Do you ever wake up feeling grumpy? After a good night's sleep you open your eyes and instead of the usual "let's get out of bed and see what the day brings" attitude, a little voice inside your head says, "pull the covers back up, cranky and let's go back to sleep."What do you do when you're feeling that way?
You're sitting at your desk minding your own business and all of a sudden that voice starts saying things like, "I don't feel like working anymore" ... or "this job sucks".
Do you give into that voice and let it control your actions? Or do you call it out for what it is ... A BAD MOOD ... and change it?
We all have them. A bad mood can crash in on you after something goes wrong or it sneak up on you for no obvious reason. Maybe something you ate for lunch didn't agree with your stomach or maybe the light in the room is a little too bright ... you may not even know what causes that little sinister voice to pipe up. The important thing is that you know that you have the power to change it.
You don't have to carry that mood around with you.
The definition of mood: A state of mind or emotion.
Dr. Wayne Dyer says that once you realize the mood is coming from your mind, you can alter it. He says that when you're in a bad mood, if you repeat positive thoughts like "I want to feel good" ... you will begin to believe them and your mood will lift. It's your choice. Change your thoughts ... change your mood.
I know that may seem simplistic to you. Especially if you're in a bad mood as you read this. There's nothing worse than someone telling you that your lingering bad mood is your fault. But ... well ... it is. **
The key to change is having the awareness to identify the mood as negative and knowing what works for you to get yourself out of it. It's different for everyone, of course. What works for some may make your mood even worse. It's trial and error. The point is to try.
Ways to change your thoughts from bad to good:
Gratitude
Give thanks for what's good in your life. Turn your attention to what's positive around you. It can be hard to identify anything good when you're feeling stuck and frustrated, but this is the time you need to do this most. Will yourself to step outside of your emotions and take a look at your life. Get out a piece of paper and jot down a list. By remembering what you love in your life and acknowledging what is positive, your spirits will lift.
Physical motion
Move your body! Anthony Robbins says motion causes emotion. The way we physically hold ourselves is connected to our emotional life. When you are sad, you hang your head, slump your shoulders and move slowly. When you're happy, you stand up straight and move quickly and are energized, right? So, fake it if you have to. Put energy into your limbs. Change how you are holding your body. Can't get to a gym? Can't jog around your block? It doesn't matter, no excuses. You can jump up and down in your bedroom for five minutes. Stretch. Touch your toes fifty times. It doesn't matter what you do as long as you change your posture and get your blood pumping. Assume the position of a happy body and your emotions will follow.
Don't think about anything but what you are doing
Be present in your actions by paying attention to what you're doing. Get your mind off of auto pilot.
Your thoughts can't remain stuck in emotion if you are directing your mind to pay attention to the task at hand. No matter what it is, no matter how you're feeling about it ... put everything you've got into doing it. If you're watering the plants, really water the plants. If you're watching TV, really watch it. Command yourself to pay attention to detail. Be the best TV watcher you can be. Your bad mood will lift as your mind becomes interested in what you're doing.
Smile therapy
Mother Teresa believed "peace begins with a smile." Well, it's not so easy to smile through a bad mood. French physiologist Dr. Israel Waynbaum says try anyway. His research suggests that the facial muscles used in a smile trigger specific healing hormones such as ecstatic endorphins and immune boosting killer T-cells. Smile therapy actually lowers the stress hormones cortisol and adrenalin and produces happy hormones that relax muscles and actually stabilize blood pressure and moods. So, smiling will actually make you feel better physically. He also found that the more we smile, the more we want to smile. Not feeling a smile coming on? Fake it. Your brain doesn't know the difference. Apparently, even a fake smile tricks the brain into releasing the hormones. And before you know it, you won't need to fake it.
Plan your near future
Give yourself something to look forward to. Call a friend and make a lunch date, buy tickets to a ball game, make plans for Friday night. This acknowledges the passing nature of this mood and that you know you will soon be engaged in an activity that you enjoy. It makes the light at the end of the tunnel real and bright.
Check off your to-do list
Take an action towards one of your goals. Sign up for that cooking class, call the realtor and go see the store space you've been eyeing. By taking action, you'll feel productive. Just begin it and you will more than likely be caught up in a forward momentum of energy, leaving that bad mood behind.
Being in a bad mood isn't necessarily a bad thing.
In the past, I would have put a lot of emphasis on the word "bad". A bad mood meant something was really wrong. It meant a bad day and that bad things were sure to come. And then, I would feel bad for being in a bad mood ... and the big bad black cloud, dark skies, no way out voice would spin me into a negative funk.
But, today I acknowledge that it's just a mood. I say, "oh look, my big bad wolf has decided to come out and say 'hey' today". It doesn't feel great but, it's not a big deal because I know how to better handle it now. It doesn't mean anything other than I need to take action to get myself through it.
Next time you're in a bad mood, do what you need to do to change it. Take the action that changes your thoughts and makes you feel better. You will most likely find yourself in a positive state of mind with a whole new sense of motivation. And suddenly that bad mood even did you some good.
"There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so." - William Shakespeare
**Please note that I am talking about a typical shorter term bad mood. If your bad mood persists for more than two weeks, I encourage you to seek professional help. Depression is different than a bad mood and may be due to conditions beyond your control.
Laura Interval believes we all have the power to create the lives we want. Not living everyday to the fullest? Wish you were doing something else with your time? Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Laura_Interval |
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