Hello and welcome to the DesignLife blog where we discuss Holistic Beauty, Personal Development and a little bit of Magic!
I'd love to share with you the little games that I play when I don't feel good. When I play them (consciously) they always make me feel better. These are great things to do if you are feeling unhappy or frustrated or even angry at someone (or yourself). I hope that when you read this, you find a few little gems that you can carry in you pocket for days when things aren't (seemingly) going so well and when the time comes you can take them out, roll them over in your hand and choose which one would be the best and most fun to use.
1. The Breathing Game
This one is the simplest and yet the most effective and honestly once I understood this game, I also understood (in part) why smoking relieves stress. Think about it, when people go have a smoke, they focus their attention on the cigarette and their breathing. Deep inhalations and exhalations. However, I don't smoke and you don't need a cigarette to play this game.
How it works: the moment that you realize you are experiencing an emotion that does not feel good to you (like when you feel angry or anxious) you have to intentionally decide to play this game. Once you have decided to play, if possible, close your eyes (you can play with open eyes too though, I mostly do).
Put the tip of your tongue on your the roof of your mouth (specifically the space right behind your front teeth). Breathe in slowly through your nose and as you do, imagine breathing in 'good feelings' - whatever that might look like to you! Use your imagination. I imagine breathing in sparkling air (if that makes any sense at all!). Try and breathe in really deeply and feel your chest open up. As you breathe out through your mouth, let your tongue relax and pout your mouth a little. Imagine you are blowing out the bad feelings. I imagine breathing out a dark energy 😗 ... Repeat at least ten times or until you start feeling better!
This works for me because my body 'releases' the bad feelings and then I am able to approach the situation (whatever made me feel bad) with a new perspective.
2. The Goods List
This game does wonders to lift your mood! Even if you start out playing it just to "get it over with" you will eventually feel your mood shift and walk away feeling at least content (if not very happy)! You can play it anywhere and it's easy to do in your head, but it can be even more beneficial if you get out a piece of paper and a pen and write it down.
How it works: the moment that you realize you are experiencing an emotion that does not feel good to you (like when you feel disappointed or worried) you have to intentionally decide to play this game. Either in your head or on a piece of paper, list ten good things in your life (right now or something that has recently happened).
You can list the most simple things, in fact, the 'simpler' the better. For example, I usually list something I recently ate that tasted really good! I list funny moments that made me laugh or compliments that people have recently given me. I list mornings when it felt really good to sleep in or I think about a dog I had just met at a park and had fun playing catch with (it wasn't even my dog!).
To make the game even more fun you can do two things:
- When you list a good thing, take a moment to replay a memory thereof in your mind. Think of the expression you had in that moment, how you felt, what about the moment (or thing) made it good. If you have the time, it's good to remember as much detail as you can.
- Every time you list another good thing and you finish thinking about it and remembering it or describing to yourself what about it makes it good, go back and quickly go through the things you have already listed. Just mentally run through a word that represents each thing you have listed then go on to the next one.
It doesn't have to be ten things, I used to only do three. You can even do twenty if you want!
3. Happy Music
I think it is a pretty well-known thing that music can affect your mood. According to this online text, "Outside of music affecting the brain as an emotional experience, it is also a physical experience. One reason for this is a hormone related to bonding called oxytocin." So of course I use music to feel better, especially if I'm feeling unmotivated or worried.
How it works: the moment that you realize you are experiencing an emotion that does not feel good to you (like when you feel uninspired or distressed) you have to intentionally decide to play this game. Get out some earphones or just turn the music up a little louder than usual on the TV or radio. The best thing to do, however, is to use your phone or YouTube so that you can choose which songs to listen to. It's important to choose songs that you know you really enjoy listening to and that have a catchy beat! Make a Happy Music playlist on your phone or, hey! Who still makes mixed CDs?
Take a break from whatever your doing and listen (and maybe sing or dance along!) to a few songs. If it's possible, leave the music on in the background when you continue with whatever you were doing before. But it's important to take a short break and just listen to the music. Here are some of the songs in my Happy Music playlist:
- "Best Day of My Life," American Authors
- "Let It Go," Idina Menzel
- Major Lazer ft. NYLA & Fuse ODG - "Light it Up"
- Martin Garrix ft. Usher - "Don't Look Down"
- Galantis - "Runaway (U&I)"
- Daft Punk ft. Pharrell - "Get Lucky"
These are my three favorite games to play when I feel shitty and when I intentionally decide to play one and do it consciously for at least five to ten minutes, I always feel better. Sometimes The Goods List feels like too much effort, so I just play Happy Music. Sometimes my brain is overflowing with negative thoughts and worry so I have to breathe it out before I can even think about listening to music or making feel-good lists and remembering the good things in my life. The Breathing Game is really the easiest and most beneficial game (for me) and when you get really good at it you can play it while you make fun lists and listen to your favorite songs.
Other things I do include yoga and, when it's possible, I literally just get up and leave - usually I end up at my favorite shopping mall, just because it really feels good to walk around and look at all the shops and the people.
I hope that the next time you aren't feeling too great or maybe even when you're feeling completely horrible that you remember these little gems and that when you take them out, they catch the rays of the sun and gleam in the palm of your hand! Play them, have fun with them, and remember that you are always loved and the power to feel good lies in your hands.
All my love and remember that YOU are The Creator 💜💜
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