Let’s face it, we all have our fair share of bad days, when you just feel miserable and nothing seems to want to go right. So next time you are feeling a little down in the dumps, why not try Lisa Turner’s 10 simple steps to regaining your happiness instantly!
1.Use your mind - body connection
You can change your mind simply by changing your body! Stand up, look up to the ceiling (roll your eyes) and say in your mind, or out loud YES YES YES YES YES YES. You will see a noticeable effect on your mood.
Going to the gym or for a brisk walk is not only great for the body but is wonderfully beneficial for the mind. Breathing deeply triggers a natural relaxation response. Even gentle exercise pumps the endocrine and lymphatic systems improving physical health, and can release endorphins, which are the brains natural opiates. No need to take drugs, just trigger your body to release it’s own.
2.Look up, and things will look up
Did you know that where your eyes are looking, in terms of rolling them up, down or side to side, determines HOW you are thinking? Up means pictures, down means feelings, so if you are feeling bad, simply look up to feel instantly better!
If you are feeling bad you will find yourself looking down, we even say that people are “down in the dumpsapostrophe. Look up and things will look up.
When you look up you prevent your mind from processing feelings, so if you have painful or sad feelings you can snap out of it by looking up. In the longer term you should consider resolving painful emotions, but for a short term, quick fix this is fine.
3.It only takes a minute
Spend one minute in silence. We are constantly bombarded with information, noise, talking, music. Constant chatter has become a feature of modern life but it is stressful and prevents you from focusing and clearing your mind. The benefits of meditating are vast and widely known, but what isn’t so well know is just how quickly it happens. The ideal is 20 minutes twice a day, but as little as one minute in silence, with your eyes closed has a fantastically beneficial effect on your mood. You will be able to think more clearly, and it stops those repetitive thought loops that many people get stuck in.
4. Stop unhelpful internal chatter
Remember It is HOW not WHAT you think that most effects your mood. Take that voice inside your head, you know, the one you use to give yourself a hard time with. The one that tells you, you messed up, or that you made a mistake, or that you’re no good etc. Notice where the voice comes from, behind, in front, to one side or the other? Now notice, what accent does it have? Is it loud or quite, is it rich or tinny? Does it come from close by or far away?
Next, think of the voice of the silliest cartoon character, Porky pig, Micky mouse, or my personal favourite, Donald duck. Again, notice if the voice is loud or quiet, near or far, high or low pitched. Now change the sound of the voice you use to give yourself a hard time with, to the same sound of the voice of Donald duck. That’s right all squeaky and silly, then make it really quiet, and make it come from a long way away in the corner of the room, or from another room entirely. Don’t change the words, they stay the same, they are still saying “you messed up, or made a mistake, or no-one likes you, or whatever. But do you notice that even though you have only changed the sound of the voice, the feeling you get when you hear those words is different?
So next time you find yourself are beating yourself up – all you need to do is change the sound of the voice to Donald Duck and then… “Shut the DUCK upapostrophe.
5.Get a hobby
And make sure you do it regularly as it actually changes brain chemistry and releases serotonin and dopamine. Simple repetitive manual tasks occupy the part of your brain that deals with language. When your hands are busy, the inner dialogue is switched off, creating the space for new thoughts and visions. It is this space that solutions to problems can just plop into straight out of the ether. Agatha Christie said – the best time for creating plots is while washing up.
6.Don’t get even, get mad!
If you are depressed – get angry. It may not be 100% positive, but has more energy. Depression is really just anger without the enthusiasm. Some research suggests that depression is actually unexpressed anger. Stop putting up with people walking over you.
7.Don’t be negative…
Change your life’s “search termsapostrophe so that you start filtering for happiness, not negativity. Your mind is like Google, the internet search engine, it is looking for whatever you ask it to look for. So if you put “problemapostrophe in the search box, you will see them, if you are looking for solutions, you will see them. notice all the good things and soon you wont have any attention left for negative things.
A gratitude or success diary is a great way of training your mind to do this. Every day write down all the things that went really well that day. List the things that you are thankful for – you’ll be amazed how much you take for granted. People often tip into an unhappy mood because they are focussing on what is not going right, or what they don’t have or what went wrong. Every day write down at least 3 things that you are really happy about, or that you really grateful for. It might be having a lovely cup of coffee, or it might be that your partner cooked a meal, or that the traffic was light so you got to work on time. By doing this regularly you will train your mind to focus on what is good, and not what is wrong. This creates and builds a feeling of wellbeing and happiness
9. …Be positive
Turn off negative input, turn ON positive input, watch funny movies and tv shows, read uplifting or inspiring books, especially autobiographies. Listen to up-beat music. There is nothing like belting out a few power ballads to lift your mood!
9. Eat a Banana
Not only are they an essentially funny fruit! Silly colour, funny shape, slippery skin! How anyone can eat them without giggling I don’t know. That aside bananas trigger the release of serotonin which is a happiness chemical in the brain. Low serotonin levels are linked to depression, anxiety, apathy, fear, feelings of worthlessness, insomnia and fatigue. Serotonin generates feelings of wellbeing, relaxation, safety and security. If that wasn’t enough, bananas also have some essential vitamins and minerals that the body needs to keep healthy,
10. Remember that everything will be ok
Recognise that all “problemsapostrophe have a solution; all you need to do is trust that, find it, and act on it when it shows up. If you hold a firm belief that things will turn out for the best, then they probably will.
About the author:
Lisa Turner is an expert in human transformation and evolution and founder of Psycademy, a company which offers a range of personal transformation products, services and training. Lisa has studied the mind for over 15 years and is she a certified trainer of NLP, Time Line Therapy® and Hypnosis. For more information on how to transform your life and to find out if you are a ‘light worker’ visit www.psycademy.co.uk