We’ve all been through that feeling fresh after a break-up when you don’t think you’ll ever be back to normal. It can feel like the world as you know it is ending, but this sensation is only temporary. However, hearing that over and over doesn’t actually make you feel better.
Time will heal all wounds, but, in the meantime, there are some coping mechanisms that you should implement to keep yourself distracted and prevent you from locking yourself in your home with your thoughts. Spending too much time moping alone in your house can spark feelings of anxiety and depression that will only make the emotions associated with your break-up more difficult.
Try reinventing your personal style with a new gold chain or a fun new haircut. You should also implement healthy daily habits to elevate your mood, such as exercising and journaling. Follow these tips post-breakup to help you care for your mind, body, and soul. You’ll be back to your normal self in no time!
Start a New Workout Routine
Exercise is one of the best activities you can participate in when you’re feeling down. According to the Harvard Medical School, exercise increases your feelings of happiness in the short-term sense because of the endorphin chemicals released during your workout, which cause feelings of euphoria.
However, if you’re able to implement a sustained exercise routine over time, your brain begins to make new connections between nerve cells. In a long-term sense, this development has been proven to improve people’s overall moods and even decrease feelings of clinical depression.
Fresh after a break-up, people are usually feeling sad and maybe even a little bad about themselves, questioning whether or not they did something to cause the relationship to go sour. Creating a workout routine that you enjoy will help dissipate illogical feelings of guilt or self-doubt. In fact, participating in regular exercise will more than likely increase your self-esteem and improve your mood.
Focus on a Eating a Healthy Diet
We often hear people say, “You are what you eat,” but we don’t also think about what that really means. When you’re ingesting nothing but fatty, greasy foods with little to no nutritional value, you’re not providing your body with the right tools to succeed and live a healthy lifestyle. Even though it’s tempting to binge on our favorite snacks, particularly when we’re feeling sad, this type of eating is only going to spark more feelings of depression and lethargy.
Instead, supplement your new exercise routine with a healthy diet of veggies, fruits, nuts, seeds, grains, and legumes or organic or farm-raised meats. Eating nutritional foods will give you more energy to do the things you love and help meet your new workout goals.
Reinvent Your Look
After a traumatic event, like a breakup, it’s not uncommon for people to have the desire to change something about their appearance. The act of reinventing yourself can make you feel more in control of your life and get you into a new, healthy mindset. Before you make any drastic changes to your appearance (i.e. an extreme haircut, a last-minute hair dye decision, etc.), be sure to get some opinions from other friends to ensure that the change is going to look good and be a healthy alternative to moping about your break-up.
Although the satisfaction that we receive from retail therapy is short-lived and material-based, it can help distract us from a bad break-up and give us a bit of a self-esteem boost. Invest in some new clothes, style your look with new gold jewelry pieces, or hit up your favorite makeup store to add something different to your wardrobe.
Spend Time with Friends and Family
When we’re alone, it’s easy to begin perseverating on certain thoughts, spiraling into negative feelings, which is why we always recommend distracting yourself post-breakup by planning a day out with the girls or the guys. Your friends will be there to listen to you talk about your emotions if that’s what you need, or they’ll know how to cheer you up.
Although it is good to be alone sometimes after a breakup to allow yourself time to process and come to terms with it, it’s also a good idea to make a real effort to get out of the house when you avoid those feelings of apathy that may lead to more serious feelings of depression.
Find a New Hobby
Having some type of activity that you can focus both your mind and your body on is a great way to distract you from thoughts of your breakup or previous relationship. If there’s something you’ve always been interested in trying, why not take this time to learn how? You can also pick up a hobby that maybe you’ve always enjoyed but haven’t had as much time for anymore. You can even recruit your friends to join in with you.
Another great hobby to take up is volunteering. When you’re thinking of others instead of stewing about your own problems, you are benefitting the world and yourself. Try helping out at the local animal shelter, visiting house-bound seniors, cleaning up trash in your neighborhood, or walking horses at a therapeutic riding center––or find something else that aligns with your interests. You might even find new friends while you’re at it.
Complete a Free Write Exercise
Writing is one of the best ways to help you work through something traumatic. It allows you time to compile your emotions and write them down in a more deliberate, thoughtful manner that can give you insight into the situation. There are dozens of different types of free-write exercising that are designed to aid people through difficult or particularly emotional situations, but simply recording your thoughts in a journal on a regular basis is just as beneficial, too.
Pay Attention to Your Head and Your Heart
It can be difficult to motivate yourself after a break-up, but it’s important to practice self-care to prevent feelings of depression and anxiety. If you’re having a tough time getting yourself out of your funk, your closest friends and family are always there to listen to you and find new, fun ways to distract you.
It’s a good idea to also implement some healthy routines into your daily life such as exercise and a nutritional eating regimen, but don’t ignore the importance of more trivial types of self care like purchasing new clothing or switching up your hair style. As long as you’re implementing some of these tips and trying to keep yourself productive and motivated, we promise the break-up will get easier!