Let’s face it: Some days are just better than others. As Daniel Powter so famously crooned in 2005, “…you had a bad day, you're taking one down.” The bad days are inevitable; they happen. You get broken up with, school work piles up, you get in a fight with your friends, there’s a family crisis. Sometimes you’re dealing with multiple things at once because, more often then not, when it rains, it pours. These bad days can even easily translate into bad weeks. The key to dealing with bad weeks, though, is that you can’t let the negativity keep you down. To help you escape the suffocating atmosphere of a low day, here are some tips to keep your head above the water.
Distract Yourself
The worst thing you can do is wallow in your own self-pity. Nobody likes a pity party. If you’re having a pity party, I will show up, pee in the punch, and pop all of the balloons. Instead, keep your mind and body busy to keep yourself from focusing on the negative. Go work out, experiment with painting, watch a movie, play with a dog. Whatever it is, just take a vacation from your own head. It is much easier to cope with a situation after taking a break and having some sort of relief.
Get Organized
If you feel like your life is a mess, the best thing you can do is get the pieces of it that you can in order. This starts with cleaning your room, organizing your schedule, and getting your classwork finished. Even just accomplishing a small task can seem like a giant feat and provide you with an overwhelming sense of satisfaction and pride, which can in turn boost your mood. This sense of a tangible progress and control can act as a comfort. Then once you have established a certain order on the outside, it will eventually reflect on the inside.
Get Lost in Nature
Sometimes I think that the idea of going outside and getting fresh air can be overlooked. In my opinion, there is nothing more simply therapeutic than going on a walk and clearing your mind. Even just a 10-minute walk can change your whole perspective.
Do Something Nice for Someone Else
We can get so caught up in ourselves and our own problems that we completely forget about those around us. A philosophy that I heard while growing up was, “do good, feel good.” The act of going out of your own way to brighten up someone else’s life can really in turn brighten up your own.
Keep Perspective
The world is not ending. I promise. Chances are, whatever you're going through is not going to matter in 5 years, let alone 5 months. Also, whatever you’re going through, there is somebody else out there who is living a situation two times worse than you are. You are immensely blessed just to be alive and breathing, which takes me to point #6.
Be Grateful
Even if you wake up and it’s a terrible day, you still woke up. Not everyone is that fortunate. With each breath you take, you still have purpose. So show gratitude. Radiate positivity. Life will eventually sort itself out, and it will do so quicker and easier if you keep a good attitude and outlook.
In the end, it’s vital to remember that it’s a bad day, not a bad life. Everyone has their moments, their days, and even their weeks, but everyone also survives them. Without the rough patches, we wouldn’t relish the highs so sweetly. So while it’s okay to let it out and cry and vent out your frustration to whoever will listen, don’t forget to pick yourself back up, brush yourself off, and try some of these tips to make life easier.
