What makes you happy?
© photo by https://timeilluminated.com
Sometimes its hard to give yourself room to breath in your very busy, daily life.
Taking time out of your day to do something that makes you happy is incredibly important. While this sounds pretty straight forward, we can be quick to find excuses to avoid taking care of our health in our daily life. By health, I don’t just mean working out consistently or drinking green smoothies every morning. I mean, deliberately making time for something that you love. As it is an aspect of health that can often be forgotten. I think there is a lot of pressure right now that expects us to always be doing something productive - something that will help us to be more ‘successful’ in our future. With this outlook, comes a lot of expectations that we become accustomed to putting on ourselves until we reach a point of exhaustion. Have you ever felt run down? Finding small moments of happiness can do more for your health than you realize.
Now I’m not going to sit here and pretend that I take my personal advice every single day - because the truth is, it is incredibly hard for me not to be ‘productive’ all the time. And after 3 years of persisting chronic pain (which I’m pretty sure is refusing to leave my body until I learn to chill out), I have had to do a lot of relearning in scheduling myself better to allow for those relaxing moments.
SO, what do I do to relax? What makes me happy?
Dancing. I love a good dance session. If I need to clean my apartment or am doing dishes I make sure to put on a playlist I am in the mood for and get some therapeutic dancing going while I tidy up. We can hold a lot of tension in our body that can build up throughout the day. Dancing helps me to relax my muscles and bring some joy into my tiny apartment. I also dance when I am sad, or when I am angry, it helps me to process my emotions and let those heavy feelings go. Everyone can dance, it does not have to look good, it just has to feel good. And so I recommend giving those hips a little shake in the morning.
I also love a good walk, and it’s great for you! I often use my walk as an excuse to grab a latte and scone at my local coffee spot. This is where my unreasonable spending on coffee comes into play. I have assessed the situation, weighed the pros and cons, and come to the conclusion that coffee lifts my spirits by at least 50% by the first sip every single time. So by those calculations, buying coffee is actively helping me be a more joyous person! Anyways we were talking about walking right? Walking is great, getting some fresh air and listening to the birds chirping is great for your soul. When I am having a rough day, I’ll put my headphones on and listen to my favourite upbeat tunes, watch people on their walks, and sit on a park bench for a while. Exercising - even if it’s minimal, is great for your mind and body, so if you are able, find a way to bring some kind of physical activity into your daily life
Watch some tv. Sometimes you just need to laugh. New Girl, The Mindy Project, and Brooklyn 99 are some of my personal favourites, but watch whatever makes you happy! I swear I am not trying to be annoying and give you useless tips, sometimes it’s the simple things that help.
Painting? I am really not the best artist, but I took some art classes when I was in school and it always calmed my mind. So I recommend finding something in your life where you get to be creative. It’s cool to make something that is all yours, and it can lift even the dampest of spirits. It does not have to be good, it just has to make you feel good.
Surround yourself with good people. Call your friend and catch up, go on a little friend coffee date, grab some dinner and a few drinks. Have a cuddle session with your partner. Connecting with others can help take the focus off yourself, and we often just need someone to talk to.
