It’s Not Just You
We’ve all been there before. One moment you’re all Snow White with the singing and dancing then you receive a text from your boss telling you to report on a day off. You end up trying to bottle your anger and frustration and it just gets you in a bad mood.
Don’t fret about it too much. No one is immune to having a bad day and it’s definitely not your fault if you’re having one right now. Not everything in life is great but that doesn’t mean we can’t do anything about it.
The thing about being “not in the mood” is that it often stems from external factors. A few of those external factors include stress from work, problems with the family, unexpected financial sacrifices, a fight with your best friend, no internet connection, trying to lose weight, or even getting splashed on by an inconsiderate jerk riding a sports car on a rainy Monday morning (yeah, we all had those days).
Thankfully there are a lot of things to be happy about in life and a lot of other things that can help get our smile back. The power of happiness has a lot of health benefits and there’s no reason why you shouldn’t try to be happy. It’s healthy and perfectly normal to look for things that brightens your day.
If you’re in a bad mood right now, maybe one of the items on this list can help bring out that smile you lost earlier.
1. Walk It Out
Seriously. Take a stroll outside. For sunny days, go to a park or simply walk around the neighborhood. If it’s a rainy day, bring a raincoat. If you can, try to walk early in the morning where you get a bit of sunshine. If not, walking at night is good too since you can see the stars and appreciate the sights and sounds you never really noticed before. The point is to just walk.
Walking has lots of anti-stress benefits but among them is its ability to just let you think. Walking can put your brain in a meditative state and meditating lets you sort things out. When you can sort things out, you can put all the problems on one side and think about the things you should and shouldn’t be worrying about.
2. Talk To A Friend
Humans are social creatures. Human evolution dictates that those who stayed in groups survived the wrath of Mother Nature while those who opted for a solitary life didn’t last long. We survived because we stuck together and it isn’t any different now. People like to connect with one another and the best evidence of that are the huge surge of social networking sites that seemed to have revolutionized the way talk to people.
This is one of the primary reasons why talking to someone, specially a dear friend, helps us feel happier or at least better. You can probably sort all your problems out by yourself but sometimes you just need someone to tell you they feel for you and everything will be fine.
3. Reading A Good Book
Reading a book is a great hobby and it grants you the comfort of immersing yourself in a world. Reading also relaxes the brain which then makes you calmer and maybe even happier.
Reading also makes you focus on just one thing as opposed to the multitasking activity we often do during the day. It distracts you from whatever it is that’s bothering you but it doesn’t mean you’re forgetting about them. Once you finish reading, you begin to think clearer and you may find it easier to sort things out afterwards.
4. Breathing
When we’re in a bad mood, it often pays to take a breather. But it’s not just the normal breathing we do everyday. As weird as it sounds, there are breathing techniques that help you relax. Lots of people practice these breathing techniques and they found themselves feeling better and calmer.
Perhaps when you find yourself sad or in a state of distress, practice breathing techniques. After all, the brain tends to work better if we have more oxygen up there.
5. Watch Happy Shows
This sounds like common sense but most people forget that comedy shows exist on TV and the internet, or even seeing a theatre show at Comedy Carnival. Regular viewing of comedy shows before you sleep can make your day end on a positive note. Even those little 5-minute funny uploads on Youtube can help.
6. Cooking
One of the few things that relaxes people is doing a physical hobby and cooking is one of them. Cooking makes you forget your problems and focus on getting the right ingredients and cooking process. Cooking can also be quite therapeutic specially if you’re cooking not just for yourself but for people you care about.
7. Take A Nap
It sounds funny but often times taking a nap instead of immediately facing all the problems you have is a better option. It enables your brain to rest and gets you in a happier mood once you wake up. The key here is to try and distract your brain and what better way than to push the reset button?
8. Listen To Your Favorite Songs
Whether you like Metallica or classical jazz, listening to your favorite songs just makes you happier. It’s better if you can actually sing along as loud as you want. Singing in the shower or humming works wonders if you find yourself shy to sing around people.
And as mentioned, it doesn’t have to be a happy song but it would be better if the song wasn’t about loneliness or anger. We want to put you in a better state of mind and songs about breakups or death aren’t exactly good choices.
9. Eat “Happy Food”
No matter what happens, there’s always food and the right kind of food makes us happy. Eating can help brighten your mood specially if you eat your favorite snacks. This is also the perfect time to forget about your strict diet because sometimes the diet programs we try are the ones causing us to be depressed.
But don’t just grab the next bag of potato chips you see. There is always a healthier option and there are plenty of delicious food that makes you happy in an instant. Some of these are almonds, bananas, or even a bar of dark chocolate.
And no, that is not a typo. Chocolate can really make you happy.
Conclusion
Having a bad mood is something that happens to just about anyone in the world. Even the richest of people have bad days and I reckon they get it more than us average folks. What matters is that you shouldn’t trap yourself in an imaginary room inside your head. You deserve better than loneliness.
Never give up on trying to smile again and if you find it hard to do, there are plenty of options to brighten your mood. If you ever find yourself with a bit too much to think about, just go back to this article and try one or all of the above and you will definitely be sure to find something to smile about.
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