This one's for the bad days...
I woke up feeling extremely anxious today. Since I've been reading a lot of books, I am very aware of my mind these days, and I know what triggered my anxiety. It was about the uncertain aspects of living in Dubai, a discussion I was involved in, the previous night with a friend.
I didn't want to have a worrying day so I decided to actively change my thoughts by reminding myself of something from my recent read.
We worry about things that never happen!
Of course, there are some things that we need to sit and think about seriously, and there are some thoughts that are fleeting and make you worry for no reason. I knew mine were the fleeting ones. Overall, in my life, I had things under control. This was just me freaking out about the future and about things that might never happen to me.
So I decided to change my thoughts and control my mind.
But my quest was interrupted by my cat, Kuki, who I found purring next to me. I played with her for a while. Surprisingly or not, her purrs took my mind off other things (cat people can relate) and definitely made me feel better. I was so relaxed that I even forgot to turn off the water heater. The purrs, they do that to you!
Then, I thought of consciously doing a series of activities to improve my mood further. I decided to document them in the form of this blog. I wanted it to be my handbook for the future bad and anxious days. Thus the title.
The mere act of writing my feelings in this blog made me feel a lot better. But I wanted to let the productivity kick in. I knew I had to ''move my body.''
I decided to do a quick workout. I started with a 10 minute workout and ended up doing another one because it just felt so good!
I was in my element in 20 minutes and in the best mood for the day. I was ready to get up and perform.
I had some other activities in mind as well if I didn't feel better after working out. Like reading the highlighted parts of my productivity-based books, watching a short comedy episode, watching my saved motivational Instagram reels, working on important tasks, or making myself busy with the day job. You should do whatever works for you, whatever floats YOUR boat. So think about what helps you get into a productive mood.
Usually, if nothing works out, my last resort is to talk to my best friend or a close relative. This is usually my last resort because I respect people's time a lot. I don't want to bother my friends with some of my fleeting thoughts but if that's the only option, I know I've got their back!
In a nutshell, these are the activities that transformed my mood for good:
- Playing with my cat
- Writing this blog
- Exercising for just 20 mins
And... I was good to go! But I have the additional activities handy, just in case.
This blog in my view is a classic example of ''When you know better, you do better.'' Since I am more informed than before about the brain and the working of it, I am able to spot the triggering thoughts, take control of my mind, change my thoughts and redirect my mood for good. I give full credit to the books I've been reading lately.
Don't ever let a bad mood ruin your day. Create your own handbook for the bad days and change your mood.
See you soon on another blog. For now, I'll leave you with these two images.
Have a good time ahead.
