Feeling Stressed or Blue?
Most of us feel stressed or blue at some point in our lives and during these times our nearest and dearest will often provide well intentioned, but ill advised suggestions. These may include spending the weekend eating chocolate and watching TV, or staying in bed and reading a book. Whilst winding down is a great remedy for exhaustion, it is seldom the most effective method of restoring our emotional well being and is often counter-productive.
The key to well being is to feel a sense of satisfaction in all aspects of life and to embrace life wholeheartedly. When we stimulate our emotions and our intellect, our days feel richer and more satisfying – therefore, the more effort we put into life, the more we enjoy it.
That doesn’t mean we should run ourselves into the ground, doing as much as possible but none of it properly. Our physical, emotional and intellectual abilities are negatively affected by tension and the aim is to experience as many activities as we are comfortable with which provide us with a sense of achievement and/or pleasure, and to do them in a relaxed way – if we relax, everything flows more easily and we can achieve more.
Tips for boosting your well-being:
- Consciously squeeze then relax each of your muscle groups from the top of your head, down to the tips of your toes.
- Halve your pace and challenge yourself to slow down.
- Smile and laugh (even if it’s forced laughter) as often as you can during the day – this relieves tension, releases “feel good” chemicals and changes your neural pathways from negative to positive.
- Be open to trying new experiences – this will give you a fresh view of yourself.
- Do more rather than less. Turn off the TV and find activities which make you feel good.
- Share experiences with a friend, relation or lover.
- Be playful and seek out your passions – think about what you enjoyed as a child and consciously re-create it as an adult.
- Recognise and acknowledge moments of sadness – if you’ve experienced pain, you are ripe for joy!
