Knocking myself out of a funk

[cjsmith]

Ever have one of those days when things are just... off? When nothing truly awful is happening, but nothing anywhere is *right* either, and you don't have the energy (or just can't be arsed) to do anything about any of it? A day when you feel like you're living at two Gs?

Today I was inspired to think about how to get OUT of that mode. In a mood like that I have little energy and I have zero inclination to hemorrhage money, so I need low-energy low-cost things that are pleasing or cheering to me. Here's my list! These won't work for a really depressed time, but for the blahs they just might do it.

My beat-the-blahs toolkit:
Get some food. I usually think of this but forget to...
Get some water, too.
Be outdoors for a little while.
Get some interactive social contact (IM is better than LJ, phone or face to face better yet).
Find something humorous and have a good laugh.
Get some small thing DONE and feel good about accomplishing it.
Have a piece of chocolate. (Low sugar. Do not poke THAT sleeping demon on a day like this.)
Listen to music with some energy in it. Amazing how music CDs can store energy for later use!
Exercise, get the blood moving, get the muscles warmed up.
Play with a cat and enjoy her focus and her antics.
Have a glass of chilled, crisp white wine.
Pamper my senses in some small way - that's a large category of its own.

Easy ways to pamper my senses:
Take my shoes off & rub my feet (maybe with a nifty lotion).
Pet a cat.
Wear a skirt and feel it swishing on my legs.
Comb my hair.
Soak in the hot tub.
Take a shower.
Listen to a desktop fountain.
Listen to pretty music.
Find a lovely image and make it my desktop background.
Light a candle and watch the flame.
Smell my favorite soap.
Smell some flowers.
Put something luscious in to bake, and smell that.
Have that piece of chocolate from the previous list.
Eat some cheese.
Drink some tea.

Do you have a list like this? What does your list look like?

Comments

[quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com]

Ever have one of those days

Hoo yes. Today was pretty close. I don't currently have lists like yours, but I think I like the idea. :-)

IM? Care to share contact info off LJ? No problem if you don't. I don't spend a lot of time IMing.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Y!IM. I don't have any other IM... methods? softwares? THINGIES running. Will share in case you Y!IM.

I like the list, although of course next time I need it I'll just say I can't be bothered to look for it.

[quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com]

other IM... methods? softwares? THINGIES

Applets? ;-)

I Y!M - it's just my LJ name.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Cool! Done. :-)

[vito-excalibur.livejournal.com]

This is good to read. I need to remember to do stuff like this.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Sadly, next time I need this list I won't feel like spending the two seconds to go find it. Maybe I can write a little mnemonic song and chant it into my memory. :)

[jcgbigler.livejournal.com]

Having a spouse who will spend those two seconds on my behalf works wonders.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that can be a really good strategy.

[excessor.livejournal.com]

One thing that I find works: do something nice for someone else. I don't mean just hold the door open, but find someone in your life and do something kind like send a gift without telling him/her, call out of the blue, send a card, or plan a day together. Focusing on someone else always helps me.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Absolutely! This is a slightly higher-energy thing, so maybe not on the first-first-aid list for me, but I too find it's incredibly effective.

[rampling.livejournal.com]

Hey, where's the CHEEEEEESE on your list?

How 'bout play a 'puter or non-puter game -- you've mentioned sudoku.... P'raps too much energy?

Picking up a new interesting lite book, or rereading a lite favorite fun book can be good.

Wander with complete random indulgence online. Pursue obscure miscellanea!

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Definitely cheese! I shall add it!

Games and books are fun when I'm up, but for some reason they are a bummer when I'm down. I think it's because when I'm down, I'm often feeling rather guilty for all the stuff I haven't gotten done. Maybe if I could do them for SHORT amounts of time...! Must master that knack some time. :-)

[tenacious-snail.livejournal.com]

I used to have such a list.

Things that were on it include:
take a bath (with yummy smelling stuff)
have a nice cup of tea
pet a cat
listen to music that encourages and inspires me.

I would now add:
walk my dog
smile, smile at people I love, smile at strangers
figure out what is bugging me
ask for hugs
read love letters, LJ appreciation memes, or other things that remind me of my strengths and that I am loved
give myself 15 minutes to wallow, and then DO something

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

And hug your dog! :-)

Ooo, I like the "ask for hugs" and the "read... things that remind me of my strengths and that I am loved". Nifty. I bet those are both very powerful.

[mactavish.livejournal.com]

Are there currently kitties within easy access?

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Not at the moment, but there will be when I get home. (Funk was pretty much gone by noon. I loved putting the list together though. Will surely need it again some day.)

[jtidwell.livejournal.com]

Sunshine. Being outside in the sunshine always helps me. :-)

Other than that, your list looks remarkably like what I would put on mine! Definitely chocolate and tea. Those are chemical as well as sensory, but they don't have too much caffeine (a cup of coffee is too much for me!).

My choice of pet is a bird, not a cat or dog, but anything with a nice soft coat and a snuggly personality would do...

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

I have to stick to decaf or herbal tea, even, but I'm very happy that I can still do chocolate. Mmmmm, taste bud treats!

Yeah, any animal who has bonded to you is a great picker-upper.

[aelfie.livejournal.com]

How about jumping your honey? That's always a funk mood breaker for me! =)

[allanh.livejournal.com]

My list contains nothing publishable in public.

Which may be precisely the reason it's so effective.

Banned in twenty-seven states, but effective.

[altitudeandwine.livejournal.com]

beat-the-blahs toolkit additions
* vitamine B (It's amazing. Best thing I've ever found to escape blahness and worse)
* reread my all time favorite fanfic (I've a list with links)
* screwdrivers (not the tool)
* erm, post orgasmic naps
Yeah, perhaps not totally wholesome.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

WINE! How'd I forget a little medicinal use of alcohol? 8-)

[altitudeandwine.livejournal.com]

:-D

[hitchhiker.livejournal.com]

Either take a good book and go back to bed or make a nice cup of coffee and sit in front of the computer, or if I really want to shake myself out of it rather than make the best of it, do some housecleaning (when you're me, there's *always* some pending housecleaning :)).

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Me too. Even when the place is mostly clean, there's something left to do!

[jupiter29.livejournal.com]

I don't have a list like this, but I probably should. And I definitely have those days. :) I don't get on IM much, but you're welcome to add me in case you ever just feel like a little contact. I'll understand if you don't though, on account of how a) I barely know you, and b) my reputation probably suggests that at some point in the conversation I'd ask you if you were wearing a skirt that was swishing on your legs. ;)