Great First Aid When You Feel Down

10 things you can do to make yourself feel better immediately

Have you ever noticed the following?

After a long week feeling down, not caring as well for yourself as you would like, your sleep is a mess and your thoughts get more and more negative. You are not feeling like doing anything to make yourself feel better. As a result you make matters worse.

Does this sound familiar?

That means that you’re experiencing a classic downward spiral.

This downward spiral is a positive feedback loop. Check out this article on how to use it to your advantage.

A positive feedback loop does not mean it’s a positive event. It simply means that a loop strengthens itself with every iteration. For example:

Things are not going well at your job and as a result you feel bad about it. You go to bed later than normal, because going to bed now means waking up the next moment and having to go to your work again. As a result of going to bed later than normal, you feel more tired when you wake up.

Because you are feeling more tired than normal, things go even worse on your job. And so the cycle continues..

No matter how bad things are, you can always make things worse.

How do I turn the situation around?

Down below I list options that I have used, and still use, myself when I feel down.

The first step is to break the pattern.

You only need a little boost in the right direction to create positive momentum. It’s all about getting that winning feeling.

Once you have tackled the first step, the second and third step become a lot easier.

The trick is to make it easy for yourself.

The problem is that often when we feel bad, we make it very hard for ourselves to make ourselves feel better. Here is how to make it easy:

10 Methods For Instant Improvement

#1: Brush your teeth

Brushing your teeth takes you 2 minutes and makes you feel fresh. This helps with creating a positive self-image.

#2: Make your bed

This is a visible cue to boost the way you feel. When you have a sloppy bed, you tend to feel sloppy as well.

Your bed reflects your mood, but your mood also reflects your bed.

Change your bed -> change your mood

#3: Go for a 5 minute walk

Going for a walk increases your body’s production of feel-good hormones like serotonin and dopamine. It also gets your oxygen rich blood flowing.

#4: Take a shower

This contributes just like brushing your teeth, by making you feel fresh.

Take care of yourself and feel your self-image improve.

It also helps you to relax, which causes your muscles to let go of tension. Letting go of tension helps you letting go of your old mood.

#5: Make a to do list

This one relies on looking forward into the future instead of ruminating about the past. Set goals that are achievable and inspire you.

Just by writing down one or two small goals you have already made the first step.

#6: Dress yourself up nicely

Dressing up properly helps you feel better by association.

Your brain links looking good to feeling good.

#7: Meditate for 2–5 minutes

Meditation has been shown to improve mood in numerous studies, as well as flood your body with feel-good hormones.

The best things about meditation is that you literally do not have to do anything.

#8: Write down 5 lines of whatever comes up in your mind

This is also sometimes called a brain-vomit or brain-dump, and it serves to free your mind so that you will feel a little lighter. Writing about a specific topic can help you process better.

For example, if you are struggling with something difficult,writing about it can already help.

#9: Have a healthy meal

Needless to explain, eating healthy will make your body feel and function better.

Also, does eating healthy help you feeling better by the same logic as making your bed?

Your diet reflects your mood, but it also works the other way around.

Changing your food changes your mood

#10: Do somethings nice for someone else

If you are feeling bad there is hardly anything that is so reliable for making yourself feel better than helping someone else.

By taking away the focus on yourself, and pointing it to someone else, you are already taking the weight off of your shoulders.

Being kind to someone else makes you feel good because you are doing something that is making someone else feel better. Your brain is hardwired to make you feel good if you make others feel good.

Conclusion

Change your behaviour to change your mood.

One of the greatest secrets to success is recognizing that motivation follows action

— Steve Pavlina