Researchers have found that it often takes only a few changes in behavior to improve mood. So the next time you feel a bit down in the dumps try these all-natural tips to boost your energy and mood – sometimes, almost instantly.
Throw your worries away. No, your relationship problems won’t automatically be solved and you won’t find your bills all magically paid but in some ways you really can toss your worries in the trash. It turns out that simply writing down negative thoughts and throwing them away can lift your spirits. In addition, writing down positive thoughts and tucking them away nearby can also make you feel happier and even help you make better decisions.
That’s the news from Ohio State University scientists who worked with researchers at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid in Spain to document these mood boosting techniques. The researchers recently published their surprising findings in the journal Psychological Science.
“At some level, it can sound silly. But we found that it really works -- by physically throwing away or protecting your thoughts, you influence how you end up using those thoughts,” Richard Petty, profession of psychology at Ohio State University, explained in a media statement. “Of course, even if you throw the thoughts in a garbage can or put them in the recycle bin on the computer, they are not really gone -- you can regenerate them. But the representations of those thoughts are gone, at least temporarily, and it seems to make it easier to not think about them.”
Put on a happy face. If you are feeling tired and cranky or even just bored, take a minute to look in the mirror. Your facial expression probably could be described as a frown or a scowl and reflects the way you feel. But if you change that expression, you probably soon find that your mood is brighter, too.
Over the past two decades, researchers have studied "facial feedback,” a term which describes how the movement of facial muscles influences emotions. They’ve found evidence that simply smiling and looking like you're happy can make you actually feel happier.
For example, Stanford psychologist R.B. Zajonc and colleagues published research in Psychological Review that concluded smiling tends to make people feel more jovial, regardless of how they felt before they smiled. Putting on a happy face probably makes you feel happier because smiling triggers physiological changes in the brain that perk up moods.
Michael Lewis, a scientist at the University of Cardiff in the UK and one of the authors of a recent study on the subject of smiling , concluded that emotions are not only tied to our brains. Instead, the face and other parts of our bodies which have a large number of muscles seem to shift emotions and mood when those muscles move in certain ways. Bottom line: lift the corners of your mouth and face as you smile, and your mood will likely be lifted, too. In addition, when you smile and appear happy, people in your vicinity tend to respond more positively to you -- spurring on even more positive feelings.
Breathe deeply. Annoyed, tired or bored? If you are, it’s not uncommon to sigh. But the next time you are down, try this kind of breathing instead. Stop what you are doing, close your eyes and take few slow and deep breaths – inhale through your nose and exhale slowly through your mouth.
Repeated over the course of only a few minutes, this simple breathing technique can lower blood pressure, slow down your heart rate and relax muscles. It also can raise the amount of oxygen in your bloodstream. The result? A calmer, more focused and in-a-better-mood you.
In research published in the journal Pain Medicine, scientists from the University of Regensburg in Germany documented that deep and slow breathing also reduces pain as well as relieving negative feelings such as tension, anger, and depression.
More perk-you-up quick strategies:
 Feel good photos. Keep photos of your family, significant other or even your pets handy on your desk, computer screen or phone and take a minute to look at the pictures when you feel down. The odds are you’ll feel happier. Those are the findings of researchers at the United Kingdom's Open University who examined how much people's moods changed after eating chocolate, having a cocktail, watching TV, listening to music, or looking at personal photos. Looking at the photos was the top mood booster, by far.
Take a sunshine break. Many people feel down and even lethargic during the winter months and researchers say this can be caused by not getting enough exposure to natural sunlight. Even if it’s cold outside, consider taking a brief walk outdoors on sunny days instead of a coffee break.
Studies have shown that a few short doses of sunlight can improve mood, especially in the winter. What’s more, even a short, quick walk will encourage the release of hormones and neurochemicals that boost mood, according to Richard Brown, M.D., associate professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University and coauthor of Stop Depression Now.
Stop slouching! If you want to feel perkier, do a quick inventory of your posture. Are you slouching? Is your head leaning forward and your shoulder muscles hunched up and tight? Research suggests posture affects energy levels and mood because slouching decreases the flow of oxygen to your brain.
San Francisco State University Professor of Health Education Erik Peper, Ph.D., published a study in the journal Biofeedback documenting that simply altering body posture to a more upright position can improve mood and energy levels. Try it yourself by simply taking a few minutes to stretch, align your body and adjust your chair if needed. Concentrate on sitting up straight with a tall spine but relaxed shoulders and you’ll feel and probably act more comfortable, confident and energetic, too.
“We tend to think the brain and body relationship goes one way. In fact, the passages go both ways,” Peper said in a media statement. “When you choose to put your body in a different mode, it’s harder to drop into depression.”
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