We are fast approaching January, known to be the saddest and dullest month of the year. Here are five ways to naturally brighten and banish those January blues!
1. Get Your Blood Pumping
There's no better mood booster than a bit of good old fashioned exercise. Go for a run, jump on your bike, dance in your underwear or have a little swim - any physical activity that's going to get you a little breathless and release those much needed endorphins. Regular exercise is known to boost your self esteem and reduce anxiety and stress, while also improving sleep patterns too. What are you waiting for?!
2. Eat Chocolate
What better reason to eat more chocolate?! Not only does is taste delicious and satisfy those sweet tooth cravings (just me?), it also releases the natural mood-boosting chemical serotonin in our brains. Next time you're feeling a little low, tuck into a bar of chocolate.
3. Write It Down
This is one that I've been doing for a while now, and it definitely helps to boost your mood and view things in perspective. After each day write down three things that went well or made you happy that day - no matter how big or small. After a week or so, look back over these notes. Your awareness of what actually makes you happy will increase and it's nice to look back on the little daily things that boost your mood.
4. Get Creative
A great way to improve your happiness is by expressing yourself creatively. Whether it's putting together a scrap book, doing a bit of drawing and painting or jotting down a short creative story, getting creative is a way to use your imagination and release any unconscious worries.
5. Eliminate Negative People
Are the people currently in your life bringing the best out in you? Do you have a positive effect on each other? Are you beneficially serving them, and are they beneficially you? If not, these people need to take a backseat in your life. Surround yourself with people who compliment you, better you and bring out the best in you - and if they don't, stop using up your energy on them.
Great post!
ReplyDeleteI wasn't looking forward to January at all after a fab Christmas but I will be sure to take your points on board for a happier time :)
www.numbertwentysix.co.uk
KT xo.
Some great tips here. I don't like January either. New Years day is so depressing x
ReplyDeleteAw! I adore this post, it's really inspirational. It'll certainly help with the post Christmas blues!
ReplyDeletewww.aymielouise.co.uk
These are lovely tips! I think everyone needs to do a bit more of this in 2016! I know I'm definitely going to be following your advice! I really love the idea of writing down 3 things that went well that day. It's so easy to get bogged down with little things that go wrong, so I think making a point of noting the good things will be really beneficial :) Lovely post Amy :)
ReplyDeleteEmily xx
www.bambisbeautyblogs.com
Great tips :) Especially eating chocolate, I'll definitely continue doing that!
ReplyDeleteMaria
http://immariav.blogspot.com.co/
Great post. Tip number one is something that has definitely help me become much more happier.
ReplyDeletehttp://themakeup-gypsy.blogspot.com.au/
LOVE this, Amy! Writing everything down is definitely my favourite way to cope with negativity just because I feel like, through writing, my problems naturally become bigger and bad-der (I'm an extreme romanticist and am pretty dramatic at times when it comes to literature!) and once I get everything down that way, with an epic battle and all of that, I feel calmer, haha. Eliminating the negative people in my life is also one thing I try to consciously do, too, though there aren't many of those type of people I know. It's mostly the people who make me feel negative about myself that I do.
ReplyDeleteLoved this one!
May | THE MAYDEN | Bloglovin'
Thanks for all the tips! I should buy more chocolates just in case :P
ReplyDeleteP.S: Join my mini giveaway!
xx
Oh Dear Bumblebees
Amazing tips! I agree that it's important to abandon negative, sort of drama queen people from your life. As soon as I did that I felt like a huge weight has lifted off my shoulders.
ReplyDeletegreat post ! :)
ReplyDeleteplease follow my blog : THE COLORFUL THOUGHTS
What a great post my love !! I am such a huge believer that the new year shouldn't be depressing and is a way to have a new start and get yourself feeling happier and positive ! Great tips !!
ReplyDeleteSaira
www.throughtheglitterglass.wordpress.com
Xx
I definitely worry about January, it's always such a dull/depressing month for me! But I'm trying to be more positive and treat it as a fresh new start :) x
ReplyDeletevvnightingale.com
I'm actually going to start writing things down starting 2016, I think it would be very helpful and stress relieving! Thanks for sharing this post :)
ReplyDeleteYousra | Mystic Tales
Chocolate is my favorite of these five!
ReplyDeletexx Kelly
Sparkles and Shoes
I think all of these are very good happiness boosters. I love writing things down and getting creative once in awhile. It really helps me amd gets me in a better mood :)
ReplyDelete-Leta | The Nerdy Me
I think all of these are very good happiness boosters. I love writing things down and getting creative once in awhile. It really helps me amd gets me in a better mood :)
ReplyDelete-Leta | The Nerdy Me
They are all great cleansers! I forget most things after my heart gets pumping!
ReplyDeleteThestyletune.blogspot.com
Lovely post - I completely agree with number 4 which is why I love blogging so much! Writing posts is the perfect creative outlet to take my mind off of things!
ReplyDeleteToni x
www.clarkecouture.co.uk
what a brilliant post! I like the idea of getting happy naturally!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with them all and chocolate has to be my favourite :)
Fruity Flamingo
Love these tips! So helpful
ReplyDeletefrom helen at thelovecatsinc.com
These are such good tips, exercise definitely helps. I suffered from anxiety for the first half of 2015 and when I started half marathon training and running regularly, it suddenly started to get so much better to the extent that I very very rarely get those moments and days of anxiety these days.
ReplyDeleteHaha, it's funny you say eat chocolate. I always say that I will eat s bit of chocolate every day because it makes me happy!!
Loved this post xxx
Sarah xxx www.whatsasssays.com