… you’re taking one down, you sing a sad song just to turn it around….
I hope you are all singing these words in Daniel Porter’s voice. But in all seriousness, we all experience bad days. Those days where you come home from work/uni and feel like crying, sleeping, punching things, drinking wine (for the adults) or staying in the bath so long that your skin will be forever wrinkly… or perhaps you do all of the above. All of these are viable, and sometimes necessary options, but here are some other things you can do to end your bad day, in a slightly better way.
Eat a good meal- Eating a delicious meal does wonder for my mood, so much so that sometimes my boyfriend knows the only way to stop my verbal grumbles is to stop my stomach grumbles.
Go for a walk (get into nature) – As a conservation psychologist I am a little bit biased towards nature. But there is a robust amount of research revealing the benefits of getting out and about in nature including minimising stress. So when I feel stressed, I put on my running shoes and go for a walk- the fresh air and big trees will do wonders.
Put on a trashy reality show- Do not get me wrong I enjoy intellectual shows, for obvious reasons David Attenborough is one of my particular favourites, but sometimes I really just need to watch some trashy reality shows, I am talking googlebox or house hunters!
Curl up with a book- Getting comfy on the coach with a blanket, cup of tea, and good book is a great way to end a stressful day. You can immerse yourself in the book and forget about your own world and worries for a little while.
Have a laugh- When you have had a bad day laughing may seem impossible. But, you need to find a way to do it- whether that is by watching a funny TV show (F.R.I.E.N.D.S always does it for me) or watching cat videos on facebook, or maybe having a chat with someone who always makes you laugh. If all else fails force yourself to laugh- research has shown that even fake laughing can release happy, stress releasing hormones. Plus, fake laughing ends up in real laughter 99% of the time.
Sleep- If you have read some of my previous blog posts you would know that sleep appears to be my answer to many things. That is because it is! When all else fails you need to go to sleep- tomorrow is a new day. As the saying goes, “It is a bad day, not a bad life”
Leave A Reply