It’s unfortunate that saying you’re going to be happy and actually being happy is a lot harder than feeling sad, but it’s true. It’s easy to let things get us down: a bad day at work, a rude comment, tough criticism, or even those days when nothing seems to go right. Fortunately, though, there are things you can do to fight against sadness and increase your happiness.
Eat Spicy Food
There’s a reason so many people enjoy eating spicy food, even when it burns. The reason for that is eating spicy food like chili peppers actually releases endorphins. And the reason eating spicy food helps to release endorphins is because when you eat something that’s hot a chemical compound called capsaicin, the thing that makes chili peppers spicy, clings to your pain receptors in the mucous membrane of your mouth and nose. That sends a signal to your brain that you’re in pain, so your body releases endorphins to make you feel better.
Use Essential Oils
Scent plays such a huge role in our emotions. For those who already use essential oil, you’ll know that there is a blend to adjust every mood. Which means there is a blend of essential oils to help make you feel happier. Those scents include orange, rose, jasmine, coriander clove bud, bergamot, lemon, geranium, cinnamon, ginger and petitgrain, ylang-ylang and lavender. Every blend has a different effect on you, so do a bit of research to find out what is best for you and take a whiff.
Listen to Music
Another sense you should use to elevate your mood is your hearing. Listening to music can help you fight against feeling sad and improve your mood, especially if you listen to fun, upbeat tunes that make you feel good. So put together a happy playlist, and the next time you find yourself feeling down simply push play.
Exercise
Everyone knows that exercising helps increase our brain’s dopamine production, which is a chemical that’s necessary to feel happy, but did you know it only takes just a few minutes for it to work? And you don’t know even need to push yourself very hard; a simple 10 minute walk around the block or a short amount of time on an exercise bike should do the trick.
Laugh
One of the best ways to boost your mood from sad to happy in just a few minutes is to laugh. However, when you’re already feeling sad laughing is often the last thing you want to do. So if you don’t feel like laughing, try watching a special by your favorite comedian or perusing silly YouTube videos.
Eat Chocolate
Chocolate is a natural painkiller, and it releases endorphins. But, don’t go for commercial candy bars that offer more sugar and artificial ingredients; instead choose a chocolate option that is purer, preferably at least 70 per cent cocoa.
Practice Gratitude
Sometimes finding things to be grateful for is extremely difficult, but once you learn to remind yourself of all of the good things in your life you’ll notice that it’s easier to feel happy. Writing out a gratitude list each day helps make you aware of all of the things in your life that are amazing, which is surprisingly easy to forget. Even though this seems like an easy task to do, it can be a lot more difficult than you might imagine, but will also have a huge impact on your life.
Get Outside
By just spending 20 minutes a day outside you can boost your mood. Being outside helps your body absorb Vitamin D, which has been found to help prevent depression.
Spend Time With Friends
Whenever you’re feeling sad, call a friend and make plans to get together. Having something to look forward to will give you something to feel excited about, and being around your friends will make you happy just by being able to talk and laugh with them.
Smile
Finally, make yourself smile, even when you don’t want to. It has been scientifically proven that smiling will actually make you feel happy. So even you don’t feel like it, fake it until you make it. Featured photo credit: Flickr via flickr.com
