Back on September 11th of last year, I had a bad day. I mean a really bad day. You know it’s bad when you can remember the exact date even months later, right? This day was so bad that I took the afternoon off work to go and clear my head. And yet, while I can remember how bad this day was – how frustrated I felt, how it seemed like one thing after another was going wrong – I really can’t remember all of the things that were bothering me at the time.

I thought about that the last time I was having a bad day, and I realized something – it wasn’t that the day was bad. It was my attitude about the day, the fact that I was almost looking for things to go wrong so I could say “oh, GREAT! another thing!!” But that’s not a very healthy outlook, and it certainly didn’t do anything to make my day better!

So that day, I decided to turn things around. I didn’t want to have my whole day ruined just because some things were going wrong. Here are the 4 tips I’ve learned – from practice! – that since then, have managed to turn all of my “bad days” around!

1. Take yourself out of the situation. 

Whether this is a few minutes during your lunch break or a whole evening, give yourself some time away from whatever it is that’s stressing you out. I have the Calm app on my phone and if things get overwhelming during the work day, I head out to my car at lunch and do their five-minute guided meditation. This helps me refocus my mind and interrupts the cycle of “oh no! oh no!!” that usually goes through my head when things start going wrong. Depending on how much time you have, you might want to read a book for a little while, take a nice bath, or – if you’re really in a rush or stuck in a certain location – take your phone to the bathroom with you and surf the Internet for a few minutes. (Just be sure you’re not in there too long, or people will start to worry about you!) Personally, I have the game 1010! on my iPhone and I find it really calming and a healthy distraction! Of course your problems will still be there whenever you return from your happy place, but even a few minutes of “me time” can change your mood for the better.

2. Focus on the good things.

When I really thought about my “bad day,” I realized that really there had been good things happening all day right alongside the bad ones – I was just too preoccupied with my grumpiness to notice them. Traffic was super breezy on my way back from work, I had a really yummy lunch, and I had time to take a nice nap. Take a minute to write down all of the things in your life that are going well, things you’re grateful for, or things you’re looking forward to. Taking a second to tally up all the good things that had happened to me that day, even simple ones, made me realize that really the good things (or even neutral things) really outweighed the bad things. Really, the only thing making it a bad day was my own bad mood. But sometimes it’s hard to shake a bad mood, and sometimes the bad things really are quite bad, which leads me to #2:

3. If there are no good things, make some.

Treat yo’ self! Whoever said you can’t buy happiness has never been to the mall after a long day. I’m not saying to go crazy, but we all have things we love and get excited about buying. For me, it’s lipstick and clothes – I always feel great when I know I look great! If you’re strapped for cash, there are other ways to treat yourself – cancel a plan you weren’t thrilled about and do something you love instead, cook yourself a delicious meal, have a yummy snack, or change into some fuzzy socks. Sometimes something small makes all the difference. And when all else fails, remember:

4. You can start over any time.

Some days it’s just really hard to escape the suck, but you don’t need to wait for a new day to have a fresh start. Days are a really arbitrary measure of time! Do something kind for yourself and make that your new day. It’ll automatically be off to a good start! Don’t write it off as a “bad day” just because bad things have happened. It’s just a day. And chances are, the bad things are only a tiny part of all the glorious things that make up a day in your life. Shine on, friend!!

Note: I know the last thing anyone wants to hear when they’re having a rough day is “just be positive!” but I promise I’m sharing this because it really changed my outlook. It’s totally okay to have days when you just want to wallow, and it might even be healthy to just let yourself feel all the things every once in a while! And of course, sometimes truly awful things happen that are beyond fixing with a nice cup of tea. But if you’re riding the crap train and you want to try and get off at the next stop, I hope this post can help a little 🙂

How do you deal with a bad day?