Biting someone’s head off when they ask you a simple question is one sign that you’re in a bad mood, and it can ruin your day and that of the people around you.
When you’re in a negative or ‘bad’ mood, there are simple things you can do to quickly change your perspective and help you feel much more positive about your day.
Let’s look at five things you can do in just five minutes to help improve your mood.
5 Ways To Get Out of A Bad Mood In Less Than Five Minutes
Fake it ’till you make it is one way that people suggest getting out of a bad mood, and by that, they mean to put a smile on, even if you don’t feel the corresponding happy emotion that goes with it. It’s possible that faking a smile will actually help boost your mood, and we do recommend trying it because there’s virtually no downside to it.
Here are five other quick ways to turn a bad mood into a good one: smile or no.
1. Tapping
Tapping can get you out of a bad mood in less than five minutes. The act of tapping acupressure points on your body can help you eliminate negative thoughts that may be causing your bad mood. Read about how to tap your body to remove feelings of sadness, anger, or anxiety in our article.
You can do several rounds of tapping therapy on yourself to get out of a bad mood in less than five minutes.
2. Eat something (preferably healthy)
Hunger is a possible reason you’re in a bad mood, especially if you’re stressed out and too busy to find time to eat. A healthy source of vegetarian protein can help change your mood quickly. Something as simple as a glass of almond milk can immediately make you feel better. Foods high in magnesium can help lift your mood and satisfy your hunger. But skip the chocolate to boost your mood.
Although when you aren’t feeling great, you might think to reach for the comfort of a craving food like chocolate, it won’t help as much as a good, vegetarian protein or organic fruit source.
Researchers studying whether or not eating chocolate helped improve mood found that people had higher depression scores if they ate chocolate than if they had not eaten any.
3. Aromatherapy can decrease your bad mood
Just the scent of lavender or orange can improve your mood and decrease anxiety. Researchers at the University Clinic of Neurology at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria, studied the effects of aromatherapy in a place associated with high levels of stress: the dentist’s office.
The researchers had two hundred patients in a waiting room assigned to either waiting rooms with lavender or orange aromatherapy, music, or a control group with none of these.
They found that ambient odors of orange and lavender reduced anxiety and improved mood in patients waiting for dental treatments. Experiment with some essential oils and find one that will work best for you.
4. Take a quick walk outside
Researchers at the University of Essex in the United Kingdom looked at the benefits of walking outside in nature compared to other therapies for improving mood. They say ‘exercise has also been compared to other established treatment options, such as antidepressants and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) programs.
Initial findings imply that exercise is equally as effective as both antidepressants and CBT, as no significant differences were reported between the interventions.’ They say that ‘green exercise’ as in a walk in the country or in a park is particularly effective at helping you get out of a bad mood in just a few minutes.
5. Give yourself a pep talk
Positive self-talk can help improve your mood when you are feeling down. Often, there is a negative voice in our heads that is telling us to feel guilty, ashamed, or that replays the setbacks of the day. Maybe you are feeling lonely or rejected. We must counter that negativity with serious self-love to get out of a bad mood.
Here are a few positive self-talk phrases you can use to get out of a bad mood in less than 5 minutes:
- ‘I know I can do this because I’ve succeeded at tasks like this before.’
- ‘I am intelligent and believe in my ability to get all my work done today.’
- ‘Today I’m going to be amazing, and I won’t let setbacks slow me down.’
- ‘I learn from my mistakes, and I am going to do so much better the next time.’
