12 Ways To Improve Your Mood
We interrupt our regularly scheduled programming to bring you these much-needed mood-lifting tips.
We set our clocks back an hour this coming Sunday, and, if you're like me, the shift back to standard time might leave you a little less than cheerful. I love Fall: sweater weather, vibrant colors of the leaves, eating pumpkin flavored anything, and not getting the strange looks, but I also love sunlight. Through the technology of Smart Home living, my living room lights are set to come on at sunset, and as it happens every year, they've been coming on a little earlier each night, and I can tell you that when it happens at 4:44 pm on Sunday, my mood will most likely go down with the sun!
Now I can't go through the next five months with a dark cloud over my head, and neither can you. So I put together a list of some of my favorite mood lifters and added a few others I've come across here and there. I can't promise you the daylight will last longer, but your mood will stay up long after the sun goes down.
1. Put some drops of lavender and orange essential oils in a diffuser. This is my go-to mood lifter. These oils have been shown to help with anxiety and promote calmness and positivity.
2. Have a snack. A handful of nuts or, my favorite, a square of dark chocolate will send endorphins flooding into your brain and lift your mood fast.
3. Get some natural vitamin D. Go outside and get some fresh air and sunshine. Studies have shown that people who have significant exposure to light have less depression, fewer sleep problems, and are even more productive. If you can't make it outside, go and look out of a window.
4. Go for a walk. Even walking around the block will help to lift your heart rate and energy levels.
5. Close your eyes and focus on your breath. Breathe in and out deeply three times. Focused breathing lowers your blood pressure and calms the mind.
6. Lift your shoulders up to your ears and then let them drop. Do this three times and feel the tension ebb away. It’s easy to hold onto a lot of tension and stress without realizing it.
7. If you’re feeling nervous before an interview or presentation, go into the stairwell or the restroom. Breathing in, open your arms wide, breathing out give yourself a big hug. It’s almost impossible to do this without smiling.
8. And speaking of smiling, don't forget to smile! Smile and make eye contact with a colleague or the guy in the coffee shop or the person serving you at the deli. The physical act of using your smile muscles can genuinely make you feel happy. And it's contagious. Chances are you'll make them smile too and improve their day.
9. Stand up straight, lift your head and throw your shoulders back. Adopt a superhero pose and feel the change in your energy.
(Cape is optional 
)
10. A cup of tea or coffee will instantly lift your mood. You probably know that caffeine is a stimulant, but even low or no caffeine hot drinks will give you a boost or calm you down whether it’s chamomile or green tea, a chai latte or hot water, and lemon.
11. Listen to music that you love. You can choose custom mood music, or play your old favorites. Music has been shown to have a powerful effect on mood.
12. Ask for a hug. Probably not from your boss, but a family member or friend would love to give you the instant comfort of an embrace.
If you’re feeling a bit blue, give these a try. You'll be back in better spirits before you know it!
Keep Smiling!