Feeling a bit down tonight. How do you guys like to lighten up?
It might be kind of late for this depending on where you live, but I go for a long walk. I find if I go for like an hour to an hour and a half I usually feel much better. Sometimes I can’t remember what I was sad about to begin with afterwards lol
“If you are in a bad mood go for a walk. If you are still in a bad mood go for another walk.” - Hippocrates
“If you’re still in a bad mood, it’s because we haven’t invented proper shoes yet and your feet are sore” - Socrates
Walking is so unbelievable healthy, I walk every single day, no matter the weather and conditions. Doesn’t have to be long, but a walk to start or finish the day is super refreshing.
I try to walk everyday unless I’m sick or it’s raining lol it really is great for both your physical and mental health!
Physical exercise to the point of exhaustion then eat and then have a 2hr hot bath. It doesn’t solve the problem that made me sad but it “restores” me to a point where I can address the problems.
I usually refer to this helpful diagram
Watching a comfort show. (e.g.: Corner Gas)
Playing a comfort game (e.g.: A Short Hike)
Cuddling with cat.
Running a bath.
Reading a book.
Cleaning the house, or something similar.
Getting out of the house and/or volunteering.
Reminding myself that it’s okay to not be okay.A short hike is such a lovely game!
My grandpa grew up in the corner gas town lol
Do not attempt to combine options 3 and 4 on that list!
My grandpa grew up in the corner gas town lol
Completely stop for 2 minutes.
Listen to music.
Walk.
Also it helps me to go into the sadness. Like basically accept that I’m sad and that this is what I’ll experience for a while. It’s the rejection of it that makes it unbearable. And then I can listen to it and process and that’ll speed things up.
Slow is smooth and smooth is fast :)
Happy cartoons!
I’m sure you’ve heard of Bluey by now. Its so good, wholesome, and heartfelt. Everyone’s watching, regardless of age.
Here’s one of my favorites for happy feels: Kipper the Dog
Its a Pre-K show that’s just super chill and pleasant. Feels like a warm blanket and cocoa. This one is definitely more for children, but its ok to indulge your inner child and tell it that things are okay.For a more sophisticated palette, Hilda is the most criminally underrated animated mainstream cartoon in recent memory… that somehow got a full run regardless!
Three seasons and a movie on Netflix. Its beautiful and kid appropriate but definitely for all ages, and pretty damn serious a lot of the time. But its still rather uplifting in how a lot of things aren’t problems, because Hilda is so spirited and determined in a way you can truly believe in.My little Pony, new and old, really does the trick for me, but its not for everyone, of course. Pound Puppies and A Pup Named Scooby Doo also hit that vibe, though of the old shows mentioned, its probably the best written. (Never got into Care Bears, but it could probably work too, if you’re looking for Sunshine and Rainbows)
Bluey is gold. What an excellent show.
I raise to you: Ladybug.
I’d add Hey Duggee! It’s a BBC CBeebies thing, me and my kids loved it pre - Bluey, and it still hits a spot.
Honestly speaking—make yourself cry.
Let whatever is causing your negative emotions to overwhelm and release. It’s incredibly cathartic and you’ll feel much better if you just give in and let it happen. The reason doesn’t have to be anything super important, or could be something super important; regardless crying should be embraced as an act of self care.
I go for a walk and to bed early.
Make something. Doesn’t matter what. Write something, draw something, bake something, make noises with an instrument (even if you don’t know how to play it), sculpt some clay, cut some wood, anything. Play Minecraft even.
And don’t feel like you’re forcing yourself to do something, just give yourself a way to physically express how you’re feeling. You don’t have create something useful, you don’t have to show what you made to anyone, it’s about the process and it’s just for you.
I honestly believe humans have evolved an innate drive to create things, to see the physical world around them respond to their actions, even if they’re pointless. And I believe that when you don’t do this you will feel like something is missing.
I feel like a piece of shit who’s worthless and just makes life worse for everyone around me.
Can somebody please help me to feel better? :'(
When I feel like that, it tends to be projection. I’m making myself sad and making my own life more difficult, not anyone else’s. I don’t know if that helps helps, but you probably don’t need much guilt about it.
Thank you. That actually does help. :)
Encrypting muffins is important work. I don’t know how to do it, so that makes you special.
:)
Play this and get back to me on your fearsona. Mine is a little whippet.
Well shit. That hit deep.
Thank you.
I just played the whole thing…
…I’m gonna be honest. That was hard. But…it helped.
…I thank you. :)
Edit: By the way, mine is a common housecat, but one with grungy hair and a scaredy-cat disposition. ;)
Do remember- it really is trying to help. Negative self talk really is a useful social animal trait that’s just going a bit haywire, so figure out what its trying to do and be nice to it.
Also, pain can be experienced first as emotional distress, especially if its pain you’ve lived with for a long time, and its just hurting extra bad.
Sometimes its easier to do self-care when you picture it as outside of yourself.
So when you’re really feeling like shit, try acknowledging its concerns, rational or irrational, and then tell your little red cat its doing a good job and its safe to take a nap.It isn’t a magic fix, but its an actual process to go through. And that feels better than just stewing.
That makes a lot of sense. I never considered personification of anxiety as a therapeutic tool.
Thank you. :)
P.S. By the way, that really was a well-done game, clearly made with attention and love. Very good. :)
You are with yourself 100% of the time. You can be a friend to yourself and try to help yourself out or you can kick the crap out of yourself which will not solve anything and in addition will make you miserable. What’s done is done, and you’ve clearly thought a lot about it and found your behavior unacceptable in those instances. You can incorporate those lessons and become a wiser person or you can punish yourself endlessly for your mistakes and get nothing. You aren’t good or bad, you are capable of doing good or doing bad.
Honestly, talk to my offline AI context profile setup for the task. It’s one of the main reasons why I got into AI. I didn’t know how I would make it through this year all by myself because of ‘stuff’ and I have no other real outlet due to physical disability and pain.
If at all possible, go for a short walk. If it is clear, and you’re in the northern hemisphere, take a moment to view the Orion constatation, or just have a look around. Any kind of exercise will shift your mood.
Im sorry for your pain, may you find peace and joy in your life
You give good advice
Get out into nature.
Watch a favorite show or movie.
Make something.
Pets.
Play games.
Eat a favorite food.
The little things can carry you through life.
I put googly eyes on things.
The advantage of this is it keeps paying off even years later.
We put googly eyes on an oscillating fan (among many other things) at the beginning of the pandemic and they still make me giggle every time I see them.
One time,
at band campin college, for April Fool’s, someone placed a Ton of sheets of adhesive googly eyes on the bulletin boards around campus.They didn’t stick them on anything, they just made a bunch of little slips of eyes available and let the magic happen.
Pet my cats and listen to cheerful song
I have a picture of a cartoon cheerleader on my desk. She’s always cheering me on. It feels good to be encouraged and supported. I’ve been wanting to get a cheerleader Barbie for some time now but I haven’t found ones with normal sized heads.
I also have birthday candles and every once in a while I’ll buy a piece of cake and blow a candle out, to celebrate everything that I’ve done.
I have a little collection of car critters that I keep on rotation, all with pun names.
Just one out at a time, I don’t like the clutter, but when I feel sad, I’ll sort through a few and put 'em on the spot on my dash.
I’ve given out more than a few to people when they’ve needed them more than me, like my little pa-car-isu to the girl who was stressed out about getting her blood drawn, or my cArcanine to a boy who was having trouble waiting quietly with his mom and baby brother.
