Wellness Tips to Restore Your Sense of Joy

Wellness is all about thriving, not just surviving. When you aim for wellness, your goal is a holistic sense of good health that is not just about your physical being but your mind and emotions. If you’ve been feeling a little down lately, the tips below can help you bring a sense of joy back into your life.

Express Gratitude

Maybe it sounds a little cliched at this point, but if it does, it’s only because people keep suggesting gratitude journals for the very reason that they work so well. However, there are a few twists that you can try to make this more meaningful. People often talk about writing down things they are grateful for at the end of the day but doing so at the start of the day can be even more effective because it sets the mood for the day. In fact, you can even frame some of the things you are grateful for in terms of what you anticipate in the day ahead. For example, if you know you are meeting your sister for lunch, one of your points of gratitude can be that you are happy to have such a close relationship with your sister. You can also try expressing gratitude directly to people.

An At-Home Makeover

Sometimes, you can start to feel down because you’re not at your best physically. When you’re under stress, it can start to show in such telltale signs as dull hair and skin. By working to improve this, you can take a kind of fake it till you make it approach, and just as smiling often puts people into a better mood, you may feel better if you’ve gotten a new haircut or skin care routine. Regular use of gel, hairspray, or other products can take a toll on your hair, but a clarifying shampoo can help refresh its sheen and cut back on itchiness and flakes. Look for a shampoo that treats dry and itchy scalps, and be sure to use it in place of your regular shampoo only occasionally so that you don’t strip necessary oils from your hair. You can feel much better and more confident when your hair looks shiny and healthy again.

Be Spontaneous

If you feel like you’ve lost your capacity for joy, there’s a good chance you’ve become too bound by routine. Joy is closely bound up in spontaneity and enjoying the moment that you are in. Let yourself do something on impulse or say yes to an invitation that you would normally decline. Look for ways to be spontaneous in everyday life, even if it’s just ordering something off a menu you never would ordinarily or striking up a conversation with a stranger when you’re normally quiet. Keep track of the fun activities to improve your mood that you did on impulse. This list can be a good reference for you when the mood to break up your routine strikes, but you are not sure how to accomplish that. While planning this out might seem like the antithesis of the goal, it never hurts to have a written record of the feelings that an activity produced for you to help guide your decision-making.

Have a Goal

Lasting joy comes from a sense of substance in your life. Even if you have a family that you love, you may wish to be working toward one or more particular goals in other areas of your life. Try to write down one or more of those goals you’d like to achieve and make a plan to start reaching it. You may find that once you are engaged in your own life on the deep level required for success in this endeavor, joy has also become a substantial component of that life.