Sometimes, no matter how positive you feel when you wake up, particular events, issues, frustrations and even certain people's attitudes can put a dampener on things and leave you feeling deflated. You probably wish you hadn't let these parts of your day affect you as much as they have but it's a natural part of life to experience ups and downs. When low mood strikes, there are a number of ways in which you can help yourself to feel better. Today, I'm sharing 8 tried and tested ideas which I've found helpful and I promise none of them include eating a gigantic bar of chocolate or any other highly calorific item!
Get out in nature
If you've been following my blog for a while, you'll know that I'm a big fan of getting out in nature, whether that's spending some time in my garden, heading to my local woodland park or even going to the beach to walk on the sand or paddle in the sea. It doesn't have to be for long - just a few minutes of fresh air can make the world of difference to how you feel.
Listen to some upbeat tunes (even better, dance and sing too)
I first wrote about the benefits of listening to music back in 2021 and, as part of the post, I shared a page I'd created in my bullet journal with a mood boosting playlist. Musical taste is incredibly personal but choosing some upbeat songs to boogie, sing and listen along to can put you in a much better frame of mind. Here's some ideas for uplifting tracks to find on YouTube, Apple Music or whatever happens to be your favourite resource to listen to through headphones or to blast out through your speakers (if it won't disturb anyone):
- Can't Stop The Feeling By Justin Timberlake
- I Got a Feeling By The Black Eyed Peas
- Happy By Pharrell Williams
- 22 By Taylor Swift
- Walking On Sunshine By Katrina & The Waves
- Song 2 By Blur
- Love Shack By B-52s
- Roar By Katy Perry
- Sweet Child O' Mine by Guns N' Roses
- Good Feelin' By Flo Rida
- Watermelon Sugar By Harry Styles
- Dance Monkey By Tones And I
- Groove Is In The Heart By Deee-lite
- Blinding Lights By The Weeknd
- Havana By Camila Cabello Feat. Young Thug
Whatever your favourite style of music, jot down an uplifting songs list or create a track list on your device and keep it in a memorable location (either on paper or digitally) to refer to when you need it.
Get moving
On the subject of moving our body, as an alternative to dancing along to your favourite tracks, you could also explore other forms of exercise in a bid to boost your mood. Any type of physical activity that raises your heart rate has been shown to release endorphins in the body. These hormones and neurotransmitters, which have been described as 'a natural high', will have you feeling better in minutes. Here's some fun / invigorating summer time activities to try:
- Spend some time in your garden pulling weeds, breaking up compacted soil in your borders, cutting your lawn, deadheading faded blooms, pruning bushes and shrubs, checking for hidden pests and watering thirst plants with a heavy watering can.
- Get your bike out of the garage, dust it off and head to a trail of your choice. I like to go to the coast as it's a straight stretch of cycle path which is wide enough for if I get the wobbles but if you search 'easy bike rides near me' you can explore different options available to you in your locality.
- Play a game or do a physical activity that you used to enjoy as a kid - frisbee, bouncing a ball off a wall / bat / the ground,
- Clean and or tidy your desk / room / house, then sit back and enjoy the feeling that comes with a neat and dust free space.
- Take a brisk walk around the block and see if you can notice anything new or different - maybe someone in your immediate area has painted their fence, changed their car, got a new pet, weeded their driveway etc. Maybe the council has added a new sign, planted some young trees or mown the grass in another street. If you can't see anything that's changed, maybe you could think of some changes you would like to make if you were in charge!
Soak up some sunshine
Sunlight is a natural source of Vitamin D which has been scientifically proven to regulate your mood. If it's a nice day, get your sunglasses and some sun protection on and feel the warmth on your skin. I like to sit on our bench or one of our patio chairs in the garden and close my eyes for some mindful listening to accompany the experience. This is a great way to get into a meditative state as it gives you something to focus on and minimises the change of your mind wandering towards the major or minor irritations I mentioned previously. In the summer, there's generally lots of daytime sounds whether it's someone mowing the lawn, children laughing, birds tweeting or even distant traffic noises.
What a video of something cute or funny
Open up YouTube on your phone or computer and search for cute or funny videos of, plus the name of your favourite pet or animal. Anyone who's been following my blog for a while is likely to know my animal of choice is a Syrian hamster, but I can guarantee that there are videos out there to suit all whether that's woodland birds, different pets or even more unusual choices like sealions, squirrels, polar bears or hedgehogs.
Dig out your photograph albums
Looking back at old photographs (and/or journals if you do memory keeping like I do) is a great way to bring to mind happy memories of exciting life events, people in your life (past and present) and places you've been. And if you're one of those people who rarely print your images off, why not flick through those on your phone and select some to add to an album later. Taking time on your own to quietly sit and view several years worth of photographs can be very therapeutic, as can sharing them with loved ones either in person or by contacting them via phone, WhatsApp, email or even letter (pretty paper optional!).
Practise gratitude
Grab a piece of paper or your journal and make a list of five small things you're grateful for in your life right now. Research shows that a consistent gratitude practice has so many health and wellbeing benefits so give it a try starting today and see how it makes you feel. Check out this blog post to learn more.
Make a list of things you love about yourself
Whilst you've got a pen and paper to hand, here's another positive exercise to try. Write a title 'Things I love about myself' at the top of the page and then make a list of your best qualities. This could include physical aspects such as your smile, your lovely, long locks, your clear skin and healthy looking nails, your character traits, e.g. kindness, good analytical skills, reliability, optimism and so on, and things you're really good at like cooking, motivating yourself, helping others, solving problems etc. Once you written as much as you can right now, try displaying your list somewhere so you can refer to it when you need a mood boost, or add to it when something comes to mind.
Inhale an uplifting scent
If you know anything about aromatherapy, you'll probably be aware that some scents are thought to be uplifting and mood boosting. I have a few little essential oil bottles which I got from the Body Shop in strawberry, raspberry and exotic which I love to inhale at any given opportunity. My scents of choice are fruity smells but below are a list of classic options which I collected from various websites via Google.
- vanilla
- peppermint
- jasmine
- citrus scents including orange, lemon and grapefruit
- juicy fruits like peaches, pear and pineapple
- relaxing scents like lavender, ylang, ylang and chamomile
- spicy scents such as ginger, cinnamon and clove
- fresh forest options such as pine and eucalyptus
Of course, it's important to experiment and see which you prefer (and think about the mood you want to create such as uplifting or relaxing) but these should get you started with that. As you learn more about aromatherapy, you might like to try combining scents to create your perfect mood booster!
Final words...
I hope you've found today's post beneficial and the ideas will motivate you to be pro-active next time you find yourself in a funk or stressed by particular events in your day. If I haven't shared your favourite way to uplift your mood, or relax when tensions are high, feel free to add it in the comments as it may help someone else to manage their mood in the future along with my ideas.
Thanks for reading and I'll be back with another wellbeing post very soon,
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