How to Give Yourself a Positivity Boost
How To Give Yourself A Positivity Boost
No-one is perfect, and everyone has their off days in life. For some people, those off days can last weeks, months and even years. At the time of this writing, the COVID-19 pandemic has made it challenging for most people to stay positive and remain optimistic in their lives.
How is it that some people seem to have almost limitless positive energy and stay optimistic for their future? Do they look at the world through rose-tinted glasses? Are they consuming drugs (illegal or otherwise) to enhance their moods or alter their perception of the world? It turns out that there are plenty of things you can do to boost positivity in your life.
Rid your life of toxic people
Arguably the first thing to do to begin your positivity journey is to cut ties with people that offer nothing but negativity. You might not realize it, but some people in your life will only offer you negative thoughts and views.
As you can imagine, that’s not helpful if you’re trying to boost your positivity and optimism in life. Ideally, you should stop socializing with such individuals. If that’s not entirely possible, limit your contact with them as much as possible.
You’ll soon find you can focus more on achieving your life and daily goals without an air of negativity surrounding you. Here are some ways you can reduce contact with negative people:
Block or mute them on social media;
Avoid making an effort to contact them in person or by telephone;
Try to avoid social gatherings where they’re likely to be present.
Surrounding yourself with positive people will help you achieve the best possible outcomes in your life.
Be grateful
Developing an attitude of gratitude will help you appreciate the many positive things in your life. It’s a sad fact of life that some people focus solely on their lives’ bad or negative aspects when they’ve got so many positive ones.
You should start being thankful for the simple, positive things in your life. It may surprise you how much of a mental boost such an act can give you. What’s more, it’ll help you gain a better perspective on many areas of your life.
Use positive quotes to empower yourself
It’s no secret that powerful quotes from well-known people can be inspirational. Quotes that give you hope in life are a sure-fire way to positively boost your mental health and help you see things more clearly. When there’s hope, anything’s possible to achieve in life.
You can surround yourself with positive quotes in various ways. One example might be to have them printed on canvas art and adorn the walls of your home. Another might be to get such quotes automatically sent to you each day via email or on social media.
Words are very powerful, and positive quotes are both compelling and life-changing. They help people stay focused on the good things in their lives, even in the face of adversity. They can provide affirmations to live by and strengthen positive neural connections in your brain.
Spend a lot of time outdoors
COVID-19 quarantines and lockdowns will undoubtedly limit where you can go outdoors and what you can do there. But, everyone can still maintain some degree of exposure to nature each day, and it’s something you should do.
There’s plenty of research to show that spending a lot of time outside each day can lower your stress levels, help you stay fit and healthy, and rejuvenate your mental health. That’s because going outdoors gives your mind and soul a much-needed change of scenery.
Even spending just 30 minutes outdoors each day is better than spending little to no time outside. Plus, you don’t even need to go far to be at one with nature. When you spend more time outdoors, you’ll soon notice a more positive outlook on life emerge.
Train your brain to think optimistically
When you get some bad news in life, it’s natural to keep your thoughts focused on that subject. The trouble with that approach is you may lose sight of ways you could put a positive spin on events or how you can turn the situation around in a positive way.
With that in mind, it makes sense to train your brain to think more optimistically amidst any emotional turmoil. Here is how you can make that happen:
Consider the bigger picture - don’t just think of the single negative event;
Look for the silver lining - consider how you can turn the situation around;
Think about what you can do - determine which methods can help you achieve a positive outcome.
Talk to yourself in a positive way
Some people associate talking to one’s self as a sign of madness. However, we all have an inner dialogue. Positively talking to yourself is a healthy way of reinforcing and strengthening positivity in your life.
Sometimes, people might negatively speak to themselves out of frustration or despair. If that’s something you do, it’s time to stop that and start talking positively instead.
Positive self-talk can help you think about problems differently and solve them rather than dwelling on adverse events and potential outcomes. You’ll also find yourself better prepared to deal with life’s challenges and emotional turmoil.
Don’t feel you have to go it alone
If you feel like stress and anxiety are constantly on top of your back and you have trouble getting away from them through self-help methods like meditation or positive self-talk, then recognize there is nothing wrong with turning to help when you need it. You can look for natural treatments for anxiety that don’t rely on medication, but rather help you build the tools that you need to manage your stresses with the help of a qualified professional. Sometimes, a little outside perspective can be invaluable in helping us address what we cannot alone.
A worrying rise in people presenting with addiction and substance abuse problems is largely being linked to increased anxiety brought on by a dramatic change in societal conditions. There’s pandemic related fatigue coupled with large unemployment and financial distress related problems.
Of course, there are many reasons why you could fall to abusing substances and or alcohol, and even though there is still somewhat of a social stigma linked to this, the most important consideration for you is that you don’t have to feel alone or that you have to shoulder this burden by yourself. Getting the right help as soon as you can, could ultimately lead to you being able to take on your responsibilities with confidence and without the need to “escape” or cope.
There are a number of drug rehabilitation centers that specialize in many different forms of treatment and programs and finding the right one for you will set you up for future success. Remember that being able to identify the warning signs within your behavior is crucial to you realizing that you may have a problem, so take some time to figure that out. Be kind to yourself and don’t dwell in the darkness you don’t have to suffer in silence.
Do What Needs To Be Done
When a friend was depressed after having a baby, I remember looking for a postpartum depression therapist near me. It is never something that you want to do, but it is often necessary when somebody is in trouble. Of course, you cannot force someone to go to therapy, but you can help provide resources when a friend lacks the energy to find them themselves.
If you need a positivity boost, the only way through often is to simply do what needs to be done. Pushing forward and just going through the motions is often the best policy and an effective way to regain control of your life. Just do what you need to do and then wait for things to start falling into place. Sometimes, we call this “acting as if” until things normalize.
Get plenty of uninterrupted sleep each night
Poor quality sleep will impact how you perceive things in your daily life. You should get around seven to eight hours of high-quality, uninterrupted sleep each night. When you go to sleep, your brain rests and prepares your body for the following day.
If you don’t get enough sleep, your brain tries to compensate for that. There’s only so much compensation your brain can do before it gives up. Don’t let yourself get to that point; make sure you get a good night’s sleep.
Here are some practical ways to improve the quality of your sleep every night:
Get a health check. You might have an undiagnosed medical condition such as sleep apnea that causes you to have low quality sleep;
Get a new bed. Your mattress might not be right for your body shape or sleeping style, and could be causing you to have sleepless nights;
Get new curtains. Do you find that light outside your bedroom sometimes keeps you awake? If so, invest in some blackout curtains;
Avoid technology an hour before bed. The blue light emitted from computer and mobile screens affect your brain’s ability to get you ready for sleep.
Give yourself a break
Don’t be someone who only works to a routine and seldom takes time out from everyday life. You need to take breaks from the daily grind. How you choose to do that is up to you.
For example, you might prefer to take several short vacations every year rather than one or two big ones. Or, you may do things differently every once in a while, like working from home in your pajamas.
When you give yourself a break from everyday life, you help to recharge your mental batteries. It also empowers you to look at life more positively and see the good in people, rather than assuming the worst all the time.
Final thoughts
Having mostly negative views on things is draining and damages your mental health, and can affect the mental health of those around you. That’s why it makes sense to see the world in a more positive light and discover the many positive ways you can resolve everyday problems. You can always improve your life.
