5 Easy Ways to be Instantly Happier

All of us suffer from low mood or feelings of sadness at some point in our lives and some more than others. If you’re feeling like you need a little boost to get you out of a mini funk, check out these 5 quick and easy tips on how to lift your mood instantly. Obviously these aren’t long term solutions to prolonged feelings of sadness but I challenge you to try these out and if you don’t feel even a little more positive and uplifted I’ll eat my hat.

1. Get Outdoors
I know the last thing you might feel like doing when you’re suffering from a low mood is to get outdoors but it really does improve your mental wellbeing as well as your physical health. Walking in itself reduces stress and lifts your mood and, if you’ve got a furry 4 legged friend, take them too and you’ll get a double whammy of a positive feeling.

Being outside increases your vitamin D levels which can help fight depression and heart attacks and the additional light will help you to be more alert and full of energy. Getting outdoors also gives you a sense of a wider world and can break you out of your mindset and put your problems into perspective.

2. Call a Friend
Give a friend or a loved one a call, not necessarily to talk about your low mood but more so to distract yourself from the way you may be feeling. Ask them what they’ve been up to and talk about things that are lighthearted such as TV shows you both watch or share some funny anecdotes. While there is always a time and a place to talk to someone close to you about how you are feeling, if you know you just need an instant mood boost, try and put your mind jumbled thoughts to one side for a moment and get lost in a different conversation. When you’ve ended the call you will most likely find that you are feeling a little more positive and motivated and if you’ve made plans to get together, even better.

3. Abstain from Social Media
I have had friends in the past who have been addicted to social media and not in a good way. They would frequently message me screenshots of things that had been posted online by people they are friends with and they would use this to criticise themselves for not being as happy, put together, or attractive as this person. They’d actively peruse profiles (let’s be honest, stalk) that they knew might be pure torture for them to look at.

I am not perfect when it comes to comparing myself to people online, but I realised very early on in the social media revolution that I never felt happier or better from being on these sites (this is another reason I stopped buying celebrity magazines). You must always remember that what people put on social media isn’t real life and they are only ever showing you the best part of their lives – those same people may also be suffering from their own struggles but only ever post uplifting content. So if any of the above sounds familiar and you know that checking your social media sites makes you more unhappy, don’t use them to further lower your mood.

4. Watch a Comedy
Laughing instantly boosts your mood because it releases those feel good endorphins. Even when we put on a fake smile, the brain releases dopamine – it really is a case of fake it ’til you make it! So if you don’t fancy doing some fake laughing, watch a favourite comedy that you know will get you smiling and this in turn will make you feel happier. Studies have also shown that you’re more likely to laugh at something if you are with someone else so if you can rope someone in to watching it with you, even better.

5. Listen to Music
Listening to music that you have an emotional connection to can ease pain, motivate your mind and reduce stress. Make sure you’re choosing music that makes you happier and avoid those songs that make you want to stay in bed for days and cry (so no Adele allowed). There are plenty of Spotify playlists that are full of happy songs so you don’t even need to create one yourself.

So give these a try and let me know if you have any tried and trusted ways of improving your mood.