40 Tips to Cheer Yourself Up.
It doesn’t matter where you live, or how lucky you are, there are those days when life is all a bit Ho-Hum. You wonder how to cheer yourself up when you’re feeling down, when you’re feeling a little bit negative about the day ahead.
Perhaps you’re facing the kind of day when you wish there was a magic potion that would lift you up and give you a dose of positive energy? Maybe you’re fed up with the pandemic, and because of all that’s going on in the world you’ve gotten into the habit of ruminating which is leading to anxiety?
Or perhaps you’ve had a crappy day at work and just want to curl up into a ball on the sofa at home with a big bar of chocolate?
Does that sound like you sometimes?
I know, right! We’ve all had those days one way and another. And sometimes it’s hard to know just what makes us happy.
I’ve been there too, don’t worry – we can help fix things together.
Remember you are not alone.
So cheer up Buttercup – I’m with you. Here are some of the things that I do to cheer myself up when I’m feeling down, that I hope might help you too.
40 Tips to Help Cheer You Up
- Do some research about getting away for a vacation – then book that getaway today!
- Search for some comedy clips on YouTube and have a good 10 minute laugh.
- Put on your favorite music and dance around the house.
- Go for a walk outside, or take a jog in the park.
- Curl up in bed and tuck into a page-turning novel.
- Make a list of things you’re grateful for.
- Get some fresh air – put on your trainers and go for a walk or jog outside.
- Sing! Get onto Spotify and choose some sing-a-long songs you can belt out, alone in your living room!
- Play with a pet – take them outside, play fetch, or just cuddle on the couch with them.
- Write in a journal. Let your thoughts run free and write down what’s going on in your life right now.
- Jump in the car and take yourself somewhere beautiful for a walk – the beach, the forest, or a local beauty spot.
- Try out a new recipe and share it with your friends on social media.
- Watch an episode of your favorite TV show.
- Think about one thing you could plan for that makes you happy, and make a date to go and do that.
- Write a list of all the people who love you.
- Visit an elderly relative or neighbour and do something nice for them.
- Get out and watch a sunset or sunrise.
- Call a friend and go out for coffee.
- Do something creative – search for a YouTube video, or pop onto Pinterest and learn how to make something.
- Have a cuppa – there’s a lot of truth in the merits of a nice hot cup of tea.
- Do one thing that you’ve been putting off – vacuum the house or finish the ironing or clean out the fridge.
- Do 5 stretching exercises and concentrate on your breathing.
- If you have a garden go and do 10 minutes weeding or pruning or planting.
- Clean out and organise your underwear drawer!
- If you have a nutri-bullet, then grab some fruit from the fridge and make an energising juice – or just juice an orange.
- Invite your neighbour for a cup of coffee – or go around to see them.
- Write your worries down.
- Call a friend or family member whom you haven’t heard from in a while.
- Run the bath and fill it with bubbles, then lie back and relax.
- Shut the bathroom door, put on some music, and treat yourself to a pamper session with whatever beauty products you have in your bathroom cupboard.
- Go for a scenic drive.
- Buy yourself a bouquet of flowers, just because! Arrange them in a nice vase, and put them somewhere you can enjoy them.
- Go to Amazon or Booktopia, have fun browsing – then buy yourself a new book.
- Donate to a charity.
- Go for a massage, or at least book one for the very near future.
- Visit your nearest thrift store and spend an hour op-shopping in aid of a good cause.
- Go on. just do it – book a large ship cruise or a small luxury barge cruise.
- Go to a nail bar and have a relaxing pedicure and manicure.
- Tidy your house, and say outloud how grateful you are for your home.
- Go out for a coffee, buy yourself a trashy magazine, find yourself a seat in a quiet corner and read all the celebrity gossip!
Cheer Up Story
Miserable?
You’ve got to be kidding me, Larissa thought when she woke up feeling down in the dumps, like she wanted to just put her head under a pillow and sleep the day away!
When Larissa woke up all she could think about was how much of a total wreck the day ahead was looking.
And then it hit her: Unless something changed soon – and really fast too – she was either going to stay in bed feeling sorry for herself, or she was going to stop the downward spiral right there in its tracks.
Her grown up children had been visiting for the weekend, and now they were gone. She had a list of chores to get done that she didn’t really want to do, and she had no treats or trips to look forward to in the near future.
First world problems for sure, but even so, the very fact that she was privileged didn’t help her feelings of despair.
She needed cheering up fast before her day spiralled down down down into apathy and self-pity.
But what could she do that would help give her an instant lift?
Larissa thought back over some of the things that made her happy and decided to write a list about the things she thought would help cheer her up, pledging to tick at least three of them off before the day ended.
So she wrote the list in a journal (that she could add to) and to begin with she picked 3 things she would do to make her happier that morning.
- Do 10 stretching exercises.
2. Spend 10 minutes outside in her garden.
3. Make something delicious – like this easy cheesecake recipe.

7 Ways to Cheer Yourself Up After a Bad Day
When we’v had a bad day, we want quick fixes, don’t we? I certainly don’t want a long course in something that I have to commit to everyday!
Of course if you feel down continuously, then it’s time to seek professional help, and not quick fixes.
But for those pesky one-off-bad-days what we need are things to lift our spirits, and fast.
1. Listen to some music
Even if you don’t like it at first, your mood can change after fifteen minutes or so. Music can well and truly cheer you up, especially if you sing along and dance around the living room. It won’t take long before your serotonin levels are rising and you just feel happier!
2. Go for a walk outside
Fresh air always makes me feel better! And I suspect it will be the same for you. Even if you feel uninspired about the route, if you look hard enough you’ll find new things to inspire you.
Breathe deeply, look up to the sky, notice the cloud formations, thank your lucky stars that you are alive. Enjoy time to yourself. Debrief. Tell yourself you are loved and wonderful.
3. Write your worries down
If you write things down, often your niggling worries don’t seem so bad.
If you write down the things that are worrying you, you’re more likely to address them, and begin sorting them out. Although, you might look at your worries and decide they are too big to handle, and decide to seek a professional who can help you.
4. Call a friend or family member
Do you have a family member or friend overseas who would love a surprise call from you? Or someone who’s doing it tough? Or a friend you haven’t spoken to in a while?
Call them up to chat about nothing in particlar, or chat about the fun times you’ve had with them, complain about your boss, or the weather – just let it all out!
There are many reasons to call your friends and family, but the most important is that they support you.
Also you just never know when they could be in need of someone.
When somebody needs you, and you can help right out of the blue, it will make you feel good about yourself too.
Why not make their day, and help make yourself feel better, and phone them?
5. Take a warm bubble bath
There’s nothing quite so luxurious or ‘Hollywood’ as a warm bubble bath.
Make it into a full luxury experience by lighting some candles in the bathroom and putting on some relaxing music.
Pop on a face mask. Lie back and close your eyes.
Hang your pyjamas and dressing gown on the towel rack at the ready, so that you can pop straight into bed afterwards!
6. Treat yourself to a pamper session
After a hard, tough day when you feel totally down, it’s time to look after yourself.
So why not get out all those beauty products that you never have time to use; the deep-cleansing products, a face mask, a galvanic spa, and the richest moisturisers for face and body, and take half an hour to pamper yourself.
You’ll feel plumped up, hydrated and more relaxed afterwards.
7. Watch your favorite TV show
Pop on Netflix (or your choice of channel) and find new episodes, or perhaps old episodes of your favourite TV shows.
The series ‘Friends’ never seems to date and always offers up some giggles, or how about Sex in the City?
Why not get into Game of Thrones, or Breaking Bad or start to re-watch all the episodes of Suits again and be reminded of how Megan Markle looked back in the day?
It’s horrible feeling miserable, so if you can remember how to cheer yourself up and address feeling of misery quickly, you’re more likely to have a productive day and a good, sleep-full night.
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Hi Sheila, Thanks for your lovely comment, and for sharing a little about yourself too. How wonderful that Creaky Bones one six awards! That’s fantastic. I’m definitely going to look it up and will mention it in my next newsletter 🙂 And thank you for your kind words about my blog!
Hello Jo,
Thank you for this wonderful list of cheerful ideas. I’m going to keep it for rainy days. May I tell you of one more idea? It’s my latest art book ART & CREAKY BONES. Every second page is a colorful illustration from my series of 400 collages. The book explains how and why a creative activity makes life after 50 better and happier. Painting, singing or dancing, or anything creative, not only improves your life, scientists say it keeps you healthier and helps you live longer. The most surprising result of all their research is that we actually become more innovative as we age.
I spent the last 15 years as a caregiver for my husband who had Parkinson”s. Before that, I had been exhibiting regularly in museums around the world (33 in all). But I was obliged to stop. CREAKY BONES and the collages were my best creative outlet during those years, so you can imaging how dear they have become. I hope others will benefit from it too. Oh, I forgot to say it won six awards for Aging, Inspiration and Fine Art. I look forward to hearing from you. Your blog is lovely, one of the best I’ve seen. All the best, Sheila