Signs You’re Operating in Survival Mode (And How to Start Thriving Again)

We were designed to thrive in this beautiful life. But it may not always feel that way. The daily grind, the constant hustle, the overbooked schedules can all leave us feeling like we’re just barely getting by.

Now, don’t get me wrong, there are certainly seasons of life that require a little more survival mode than others, but staying in this mode long-term is not only unsustainable, but it’s detrimental to our health.

The Impacts of Survival Mode

Living in survival mode, day in and day out, will result in increased illnesses, decreased libido and reproductive functions, impaired sleep, anxious and/or depressive thoughts, weight gain (or sometimes loss) and a multitude of other health impacts. All of which will limit your ability to tackle those oh-so-important life goals.

Why, you ask? Well, because survival mode usually requires our sympathetic nervous system to be activated. That’s our fight or flight (or freeze) mode, which sends signals to our body that we’re under threat. That “threat” requires adrenaline, cortisol and other stress hormones that were designed to keep us safe from a real threat, but not to be “on” 24/7.

Imagine driving your car, with the gas light on “E”, then continuing to drive until the fumes fade and the car eventually putters out. Then you get out and start pushing the car…with the emergency brake on. That’s what living in survival mode does to your body and mind. Seems like a pretty silly thing to do, when we think of it that way, eh?

Awareness is Key

The signs of survival mode are oftentimes masked and subtle. Being able to identify these early on can help you avoid burnout and health issues, and make simple yet effective shifts to get back into living life to your fullest potential. 

All this takes is a little bit of perspective. A quick 5-minute, 360-check of yourself and your daily life will help you quickly identify whether you’re thriving or surviving, using the warning signs below as a checklist.

Short on time? Want the quickest way to determine if you’re in the danger zone? Here’s my greatest tip:

If you think you’re living in survival mode, then you most definitely are. It truly is that simple.

But, if you’re not entirely sure and need help with that quick 360 self-check, run through the list below for a quick self-assessment. 

Identifying the Warning Signs

The list of subtle survival-mode signs could take up this entire blog, so I’m going to hone in on the easy-to-overlook signs. 

You’ll likely relate to one or all of these, especially since you read the title of this blog and decided to keep reading (wink, wink).

Subtle Signs of Survival Mode:

• Overwhelm: when little things feel like big things
• Weight Issues: unable to lose weight or make it through workouts that used to be fun and challenging
• Irritation: losing your temper or having a short fuse at work or with your loved ones
• Stomach Ailments: increase or decrease in your appetite, digestion or bowel movements
• Skipping Meals: getting through most of your day, realizing you haven’t eaten breakfast or lunch.
• Pushing Through: the urge to keep going when you feel absolutely exhausted (this is called being wired and a sign that you’re operating on adrenaline)
• Drowning Feelings: no matter what you do, you feel like you can’t keep up, get ahead or take a breath
• Bumming Out: not wanting to attend social events or wanting to bow out early, finishing your day/week and wanting to just lay on your couch and watch TV all night
• No Motivation: for the things that used to make you happy, such as exercise, being with friends, maintaining a healthy morning routine
• Trouble Concentrating: having a hard time focusing at work or when having conversations with people you care about
• Overurgency: when everything on your personal and work to-do list feels urgent, important or high-priority
• Decision Fatigue: unable to make a decision or overthinking your options
• Sleep Issues: struggling to fall asleep, stay asleep or waking up with heavy thoughts on your mind

Assessing Your Severity

If any or all of these signs and symptoms sound familiar, you’re not alone! And you don’t need to panic. 

If your “yep…that’s me” list is long or worrisome, you can do a quick severity check. 

Simply jot down the warning signs that you relate to, then rate your severity on each item:

• “1” being not very often or not that distressing, up to
• “10” being almost every day or interrupting my daily life.

This severity check will do one of two things:

1. It may help you feel more in control of your situation because you’ve identified what you’re wrestling with, or
2. It may help you realize just how much of a survivalist you are, giving you that much-needed reality check to make some changes

Try your best to use this purely as information. Don’t let it become a stressor within itself.

Now that you have some perspective (and may be a little freaked out about how many of the warning signs you related to), let’s shift gears into how to move out of surviving and into thriving mode. 

Shifting Back Into Thriving Mode

While moving into survival mode happens quickly and subtly, getting back into thriving mode can happen just as “easily”. As with making any change, you’ll need a why, a how and a when.

The Why

If you’re serious about shifting your life into a thriving state of being, you’re going to need a reason why you’re doing it. This “why” is the driving force behind making any change. 

Over 80% of people fail at their annual goals or New Year’s Resolutions. This is because the goal is either unrealistic or because they’re not attached to their ‘why’.

Get clear on your why. Why is thriving important to you? Is it your kids, your career, your health, or that you’re simply tired of living every day just “getting by”. 

Life is too short to live that way, so define your “why” and write it down somewhere you’ll see it everyday. 

That “why” will give you the drive you need to stop making survival-mode choices at work and at home. To stop pushing, rest more, take time for yourself…all those tips we shared in June’s blog.

The How

There are a number of ways to move from surviving to thriving, but for the sake of efficiency, I’m sharing the most effective and easy-to-implement methods that I’ve used with my clients. 

Remember the KISS method? Keeping this simple will be key to making a quick yet effective shift.

• Schedule downtime
• Take breaks (even 5 minutes)
• Don’t skip meals
• Book buffer time in your work day
• Make what matters to you, your top priority
• Define your worth outside of what you produce each day 

(This effort takes some time and guidance – if you’d like support in defining this, I’d be happy to help)

• Say no to things you don’t want to take on

(If you’re saying yes out of obligation, that’s a sign you need to say no)

• Prioritize one hour in nature every week (not doing, just being)
• Walk away from your desk when you need to, not when you feel you’re “caught up”

(Because caught up doesn’t exist)

• Reconnect with your purpose 

(What drives you, motivates you, fills you often isn’t what we’re doing in everyday life. Get clear on what this is and make sure you’re doing it a little bit every day).

• Do activities because you enjoy them, not because they are tied to goals, achieving or bettering yourself
• Begin a morning routine that fills you up 

(Do things that ground and motivate you, not things that you “think” you should be doing each morning)

• Find ways to laugh daily and throughout the day

The When

This part is simple…do it now! Do it today, or at the latest, tomorrow. 

If you’re already coming up with excuses of when you can take (ah-hem make) the time to do this, you’re keeping yourself stuck in survival mode.

If this is important to you, it should be the first thing you do after reading this blog.

Get real with yourself around your role in your surviving way of life, and take back control of the direction you’re headed in. No one is going to do this work for you. 

You Are Worth It

My guess is that you are driven, motivated, and a total rock star at what you do. So why can’t those same skills be applied to your own life? Your needs? Your health? 

You are amazing! That’s why people in your life want so much of you. But you can’t continue to pour from an empty cup. Take it from someone who lived in survival mode for far too long…and is now paying the price with years of a healing journey ahead of me. 

Survival mode simply isn’t worth it. But you are.

Shift from surviving to thriving today, so you can be your best, most amazing, fulfilled and healthy self possible. You deserve it! And the world needs the best of you.

Leah Livingston is a Certified Holistic Wellness Coach, Trauma-Informed Coach, and advocate for holistic wellness as the key to living with vitality. She is the founder of Transform with Leah, helping clients create lasting transformations through holistic health and wellness coaching. Leah also serves as a wellness coach for Christine Centeno, founder of Simplicity Wealth Management, where she supports the development of an energetic, aligned, and purpose-driven business.