WHEN WE ARE DOWN
What was the last time you were really unhappy? Probably a few minutes ago, probably right now. Sure thing is, you know very well what 'being down' feels like. World is a strange place. You cannot say for certain if a person, any person is happy or not, but one thing you can be sure of. He has been sad at least once in his life. Sadness in life, like death, is inevitable, while happiness might not necessarily be so.
Students anywhere in the world have a lot of reasons to be unhappy from time to time. And since I am a student(aren't we all?), I know these pretty well. Low marks in exam, bullying, parental pressure, inability to understand concepts, and the list goes on and on.....
But just think about it for a second. Whether you are a student or not, problems and unhappiness surely form a large portion of your life. Did you do anything about it? Did you do anything to cheer yourself up every time you feel low? Did you actively try to improve your mood? Do you even know what might cheer you up?
This is mainly what this post is about. Its about people, like me, who frequently get upset and want to relieve their sadness in effective ways immediately. So, if you are utterly content with your life and have absolutely nothing to fear, or, feel discomfort about, this post will probably not benefit you. Others, read on......
1)Songs: This might seem really simplistic and silly, but I am serious. Whenever you are happy, listen to songs. Whenever you are sad, listen to the same songs again. You will be blown away by how 'un'sad and happy you would feel after listening to the songs. You can try it right now. Just google some songs you used to hear when you were a toddler, or heard a long time ago during a joyous festival,like Dussehra, or Diwali, in your childhood, or even, say, a year ago. Listen to these now, and try to gauge exactly how you feel. You would feel like you felt when you first heard it. And since, I was talking about songs you heard during festivals, or those you used to listen while being a child, the associated feelings with those songs would be that of happiness. You cannot help but smile while these songs are playing.
After you have got the general idea of what I am trying to say here, I would like you to take it further. Create a playlist of new songs you never heard before, and listen to them once. Then mentally select some, and play them in moments of triumph in order to associate them with that feeling. Keep associating songs with a flurry of feelings so that you can listen and feel those emotions later, whenever you want. Trust me, this method works, and it works well. Have fun with your songs.
2)Helping others: I might sound like a preacher while saying this, but you must help others if you want to attain bliss. And this help might be anything. See a fellow student struggling with a problem? offer to help him. See a delivery man trip and scatter all his deliveries on the street? Be the first to pick them up.See a person fall from his bike in a comical way? Go help him while others are busy laughing at him. Its always useful to laugh with people and not at them. This makes all the difference in the world. Selfless people are most often happier than selfish ones. That is because they have a clear conscience and know that they have given back something to the society. Trust me on this. Giving back feels good. So much so, that I almost wish someone were in trouble whenever I am around, just so I can help them and get the awesome feeling of fulfillment of helping others.
3)Know thyself: Try your best and know that you have done so. Before an exam, a project submission or presentation, or even after the results are out,try to fish out the fundamentals of why you did what you did. If you did well, why? Could you do better?
And if you did not do well, ask yourself, did you really give your 100%? If not, stop worrying and try to give in as much effort as you can later. And if you did give your 100%, then be proud of yourself for doing so. If you truly know yourself, you would be able to gauge if you excel at a particular thing, or suck at it. And knowing that, is half the battle won.
4)Enjoy the small things: I know that this point sounds cliched(it is), but there is no way I will not mention it. To stay happy, one must notice the small things and take pleasure in them. Things like, a bird made a nest today, the neighbour's new TV came, etc. Just keep searching for things that make you happy and be so.
5)Enjoy fiction: Watch a TV series, or read novels, at least for some time weekly. It would do three things. It would make you happy and would bust stress, it would open you up to new ideas and facts as you would comprehend and absorb the mentality and thinking process of the creators of the fiction along the way, and lastly, it would connect you to a vast network of communities that watch or read the same works of fiction. Interacting with such a community is really exhilerating and educating. Plus, it would also help you connect to people easily and give you topics of conversation. In this regard, I would recommend 'HOUSE MD'. The show has great dialogues and one can learn a lot. Here is a dialogue from it if you are interested.
6)Learn something new: Why do you, or anybody else like facebook so much? Because it gives our brains what it needs the most. Information. Large, free, easily digestible information. But those informations are often not as useful as this video here:
https://www.facebook.com/levartravels/videos/1553404431392975/
So, its advisable, that instead of excessive facebook, you feed you mind to useful information. Did you know how to solve a Rubik's cube? Did you know what facts connected the Kennedy and Lincoln assassinations? Did you know that Albert Einstein's brains are still preserved? Did you know that some parts of the universe are moving away from us faster than the speed of life although nothing can travel faster than light?
You probably get my point. You could search and learn random things, and it is really a mood booster, and makes you forget what all problems and sorrows you might have.
7)Meditate: meditate at least for some time a day. It really improves your mentality and develops compassion and makes you strong. I meditate every day, and so should everybody. It also is a great stress buster.
8)Exercise: This might seem like hypocrisy, but you must exercise to rest and relax. Google 'runner's high' and you would get what I mean. Avid Gym goers would say that exercising is like being high on drugs, without the drugs. Its because, while exercising, the mind releases endorphins to ease the pain, and it contributes to a feeling of overall well being. And trust me when I say this, it really happens. So go out there and exercise. You will not regret the amazing feeling. Plus, you would also stay healthy.
9)Create something: Draw, innovate, write, or simply try to sing. Whenever the world is giving you lemons, you have to make lemonade. Just start with creating, and it will come automatically. I will give you an example. You could imagine a new form of governing a town.First, determine the names of its offices.'Prainage security', 'Pest control', 'Homeland friendship department' might be some of the names. Then you could start with the names and characters of people who run it. You could write, "Mr. Pomer of Drainage Dep looks fat and has greasy skin. He probably did well in school, judging from his eccentric manner, but what he really has is amazing passion for cleanliness and a penchant for religion. Nobody could really explain why his skin always remains greasy...." and so on. Do this for every memeber of every office. After you have finished, you would have your very own 'universe' and you would be its God. You can make people famous, or kill them off in a story as you see fit. Or you could write about a chain of happenings in your town as stories. Do ypou really think you would still be able to remain stressed after doing all that?
That's it for today, guys. Hope you like what i wrote, and i hope that I was able to help you. Have a good day and be happy.
