Happiness in a Heart-beat!!

Sometimes it can be difficult to off-set a bad moon, especially during Winter when we are cold, sick, confined to our home and the sun shies away from us. Here are some quick and easy ways to make yourself feel happy :)

* Smile! Research shows that controlling the muscles in the body can actually lead to similar past stimuli activity in the brain - i.e you smile, you think happy thoughts from the last time you smiled :-)

* Drink some water! Dehydration causes the body to go into survival mode which decreases the ability to produce "happy hormones/chemicals" as this takes up unnecessary energy.

*Say it out loud! "I feel like crap!" Admitting what you are feeling actually lets the mood pass more quickly, instead of using energy to suppress it or ignoring it which takes a lot more concentration. Say it to your mirror, to your cat, to your friend, just say it out loud!

* If you see the sun, let it see you! Vitamin D is one of the most needed vitamins in the body, and it is also the Vitamin that Western Society is most lacking in. Turn your face to the sun, read a book, or take a walk, but get out there!

* Get moving! Exercise can stimulate the body releasing endorphins (a feel good chemical) making you feel better all round!

* Take some time-out! If you are always surrounded by people (colleagues, children, partner, friends) you will never have time to just 'be'. Take 15 minutes out, by offering to run an errand outside the office and walk, or taking a long toilet break, or asking a friend to watch the kids for half an hour. Silence and rest replenish energy, brain function and gives a big boost to your mood.

*Meditate! Buy a book with mini-meditations or sign up to the Victorian Pagan Society Blog to receive mini meditations every few days. Mini meditations can be done within 15 minutes, (lunch, the train home from work, the shower) and assists you in staying grounded and in control!

*Share your problems. If something is bringing you down and you know what it is, call up a trusted friend or relative and let them know how you are feeling. they may be able to give a different opinion, some advice or just listen - either way, a worry shared is a worry halved!

*Use the elements! If you are feeling flighty, ground yourself by walking outside barefoot. Don't have time? Place some crystals under your desk and rest your feet on them while you work.
Feeling ill? Draw upon the healing and restorative nature of water; run a bath, drink some water, sit by the stream, go down to the ocean. Feeling unmotivated? Use fires passion and creativity to light your inner spark! Light some candles in your sacred space, perhaps wear something bright like red or orange or in the colder months, light a fire in the backyard! Feeling cramped, stuck or stagnating? Breathe in some fresh air! Do a cartwheel (being upside down sends a big rush of oxygen to your brain revitalizing it), take a brisk walk in the breeze or sit down to study something you have always wanted to know more about but never put the time aside for!

*Tap into your passionate side! Indulge for a moment, with a sexy fantasy, a piece of death by chocolate, or sing a daggy song you will never admit to liking in public!

Activity; Make a "Happpiness Hanger"

Research shows that memories can be affected by mood altering chemicals as much as they can be by neurons, situation, experience and brain function. If you store a memory whilst you are sad, the depressive chemicals will attach themselves to it, making it easier to recall when you are flooded with this same chemical. It works the same way when you are happy. If you make a memory of something happy the 'happy' chemicals will attach themselves to this memory making it easier to recall when your body is flooded with serotonin or endorphines.

As it can be difficult to control the chemicals within, we can trigger them with external factors! A Happiness Hanger is a Board, it can be a frame, a cork-board, a piece of cardboard, covered with pictures, photographs, letters, poems, that make you happy. When ever you are feeling blue, just have a look at this board and it will assist your mood in changing :)
It is good to change the photos/poems etc every two-three months so that your brain does not come to associate the photos on the board with sadness.

Ideas:

* Photographs of your loved ones - this does not have to be limited to family, put your friends up there, your pets, your car, anything you hold dear to your heart!
* Lyrics to your favourite song
* Brochure of a holiday destination you have been to/want to go to
* A paint square sample of your favourite colours
* A picture of your favorite actor/actress
* A list of things you want to achieve: Buy a new top, visit Asia, go surfing - with cut outs from magazines to inspire you
* Movie tickets from good times with friends
* Take some time out to draw something to put on the board, if you love fairies, draw some wings, love dragons, draw some fire
* Don't keep it flat, 3-D things can help with visualization, add shells, feathers, small crystals, scraps of fabric from your childs first blankie etc
* Expand out! You don't have to keep it realisitic! This is to make you happy, so use whatever makes you happy! Photos from space, (yeah you might never get there, but you can dream!) Photos of Hogwarts, of Atlantis, of Middle Earth, of Narnia - whatever brings you joy!
* Have fun with it! It doesn't have to be meticulous, in fact the more 'scrappy' it seems the more real it can feel!

Enjoy, and remember - Smile!!