Surviving the Mulligrubs: When You're Just...Meh - Ep. 13

I’m talking about something I call the “mulligrubs” — that weird, heavy feeling when you’re not exactly miserable, but definitely not great either. You know, when everything just feels off. I dive into some of the reasons we can land in a mulligrub state, like brain chemistry, crummy weather, chronic illness, and plain old mental overload. I also share a few strategies that help me shake it off (or at least soften it), like knocking out tiny tasks, getting my body moving, changing my environment, or just leaning into comfort. Most importantly, I remind you — and myself — that it’s okay to feel this way sometimes. It doesn’t mean you’re failing. Sometimes the best thing you can do is name it, honor it, and give yourself a little grace. I’d love to hear your favorite ways to deal with the mulligrubs, too — let’s keep this conversation going.

Episode Transcript

(00:01):
You look fine, but you're notfine, and that's exactly what
we're here to talk about.Welcome to Fine, But Not Fine,
the podcast about navigatingrare disease healthcare battles
and the messy reality of chronicillness. I'm Kelly Paul, and
I've been living with MycosisFungoides since 2015. This is a

(00:22):
space for real talk, realexperiences and practical
advice, because surviving is onething, but figuring out how to
actually live, that's the hardpart.
Hey everyone and welcome back.Today, I want to talk about the

(00:45):
Mollygrubs, or the Mulligrubs.And what are they, you ask?
It's that weird little funkwhere you're not what I'd call
full on miserable, but you'realso not great. You're just kind
of blah. And no, you don't needa dramatic reason. It could be
the weather. It could be yourbody doing who knows what, or
maybe you woke up and justdecided that you're annoyed at

(01:06):
life today, right?
No judgment. I've been there. Ithink we've all been there. So
today, let's talk about why themulligrubs happen, how to deal
with them, and when to just giveyourself permission to sit in it
for a bit.
All right, so let's do a littleself assessment. How do you know
you have the mulligrubs? Hereare a few telltale signs. You've

(01:31):
opened the fridge like a dozentimes, but you refuse to commit
to eating anything. You've beenDoom scrolling for 45 minutes
and cannot remember a singlepost. You almost took a nap, but
then you got mad at the idea oflying down and taking a nap. You
put off replying to a simpletext, because honestly, it just

(01:53):
feels like way too much. Or,hey, you know what? You feel
personally attacked by inanimateobjects. Like, why is the
microwave beep so aggressivetoday?
Sound familiar? The mulligrubsdon't always make sense, but
believe me, they are real. Sowhat actually causes the

(02:15):
mulligrubs?
Well, I did a little bit ofdigging, and there is actually
some science out there to backsome of this up. So brain
chemistry, shenanigans, right?
Sometimes your serotonin justtakes a day off and you're left
dealing with it, right? Theweather, oh my gosh, if the sun
has been MIA, your mood mightfollow in the winter, especially

(02:36):
in northern areas. You know,seasonal affective disorder,
it's absolutely a real thing.There's also chronic illness,
exhaustion. I mean, if your bodyis always in some stage of
Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot, nowonder you have days where you
are just absolutely done.There's also mental overload.
Life is loud, stressful,demanding, and it's perfectly

(02:58):
understandable why your brainmight say, Nope, we are out for
the day. And you know, sometimesit's just like random, no big
explanation, no deeper meaning,just a weird little uninvited
funk.
So the big question, what do youdo when the mulligrubs hit?
Because let's be real. Some daysyou've just got to fight through

(03:20):
it. Other days, you can sit init and wait it out. And both are
fine, but if you really want toshake it, here are some tricks
that have worked for me a littlebit.
You know. First off is kind oflike called a bare minimum
strategy. Don't aim for bigwins. Just make the bed, brush
your teeth, drink some water,right? Sometimes just doing one

(03:43):
thing right can actually startsort of pulling you out of the
funk, or at least getting you ina position to work through it.
Secondly, move, even if you hateit. And I know, I know the last
thing anybody wants to hear whenthey have the mulligrubs is
exercise helps. But sometimesjust walking, getting outside

(04:05):
for a few minutes, doing youknow, some laps around your
living room, something,sometimes just getting moving
helps.
You can change your scenery. Ifyou're stuck inside, I'm going
to tell you get out. If you havebeen staring at your phone, put
it down. If your brain islooping and negativity, shake it
up. Go to a coffee shop, take adrive, you know, walk around,

(04:28):
you know, Target or WalMart,aimlessly, whatever works for
you.
You can also do something reallyeasy and really satisfying,
right? Fold some towels, youknow, delete 50 old emails, go
through your junk email box,wipe down your kitchen counter.
It sounds dumb, but sometimessmall wins trick your brain into

(04:50):
thinking, hey, we're makingprogress, right?
I'm leaning into comfort. Imean, sometimes the best move,
and I do this quite often, isjust embrace the mulligrubs, put
on a big sweatshirt, watchnostalgic TV, not you know,
horror, drama, crime, you know,eat mac and cheese, whatever it
is that brings you comfort inyour world. No guilt allowed.

(05:12):
You do not always have to beproductive.
And another option is just talkto someone who gets it. Send a
hey, I'm feeling meh text to afriend. Sometimes just
acknowledging it out loud helpsand bonus points to friends if
they send you a dumb meme orsome sort of same bro kind of
reply.

(05:32):
And sometimes trying to fix somemulligrubs just makes them
worse. So if none of thestrategies are helping, maybe
it's just not the day to fightit right. If you need to, and
you can let yourself have an offday. No shame in resting, no
shame in doing absolutelynothing. Just don't let the

(05:52):
mulligrubsmove in and take overfor too long.
So final thoughts, mulligrubs,they happen. They don't mean
you're failing. It's not broken,not dramatic, they're just
there. And some days you pushthrough, and some days you ride
them out.
Either way, you're doing fine. Imean, not fine, fine, but fine.

(06:18):
Now, if you like this episode,send it to a friend who also
gets muligrubs and let them knowthey are not alone. And if you
have your own tricks for shakingoff a funk, I would love to hear
them.
You can hit me up at my website,at FineButNotFine.com. Or you
can find me on Facebook at,Fine, But Not Fine. Now that's
it for today. Take care ofyourself, and if all else fails,

(06:43):
just eat some mac and cheese andcall it a win.
Thanks for listening to Fine,But Not Fine. If this episode
resonated with you, subscribe soyou don't miss what's next. And
if you got a story question orjust need to vent, reach out.
I'd love to hear from you untilnext time, take care and keep on

(07:06):
going.