How To Improve a Bad Mood

When is the last time that you found yourself in a bad mood? Are you noticing that your bad moods seem to be coming more and more frequently, and you’re wondering what to do about them? 

PYM knows that life is complicated, and we want to help you take control back. 

While you may not be able to stop bad moods from happening, you can help improve them (at least a little bit) so that you can get through them quicker.

Don’t Give Into Bad Cravings

The food that we choose to eat has the ability to significantly impact the mood. When you find yourself in a bad mood, it’s easy to want to turn to things like caffeine, sugar, fatty foods, or alcohol in an attempt to self soothe. While that may help temporarily, the feeling that comes along with them can make things worse. Caffeine and sugar, for instance, can increase your anxiety. Fatty foods can make your stomach hurt and make you feel sluggish and unhealthy. 

If you’re the type of person who reaches for comfort foods when you’re feeling anxious, try to change up your routines. 

Instead of sitting on the couch when you’re stressed out, downing a whole bag of chips, turn to healthier options. Drink a full glass of water to help you figure out whether you’re really hungry. Try a PYM Mood Chew. 

You may realize that the things that you thought were helping you were actually making it harder for you to push through those temporary moments and keeping you stuck. Don’t let your bad mood last longer than it should.

Get Out of the House

It’s no secret that exercise can help improve mood, both in the short term and in the long term. The best part is, there really doesn’t seem to be any specific exercise that you need to perform (running instead of walking, for instance) to get those benefits. 

If you’ve noticed that you’re in a bad mood, or you can feel a bad mood coming, don’t just sit there and let it hit you like a freight train. Get up, get out of the house, and do something about it.

Whether you prefer to go for a run, take a long hike, throw a ball around with your dog, or hit the gym, the magic is in the simple act of getting your body moving. That is what releases the endorphins that help make you feel better, which can last in your system for longer than your bad mood would have. 

The fresh air and change of scenery can help you to refocus, and you may even be able to see things from a different perspective.

Evaluate What’s Causing Your Bad Mood

While bad moods can happen outside of any external stimulus, they are often the result of something that has happened (or something you may be worried about happening in the future). 

To help you improve your own bad mood, try to take a realistic look at what may be causing it. Are you feeling anxious about your job? Do you feel uncomfortable about your weight? Did you get into a fight with your partner? 

Identifying the real source of your mood can help you figure out how you can rectify it and help reduce the likelihood that it will continue to drag you down in the future.

Keeping a journal or log of your moods, if you’re noticing that you’re having more bad moods than normal. While you might not be immediately aware of what’s bothering you, over time, patterns may emerge.

Turn in Early

There are times that your bad mood just seems to stick around, regardless of what you do to get rid of it. Instead of staying up and feeling bad about yourself, sometimes it’s better to just head to bed early so that you can start fresh the next day. 

Your bad mood may also have been caused by a lack of sleep, so pay attention to how much sleep you’re getting and what the quality is. If you find that you’re regularly lacking sleep, and that you’re dealing with more and more bad moods, the answer may be right in front of you. Your sleep/wake cycles can directly affect your mood and mental health, and any time that your circadian rhythm is messed up you’re far more likely to experience anxiety or depression. 

You may find that just laying in the dark, maybe spending some time meditating or practicing mindfulness, is enough to help drag you up and out of your bad mood. At the very least, you won’t say or do anything to the people around you that you’ll later regret. Don’t let your bad mood become other people’s problem.

Vent If You Need To

It’s normal to feel like you don’t want to make your bad mood anyone else’s problem, but that’s what your close, trusted circle is for. While venting to just anyone that happens to be around doesn’t make anyone feel better, having a person (or people) that you know you can always go to can be hugely important to your mental health in general. 

It can help to lead with what you need from them. Sometimes it's helpful to vent and just have someone listen to you, while other times you may be looking for ideas to help whatever may have caused your bad mood. 

If you’re clear about what you need, and your supportive friend or family member is one who you can count on, working through your issues with them can leave you in a much better mood. 

In Summary

Bad moods happen to the best of us. While they will always be part of life, learning more about what you can do to improve your mood when they hit is essential. Don’t let your mood control your life. 

Take your power back with PYM and the knowledge of how much control and say you really have over your life. 

Sources:

Gut feelings: How food affects your mood | Harvard Health

More evidence that exercise can boost mood | Harvard Health

Why your sleep and wake cycles affect your mood | Harvard Health