we plan, and we take action. We feel the inner expansion; we see the outer expansion.

Then the next thing we know… 💥BOOM!

Our energy suddenly drops. It caves in. It crashes!

💥 Crash / Exhaustion

We feel overwhelmed, we feel tired, we have no energy and the mind immediately steps in full of doubt. We pull back.

We question everything. We withdraw. We protect ourselves and we spiral down with exhaustion.

And then… after time…the cycle begins again.

🔥Push – Expansion 💥 Crash – Exhaustion.

So why does this happen?

It happens because our nervous system is designed to keep us safe. When we…

*push ourselves intensely

*take big emotional or visible steps (like sharing, creating, being seen)

*take in more than we have space to integrate – mentally, physically or energetically

Our system starts setting of ALARM BELLS…

👉 “HEY, this is all too much… we need to slow down.

👉 NOW.

👉 RIGHT NOW!”

Yet our system isn’t trying to punish us. It’s trying to protect us.

When we’ve pushed beyond what we can comfortably process — mentally, emotionally, or energetically — our nervous system gently (and sometimes not so gently) begins to slow us down. Not to stop us…but to bring us back into balance.

How does our Nervous System get us to slow down?

Through…

Fatigue: Feeling exhausted. A deep tiredness that doesn’t always make logical sense. This is your body saying: “We’ve used a lot of energy. We need to rest and restore.”. You’re not inadequate. It’s not laziness. It’s recovery.

Resistance: A feeling of not wanting to continue… even with things that matter to you. This is your system saying: “Let’s pause. This feels like too much, too fast.” Resistance isn’t failure. It’s a signal to slow down and give yourself breathing space for reflection.

Overthinking: Your mind becomes busy, questioning, doubting, analysing everything. This is your system trying to create a sense of control and safety “If I can figure this out, I’ll feel safe again.” But what it really needs is not more thinking…it needs grounding and reassurance.

Emotional heaviness: A sense of heaviness, disconnection, or feeling downhearted that seems to come from nowhere. This is your system integrating what has been experienced. It’s telling you, “We need space to feel, to process, and settle.” It’s not trying to fix something. It’s showing you how to move through gently.

These are not signs that something is wrong with you, or you aren’t good enough. These are signs that your system is asking you to move at a different pace.

My Story

Most of my life I lived in this cycle, ignoring how my nervous system was trying to protect me. I searched for answers everywhere outside of myself — in books, teachings, systems — but I never looked inside myself. I believed the next thing, the next book, the next course, the next video would “fix” me. Yet, in reality, I was just doing more and more…while becoming more and more exhausted…and…even more!

Until one day…everything stopped. Not because I failed. But because I couldn’t keep pushing anymore. I was exhausted, stressed, feeling more and more a failure.

In stillness

Yet, somewhere in that stillness, I heard a small voice whispering, a small feeling shifting inside of me and I began to understand that what I really needed wasn’t more knowledge in my life…but more presence. More softness. More connection. I needed to listen more carefully to my body and acknowledge my nervous system.

That was the moment I began to land. I finally experienced being INside my body and not just living up in my head. That was the moment I realised that my body wasn’t just something to carry my head around. My body took care of me. It supported me. It spoke to me. It tried to keep me safe. I just hadn’t listened. Ever!

A New Way… From Push → Crash to Gentle Rhythm

Instead of constantly…

🔥 pushing → 💥 crashing →🔥 pushing → 💥 crashing

Gently start living like this…

🌿 step → rest → step → rest

Not forcing yourself to do what you want to do. Not stopping what you want to do. But beginning to move in such a way that your nervous system can sustain you.

Supporting Yourself by…

🌿 1. Acknowledging and recognising the pattern – without any form of judgement. It’s all about self-awareness. When you feel yourself crashing, when you realise what is going on, simply say to yourself… “OK, this is NOT me failing. This is my system regulating.”

🌿 2. Doing less… but consistently. Taking one small action per day is enough. Not trying to do everything. Not pushing yourself to do it all NOW. Just take…👉 one step.

🌿 3. Regulating before you act. Before doing, creating or sharing, ask yourself “Right now, do I feel present and calm enough to do this gently?” If the answer is yes, do it…gently…no pushing. If the answer is no, just stop and allow your body to balance your energies.

🌿 4. Creating more than you consume. Too much input, too many new things to learn and deal with, too much stress overwhelms our nervous system. Return to what you already know. Use what you already have…in different ways.

🌿 5. Resting without guilt. Rest is not stopping. Rest is not giving up. Rest is integration. Rest is balancing.

Gentle Practices – simple, embodied, and non-overwhelming

🌙 Breath – Place your hand on your heart and take 3 slow I AM breaths – as you breath in, mentally repeat ‘I’ – hold a moment – then as you breath out, mentally repeat ‘AM’.

🌿 Grounding (or earthing) – Walk slowly in nature. Feel your feet on the ground – walk barefoot on the grass, sand, or soil. Be aware of how you place one foot on the ground and how you lift the other. Notice your surroundings.

The 3-3-3 Grounding Technique is a very simple but effective tool for those moments of overwhelm and anxiety to bring you back to the present moment. Stop – name – observe… 3 objects you can see (e.g. form, texture, colour) 3 sounds you can hear (e.g. traffic, birds, music) 3 body parts you can move (e.g. fingers, neck, shoulders).

🌙 Presence Pause – Place one hand on your heart and one on your belly. Close your eyes softly and say: “I am here. I am safe to slow down.” Stay for a few moments, allowing your body to soften.

🌿 Body Check-In – Gently bring your attention into your body and ask: “What do I need right now?” Not what you should do…but what you truly need to do. Then honour the smallest answer.

🌙 Soften the Mind – If your thoughts feel busy or overwhelming, gently say: “I don’t need to figure everything out right now, in this precise moment.” Let your thoughts pass like clouds, without holding onto them.

🌿 One Gentle Step – Instead of trying to do everything, ask yourself – “What is the one small step that I can take today that feels manageable or doable?” Let it be simple. Let it be enough.

🌙 Rest Without Guilt – Give yourself permission to pause. “Rest is not stopping. Rest is part of my progress.” Even just a few moments of stillness can help you to reset your system.

“To pause is to listen. Not just to the world, but to yourself. It’s how we shift from doing to being – not by abandoning responsibility, but by remembering we are more than our output.” Pauline Beijen

🌿Journalling Prompts

Take a few quiet minutes with a journal and choose one of the questions below, or listen to a question that is rising within you, and reflect…

What has my body been trying to tell me lately?
What does my body need right now?
Where might I be pushing beyond my natural rhythm?
What would a gentler pace look like for me right now?
Where do I tend to push myself too much?
What would “one small step” look like today?
What am I afraid will happen if I slow down?

🌿 Affirmations

I am allowed to grow at a sustainable pace.
I do not need to rush my becoming.
My rhythm is enough just as it is.
I trust myself to move gently in full awareness.
Rest is part of my progress.

“Embodiment is a coming home, a remembering of our wholeness, and a reunion with the fullness of ourselves.” Hillary McBride

A Gentle Reminder

Stop telling yourself that…

*you are inconsistent

*you never finish anything

*you aren’t good enough

*you can’t do anything right

And know that you are enough. ALWAYS.

You just need to start listening to your body and learning how to move forward without leaving yourself behind.

This changes everything.

Motivated Then Exhausted – What Your Nervous System Is Trying To Tell You