By Barbie @ Follow Your Own Rhythm
Sorry about the profanity but there’s really no better way to describe in one single word the feeling I’m trying to portray, which is feeling like shit.
You know what I’m talking about…it’s those moments that you’re stressed, overwhelmed, feeling negative, heavy, drained, depleted, off, sad, in a bad mood, unmotivated, and any other “shitty” feelings.
It’s no fun feeling that way especially because it can jeopardize your relationships and the quality of your experiences.
The other day, I set myself up for failure when the first thing I did when I woke up is check my email from bed.
Instead of doing some empowering mind exercise like setting intentions or visualizing my dreams, I decided to fill my still very calm state of mind with information. This is never a good thing first thing in the morning.
Usually checking emails is a positive experience for me, but there was one in particular that stressed me out and I had a hard time shaking it. So I got out of bed feeling blah. I wasn’t my usual perky self. I wasn’t motivated, and it was kind of ruining my morning.
However, I wasn’t about to let this ruin the rest of my beautiful day. So I decided to do something about it.
A long time ago, I might have let this negative feeling take over me or I might have engaged in unhealthy habits to try to mask the feeling but today I know better.
I knew I needed some high vibe quality time with myself. So I decided to go to the pool and lay out in the sun.
Being outside immediately made me feel better, as did relaxing and feeling the peace all around me. I didn’t follow a specific formula for what I should do to feel better, I just tuned into my intuition.
What feels good? Just laying here doing nothing? Taking in my environment? Processing my thoughts and feelings? Reading my book? Writing in my journal?
I sat there doing nothing for a little while, just relaxing, self-reflecting and taking in my surroundings. And then, I got the urge to listen to some good music.
The moment I put on my headset with my newest favorite song, I was on a different wavelength. I was immediately uplifted, all of my worries and stresses gone, and I felt a surge of positive energy rushing through my body. It was the best feeling ever. I listened to that song about 8 times in a row, and the whole time I felt elated.
When I was done, I felt recharged, inspired, and ready to start my day again with newfound positive energy.
I also came up with this blog idea while I was listening to my song as I felt inspired to share these tips so that you can experience these positive feelings as well.
It’s no big discovery that music soothes the soul and uplifts the spirit. But I think we tend to forget that music can actually be a healing device that we can turn to when we feel like crap.
This isn’t to say that you should escape from your problems, ignore your unpleasant feelings, and listen to music all day. No. Any problem you’re dealing with should be acknowledged, processed, and dealt with.
However, before you can even deal with a problem, you need to get into the right state of mind. How can you solve anything when you feel like shit?
So these 11 tips are ways for you to recharge your battery, lift your spirits, get on a higher frequency, so that THEN you can tackle the problem at hand. And if you don’t have a problem but just want to get into a better mood, these exercises will work for that too!
11 Ways to Make Yourself Feel Better When You Feel Like Sh*t
1. Listen to “feel good” music
As I just described, listening to music that makes you feel good can totally transform your mood. Music speaks to us in magical ways. The melody, rhythm, and beat mixed with the lyrics reaches right into our hearts and feeds our soul. When you need a little lift me up, put on your headset, close your eyes, and enjoy your favorite song.
2. Organize, clean or fix something
There’s something about taking something that’s messy, dirty, or out of order and putting it into perfect form. It makes us feel good. It makes us feel like we have control. It makes us feel accomplished and productive. And it feels REALLY good to make something "ugly," beautiful. And when your environment is clutter free, your mind becomes clutter free.
In addition, besides the obvious benefits of having a clean and organized environment, the actual process of cleaning, organizing, or fixing something is therapeutic. It takes your mind off of your worries and sort of forces you to focus on the task at hand, it gives you time to reset, and it allows you to cleanse your thoughts and feelings through the actual “fixing” and “cleaning” process. If you haven’t tried cleaning and organizing as therapy when you’re feeling down, try it!
This can include folding laundry, organizing your pantry or garage, vacuuming, doing dishes, dusting, cleaning your windows, sewing your pants, ironing clothes, organizing your drawer, or fixing your bicycle.
3. Cry
This is SO good. When we have an excess amount of negative emotions and negative energy built up inside of us, it needs to be released, and crying is a great way to do that!
Maybe you feel stuck in life. Maybe you’re frustrated about something. Maybe you’re sad. Maybe you're angry. Whatever it is, why don’t you go cry about it? No seriously, just cry it all out! Feel the pain, sadness or whatever you’re feeling leave your body as you cry. You will feel so much lighter and more peaceful afterward, I promise.
4. Take a walk in nature
My all time favorite! Nature will ALWAYS take care of you. When you feel like shit, the first thing you should do is get out of your house, take a breath of fresh air, look around you, see the trees, the birds, and the sky, feel the sun on your face, and take a walk (cold or hot, it doesn’t matter. You can do this on a gloomy day too, just get outside!) This will calm your mind and help you reset big time.
In my free email course "Reconnect With Yourself," I take you through a step-by-step exercise that you can do in nature to help you reset.
5. Spend some time on your passions, hobbies and interests
When you spend time doing things you love, you immediately activate your inner sense of joy, love, and aliveness and you improve your mood instantaneously.
Just make sure that you’re honest with yourself about your passions and hobbies and that they truly do energize you, and are not unhealthy behaviors disguised as your passions. For example, things you “love to do” such as having a drink, smoking a doobie, reading a gossip magazine, or watching the Kardashians are not exactly healthy passions and don’t actually make you feel better on a soul level.
6. Practice positive self-talk
What would a friend who loves you say to you when you’re feeling down? How would they try to make you feel better? Or, what would YOU say to a friend who needed help?
Pretend like you’re that loving friend and tell yourself loving things when you want to make yourself feel better. Remind yourself of how great you are, point out your positive qualities, and tell yourself you love yourself.
Say things like “you can do this (fill in your name)! You’ve been through way worse and you’ve gotten out of it, you can get through this! I love you, I accept you, and I believe in you” or whatever makes you feel good and applies to your specific situation.
7. Journal
Get your thoughts and feelings onto paper. Don’t just think about them, but write them down. How do you feel? What’s bothering you? Why is this bothering you? What can you do to solve this problem?
Also, practice being more grateful. When you don’t feel so well, it often helps to focus on what’s already good in your life. You can journal about what you appreciate in your life, who you’re grateful for, and what you value. Gratitude has the power to raise your frequency and shift your mood almost immediately.
8. Read a personal development book
A book full of inspiration, education, and wisdom will always motivate you, make you feel better, and remind of how capable you really are. You can also read blog posts, listen to podcasts, or watch inspirational videos to lift your spirits.
9. Exercise
Oh good ole exercise. It’s no joke though, when you’re feeling blah, exercise is an AMAZING remedy! Just try it. When you wake up one morning feeling kind of depressed and in a bad mood, stressing about your life, go for a jog, bike ride, hike, swim or to the gym, something to get your blood flowing for at least 20 minutes and see how refreshed and rejuvenated you feel afterward. You will be in a much different mindset!
10. Sit in presence
Just take a break, take a breather and try doing nothing for like 10-20 minutes. Don’t think about your problems or focus on how crappy you feel, just simply relax. Pay attention to your surroundings and be in the moment. It’s usually the overload of external stimuli, especially from other people, social media, TV and the internet, that tends to overwhelm us. Sitting in presence helps offset that and connects you back to your roots.
11. Garden or tend to your plants
Assuming you have plants in your house, when you’re feeling down, go around your house and tend to all of your plants. Water them, remove the dead leaves, and give them plant food. Admire them and thank them for being so beautiful and for purifying your home. If you have an outdoor garden, tend to those plants too, or plant some new ones! It’s always a beautiful feeling giving something life! You can also extend this to being of service to another person in some way. Giving and being kind is a great remedy for a poor mood.
Well, those are my 11 tips for feeling better when you’re not feeling so hot.
Recognizing that the feeling you feel is only temporary and can be changed through simple practices is one of the most empowering things you can do for yourself.
If you’d like to be guided to reconnect with yourself through powerful exercises just like these, sign up for my free 4 day email course! You will get step-by-step guidance on what to do each day for 4 days to help you recharge, reconnect, and feel lighter and happier.
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Leave a comment and let me know which practice you will try out first!
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