How I Stay Positive When Life Starts to Feel Boring
Hi friends!
I consider myself a fairly healthy person (more so mentally than physically thanks to my broken kidneys but that’s a story for another day). Even with a pretty solid mental health foundation, life, at some point, will get to a point where you just feel bleh.
If your routine is the same day after day, it can take a toll on your mental health, whether you realize it or not. Sometimes I can feel the joy being sucked out of me and being slowly replaced with an unwelcome energy – almost like a shift in the air that brings out the most unmotivated, disinterested version of myself and once I’m in it, it’s hard to snap out of. Here are some things I do to avoid that feeling when life gets to be a little too bland:
Spend More Time Outside
This is easy for me because I have 2 dogs that have never met a walk they didn’t like. So for me, if I’m in that funk, the dogs get an extra long walk. Fresh air is so good for you. So is the sun. The sun has very strong healing powers 24/7 but specifically at sunrise and sunset. Take a late afternoon walk and I promise you will feel your balance be restored as the sun soaks into your skin.
Write in a Journal
This sounds like a cheesy one, but I actually tried journaling about a year ago when I was in a depressive funk that I couldn’t get out of. It really did help me feel better when I got the thoughts out of my brain and put them on paper. It resets the mind more than you think, and you can always stop when you’re feeling good about yourself again.
Wear Makeup More Often
This one might not matter to everyone, but at least for me, makeup helps me stay positive and feel good. I feel untouchable when I have a full face on. My day to day makeup is literally just mascara, and most days I don’t even take the time to do that in the mornings. If I’m in a funk, getting up a few minutes earlier and wearing a full face to work breaks me out of my usual routine and really changes my mindset and resets my confidence.
Do Something Nice For Someone
I mean, I try to always do nice things for people – I’m not a total ass. But when I feel icky, I’ll go out of my way to hold the door open for someone, say hi to a neighbor, compliment someone I see in public, even just smile at more people than normal. Everyone has their own shit going on in their own lives and a simple act of kindness can be a lot more powerful than you think. They’ll smile, then you’ll smile because they’re smiling, then you’ll want to smile. Unless they don’t smile back – it would take a real douche canoe to not smile back but if that happened, you could mentally call them a douche canoe and then laugh about it and then you’d still be smiling.
Have a Mental Check-Out Day
I only really do this when I’m at my breaking point, so not often but I have done it. I’ll take the day off work, buy as much junk food as I want, and sit on the couch binging whatever show I feel like for a full day. No rules, no worrying about weight or work or any responsibilities. Unless you’re literally supposed to be performing brain surgery, whatever you ignore for a day will still be there when you come back (brain surgeons reading this are probably punching the air right now). I’ve done this a very select few times, but each time it leaves me feeling refreshed and ready to start the next day off on a clean slate. Plus there’s just something about not working when you’re supposed to be working that gives elementary school snow day vibes, and who doesn’t love to feel like that?
There’s a lot of other methods that can help you stay out of that “funk” feeling, but these are the top 5 that work for me the most. These are just suggestions – a lot of the time, it’s pure trial and error. Some things will make me feel good as new and some things just won’t. Regardless, just remember that mental health is just as important as physical health. Take care of your mind as if it’s alive (because it technically is) and if you need more help than whatever my silly little blog can offer, don’t be afraid to ask for it!
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