This morning for some reason I woke up in a negative frame of mind. I had a lovely day yesterday and went to bed feeling great but this morning I felt sluggish, tired and frustrated from the time I rolled out of my bed.
I had promised to take Amy and Lucy to the pools for a swim and my mood only worsened once I put on my newly bought budget tankini top. It is slightly too big around the body and slightly too small in the bust but I bought it because it was on sale… As soon as I put it on my mood descended even further. One of triggers has always been when my clothes feel uncomfortable so why I still continue to buy clothes that I know will make me feel this way I have no idea….
We made it to the pools and soon we were all swimming but I couldn’t shake off my bad mood and three times I lost patience with the girls for no real reason. Each time I swam away and tried to regain my composure by reminding myself how lucky I am but nothing worked and I remained in a bad mood until I actually expressed how I was feeling to Lucy and Amy. I gave each of them a cuddle, told them I was sorry I was being such a grouch and that maybe when we got home I needed to get back into bed and physically get back out again on the other side. This made us all giggle and once I had honestly expressed how I was feeling I felt my mood lift. It reminded me again how important it is to articulate my negative feelings so they have less power over me.
I am clearly not an expert on avoiding grumpiness but here is a list of strategies that I have found helpful.
1. Accept that you are feeling grumpy and don’t feel guilty about it. The last thing you need is to make yourself feel even worse. Treat yourself with kindness and grace.
2. Be honest about your feelings. Tell those you love that you are feeling bad. I find this far more helpful than putting on a mask and pretending to be happy and then having a meltdown because I haven’t dealt with how I am really feeling.
3. Think before you speak. When I am in a grumpy or negative mood I am highly likely to say something born of frustration that I will later regret. I am still working on this one but I am finding it helpful to take some deep breaths and really think before I speak.
4. Try and find something to laugh about. Being honest and joking with my children about going back to bed really helped to lighten my mood and theirs too.
5. Try to work out why you feel grumpy and take steps to fix it. Are you tired? Take a break or get an early night. Are you hormonal? Be extra kind to yourself….are you hungry? Grab a snack. Are your clothes feeling uncomfortable? Change your outfit…
6. Do something productive. After swimming I took the girls out for chocolate brownie and then I came home, did the laundry, did some decluttering and baked muffins for the freezer. There is nothing that helps me get out of a grump faster than the boost I get from feeling a sense of accomplishment.
Breadthoflife 