{"id":3687,"date":"2025-01-22T16:20:49","date_gmt":"2025-01-22T07:20:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shepherblog.com\/?p=3687"},"modified":"2025-11-30T18:10:17","modified_gmt":"2025-11-30T09:10:17","slug":"from-languishing-to-flourishing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/from-languishing-to-flourishing\/","title":{"rendered":"From Languishing to Flourishing: Five Psychological Vitamins to Recharge Your Life"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Recently, I came across a new term\u2014languishing<\/strong>. Coined by psychologist\u00a0Corey Keyes<\/a>, this term describes a state of stagnation that lies somewhere between mental wellness and depression. Perhaps you are familiar with this feeling: a vague sense of emptiness, neither deeply sorrowful nor motivated enough to take action.<\/p>

Adam Grant<\/a>, the author of the bestseller Think Again<\/em>, highlighted this concept in\u00a0an article<\/a>\u00a0following the pandemic, helping many people finally find a word to articulate their mental state.<\/p>

The Chinese translation of languishing<\/em> has an interesting twist, as a homophone in Mandarin suggests \u201cbeing stuck in a state of rot \uff08\u721b\u5728\u90a3\u88e1\uff09\u201d\u2014a phrase that is blunt, memorable, and sharply accurate.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Languishing: A Gray Zone Between Mental Health and Depression<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Languishing is not a disease; it is a form of emotional stagnation. When stuck in this state, life seems to lose its momentum. You may feel drained, uninterested, and as though all efforts are meaningless. Research indicates that more than half of people experience languishing at some point in their lives, especially during significant life transitions, such as starting a family, climbing the career ladder, or adjusting to retirement.<\/p>

Languishing can resemble other mental health challenges, such as depression and burnout. However, depression requires clinical treatment, while burnout is often linked to chronic stress, such as workplace or academic pressures. Languishing, on the other hand, is akin to a psychological \u201clow-power mode\u201d\u2014it doesn\u2019t incapacitate you, but it leaves you far from thriving.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Breaking Free from Languishing: The Path to Flourishing<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Corey Keyes suggests that we can combat languishing by embracing what he calls the \u201cFive Flourishing Vitamins,\u201d practical elements to recharge your mental energy and transition toward flourishing.<\/p>

1\uff5cLearn<\/h4>

Learning here doesn\u2019t refer to traditional academic education. Instead, it\u2019s about exploring areas that genuinely interest you and treating the process as an opportunity for personal growth.<\/p>

For example, a recently retired engineer discovers a newfound passion for gardening. By learning how to grow flowers and vegetables, he finds fulfillment and tranquility through nurturing plants. Gardening not only enriches his life but also reconnects him with the rhythms of nature. The essence of learning lies in choosing what excites you, enjoying the journey, and integrating each step of progress into your life story.<\/p>

2\uff5cConnect<\/h4>

Build warm, trustworthy relationships. This is not about superficial socializing but rather about showing your authentic self, expressing vulnerabilities, and forming deeper connections with others.<\/p>

In today\u2019s digital age, while technology enables more communication opportunities, it has also made meaningful connections harder to achieve. Investing time and effort into genuine relationships brings a greater sense of security and psychological support.<\/p>

3\uff5cTranscend<\/h4>

This concept may feel abstract, but it is about experiencing a shift in your perspective, a kind of spiritual elevation.<\/p>

Life often throws us unchangeable challenges, and the wisdom of transcendence lies in accepting these twists and seeing them from a new angle. Not everything needs an explanation, and not every hardship must derail our lives. Learning to differentiate between what can and cannot be changed helps us achieve a sense of peace.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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4\uff5cHelp<\/h4>

Actions that foster a sense of purpose often come from small, everyday acts of kindness. Helping others not only benefits them but also enhances your sense of self-worth.<\/p>

For instance, committing to helping one person each day\u2014whether by sharing a chore, listening empathetically, or simply offering a smile\u2014can infuse life with positivity. Grand gestures are unnecessary; even small steps can create meaningful impact.<\/p>

5\uff5cPlay<\/h4>

Play is my favorite aspect. It doesn\u2019t mean passive entertainment, like scrolling through your phone or binge-watching shows, but activities that fully engage you, allowing you to lose track of time. Examples include sports, writing, or crafting. Play, as a form of intrinsic enjoyment, is deeply tied to mental health.<\/p>

Research shows that individuals who lack play in their lives are more likely to experience stress and fatigue. Adults, like children, need play to rediscover vitality and joy in life.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Starting Small: Progressing Toward Flourishing<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Languishing can silently creep into our lives, but we are not powerless against it. By incorporating learning, connecting, transcending, helping, and playing into our routines, we can gradually reclaim our inner energy and rediscover a flourishing state of mind.<\/p>

Rather than \u201crotting in place,\u201d why not try taking small steps today? Adjusting your life incrementally and focusing on meaningful actions\u2014even the smallest ones\u2014can be enough to spark fulfillment.<\/p>

References:<\/strong><\/p>

How to Stop Languishing and Start Flourishing<\/a><\/p>

EP348\uff5c\u3010\u89e3\u9396\u9752\u6625\u60c5\u7dd2\u3011\u5c0e\u8b80\u300aLanguishing \u840e\u9761\u8207\u5fc3\u76db\u300b\u2014\u2014\u7576\u5fc3\u9748\u50cf\u505c\u6eef\u7684\u6c34\uff1a\u4f60\u9700\u8981\u9019\u4e94\u7a2e\u300c\u5fc3\u76db\u7dad\u751f\u7d20\u300d<\/a><\/p>

\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Feeling stuck, unmotivated, and just \u201cgetting by\u201d? Psychologist Corey Keyes calls this languishing\u2014a state between thriving and depression.This article explores five psychological vitamins to help you recharge and transition from languishing to flourishing.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3704,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[84,83,36,11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3687","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english","category-mental-wellness","category-social-science","category-all-articles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3687","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3687"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3687\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3707,"href":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3687\/revisions\/3707"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3704"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3687"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3687"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/openendedproject.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3687"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}