How To Boost Your Mood To Be Happier In Life

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Are you feeling down?

Sometimes life throws curveballs and leaves us feeling unhappy and unmotivated. But don’t give up! There are many powerful strategies to boost your mood to live a happier life.

In this post, you will learn 10 powerful ways to boost your mood.

What affects mood?

Based on research, common reasons why people have bad moods are; lack of sleep, environment, and past events.

Work can be stressful.

Owning a business can be stressful.

Toxic relationships can be stressful.

Your lifestyle and thoughts can change your mood positively or negatively. Here’s how to tell if you are in a good or bad mood.

Positive Mood vs Negative Mood

There are many signs of being in a good or bad mood. It can be easy to tell, although, not always.

Positive Mood

When you’re in a good mood, your aura surrounds itself with positive energy. You even smile more. But what causes you to be in a good mood?

Being more productive
Getting more exercise
Eating healthier
Surrounding yourself with other positive people
Practicing self-care more often

Negative Mood

Being in a bad mood isn’t fun. It damages your health mentally and physically. It pushes people away. It’s just not fun.

Some common signs of being in a bad mood are:

Less energy
Lack of motivation
Cluttered home
Feeling anxious or sad
Easily angered

How to boost your mood

The first step to boost your mood is to find the cause.

What is making you unhappy? Take a moment to understand why you feel the way you do. Write how you feel in a personal journal. A journal will help you express your thoughts and emotions. Think of writing as a way to practice self-care.

However, if writing isn’t your thing, don’t worry! Here are 10 ways to boost your mood and brighten your day.

The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts: therefore, guard accordingly, and take care that you entertain no notions unsuitable to virtue and reasonable nature.
Marcus Aurelius

Important Note: These recommendations should not replace help from a qualified health professional. Everyone is different so take necessary precautions.

1. Get some fresh air

Feeling like the walls of your home are caving in on you? Go get some fresh air!

Getting a breath of fresh air could be the key to unlocking a better day. Together, fresh air and the sun work magic. When the brain has more oxygen, it produces more serotonin. More serotonin means less anxiety and more energy.

If you want to feel more relaxed, go outside.

2. Find a new hobby

Sometimes all you need is to find a new hobby to change your mood.

Hobbies are perfect for focus and stress relief. They are good for creativity, self-expression, and mental stimulation. For instance, a s tudy of about 90,000 people from across the world showed people with hobbies showed signs of happiness and better health.

Finding a new hobby could be life-changing for you. You just have to pick something and do it.

3. Change what you eat

What you eat can change how you feel.

Eating an unhealthy diet of added sugars and loaded calories can eventually make you cranky.

The best food to eat is from a raw food diet. This food is packed full of nutrients and vitamins that the body needs. A good balance of alkaline and acidic foods was recommended by Dr. Llaila Afrika in his book, Afrikan Holistic Health.

Healthy foods to boost your mood

Green tea
Broccoli
Grapefruit
Strawberries
Raspberries
Chickpeas
Kale
Avocado
Bell peppers

4. Get more rest

The average amount of daily rest needed by adults is about 7-9 hours.

We all have different schedules so the amount of rest you get will be different than many others. However, it is still important to not suffer from burnout. You have to give yourself time to rest.

The benefits of getting more sleep are worth going to bed earlier each night. You heal better and feel better.

5. Create a new playlist

Music is a powerful mood influencer.

In fact, music acts as a form of self-care.

Finding the right type of upbeat music can release endorphins, our brain’s feel-good chemical. These chemicals inspire you and help brighten your day.

For example, create separate playlists for different moods. Having themed playlists already created is perfect for those not-so-great moments we have sometimes. So whenever you feel upset and just need time to reflect or relax, listen to one of your custom playlists.

You won’t regret it!

6. Read books you enjoy

Here’s a short story.

I recently got back into reading near the end of 2023. One of the first fiction books that brought me out of my reading slump was Mexican Gothic.

It was new (to me).

It was entertaining.

It made me happy.

Reading books took me from neglecting fun and worrying to relaxing and having a better mood. This is one mood-boosting activity that I highly recommend. And the good thing is, you can read whatever you want!

So if you want to boost your mood, read more books.

7. Clean your house

Have you ever let the house become a little too cluttered? You probably felt pretty overwhelmed. As a result, your mood changed.

Trust me, I know.

Clutter is distracting. It causes you to lose focus and dampens your mood. Banish the chaos of dirty dishes, piles of laundry, and useless home decor. If you have items that are in good condition but no longer serve you, have a yard sale or donate them.

Make a habit out of cleansing your home, your sacred space.

8. Take yourself on a date

There’s this misconception that if you go out, you have to be with someone else. Not true!

People who need to be around others all the time have separation issues. You don’t need to be afraid to treat yourself to dinner. You don’t need to be afraid to picnic in the park. Self-care done alone is perfect for boosting your mood. You deserve it.

If you prefer to be home for the date, make it a spiritual cleansing experience. Create a sacred space in your home. This space is where you release negative energy and raise your vibration.

Let’s face it, social media is exhausting.

All day, every day, people are constantly posting their feelings, their opinions, drama, and more. Following so many different levels of energy can become toxic. Social media can destroy your mood.

Instead of infinite scrolling on the internet, replace your screen time by working towards a goal or doing something you love.

10. Analyze your relationships

Think about your current relationships.

Are these people positive or negative? Do they inspire you? Think about the type of people you surround yourself with.

Sometimes, you could be perfectly fine until you expose yourself to a toxic individual. In the spiritual community, this is what we call an “energy vampire”.

To boost your mood and be happier in life, separate yourself from negative people.