Time to get happy - What makes you tickle?
- Hazel Butterfield
- 07 January 2016
I'm not saying you're not happy, maybe I'm just sharing a couple of the things that make me tick or for some, this serves as a reminder to turn that frown upside down. Recent research has shown that our emotional state has a huge effect on how we look and how healthy our skin is. Cortisol is a bitch and affects anything from bloating to pimples. Laughter can give us an ab workout (this is not strictly true but doesn't do us any harm). Happy people attract happy people. Negativity rarely breeds success.
Figure out what makes you happy, the more you involve that in your life, the more it becomes a habit. If you haven't got the time to implement anything or you're so in the doldrums you can't even navigate your brain around such positive thinking. Here are a few of mine:
Crazy Hot Matrix - A man's guide to women
Yes it is deliciously sexist, beautifully executed and thoroughly educational. There is even a bonus section on the end on how to choose a husband. Watch this. Please. If it doesn't make you giggle I fear I may have nothing to share with you that will be of your interest.
Latestfreestuff.co.uk
Who doesn't like free stuff. Pick and choose what you want. Some of these come in the form of a voucher, but I don't know about you but I live good ol' snail mail. Ever since I saw the founder of this website on Dragons Den, I'm loving this site. If you don't like getting too many 'junk' emails, either set up another email address or make sure that you tick the box to ensure your data is not sold. I'm also a huge fan of Gift With Purchase, I get more excited about the free gift than the actual 2 purchases I made to qualify. Clinique is my favourite.
Friends. Your friends should make you happy and if they don't, you may need new ones. Even if you are busy, find time. Will missing out on your Thursday workout, or that extra tenner on a bottle of wine be missed so much to justify not seeing your friends for weeks (or months) on end?
A little bit of what you like cannot be a bad thing. As coined in Parks and Recreation - 'Treat yo self'. This does not relate to anything I can get in trouble for advocating. Just level it out, if you are that way inclined... Go for a walk and get some fresh air, maybe even get off the bus a few stops early - then buy a mars bar en-route. Sell those shoes that if you're honest you are NEVER going to wear again on eBay, go get a pedicure.
Absorb yourself in a good book, it's like escape. Anything from Chelsea Handler gets me in stitches, but I also love anything that gets your mind working. Try these...
Finally, being productive ALWAYS slaps a smile on my mush. Get the crap of your to do list. Rebooked your insurances and household bills, make sure you are getting the best deals. Drop a quick line to those friends and family members that you keep on meaning to connect with. You know the sort of stuff.
Loveage. X
PS - things that also make me happy are:
* Looking deliriously happy around people who do not want you to be. Even if you are not.
* Acting like a loon in front of my kids, their laugh is infectious.
* A good detox, drink lots of water.
* Pretending the cucumber in my G&T is one of my 5 a day.