by The Lovely Refinement Team | Jan 24, 2023 | Dealing With Emotions, Happiness Tips, Self-Improvement
Affordable Therapy Options
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Are you struggling with your mental health and wondering if therapy can actually help you?
As we all know, therapy can often come with a hefty price tag.
But what if you could get it at an affordable rate?
That’s right, affordable therapy is a thing!
But!
Can affordable therapy actually help you?
Let’s find out!
What Is Affordable Therapy?
Online therapy is quite similar to traditional face-to-face counseling sessions.
The key difference is that instead of meeting in person, all communication happens online from the comfort of your own home.
Affordable therapy usually comes in online packages or group sessions, so you can get mental health help on a budget. You have to make a few adjustments, like seeing your therapist over text, video chat, or phone calls.
So does it really work?
COVID-19 has had a huge impact on the way mental health professionals provide services. Many therapists successfully provided online help to patients during the pandemic.
A recent study published in the American Psychological Association found that nearly 67.32 percent of psychologists now prefer to do online therapies.
Why?
Because they can provide quality care ethically without having to have in-person meetings with patients.
How Does Online Therapy Work?
Online therapy can be a great way to get help without leaving the house.
But how does it work?
Here is what exactly happens in online therapy!
First, you need a computer or mobile device with an internet connection for online therapy, and you’re good to go.
Then, you’ll log into a website and chat with your therapist via video chat or text. This could involve phone calls, video conferencing programs like Skype or Zoom, or anything else you and your therapist find useful.
Pretty cool, right?
You can talk about any issues or problems that are going on in your life and discuss strategies for managing them better.
It might sound scary or uncomfortable at first, as you’ll be sharing personal feelings with a stranger.
But don’t worry!
All the therapists are professionals with a lot of training.
They make sure that everything runs smoothly and that your conversation stays private.
And you know, the authors of the popular book Ikigai found that interacting with other people is the key to a happy life.
They say people live longer and better lives when they feel supported.
Online therapy can give you a place to talk about your worries and concerns without feeling judged or ashamed.
Here is an example of a successful, affordable therapy program.
What are the benefits of affordable therapy?
Let’s take a look!
Mental health benefits of affordable therapy
- Affordable online therapy can provide many emotional benefits, including:
- Improved self-awareness
- Increased confidence
- Better stress management.
- Increased insight into personal challenges
- Better decision-making skills
- A deeper understanding of personal relationships
Physical health benefits of affordable therapy
When we’re stressed out, our bodies go into “fight or flight” mode and produce hormones like cortisol.
This can lead to many negative effects on our bodies, including an increased heart rate, high blood pressure, and even reduced immunity.
Affordable therapy can help reduce stress levels and improve overall physical health.
People can get a better handle on their stress levels by identifying the root cause of these problems through affordable therapy sessions.
Financial benefits of affordable therapy
Online therapy costs are usually based on a flat rate or subscription fee.
There are no additional costs like transportation or childcare that come with a traditional in-person clinic appointment.
Many online therapists also work out of their own offices.
So they don’t have to rent space in expensive medical buildings.
Challenges of Affordable Therapy
Insurance
If you’re considering affordable therapy, it’s important to know if your insurance covers the cost.
The most reliable way to check is by calling your affordable therapy provider and speaking directly with them.
Ethical and legal concerns
Since there are no geographical limits, it is hard for therapists to follow the same legal and moral rules that apply to face-to-face therapy.
This means that therapists who want to do online counseling sessions must be aware of any possible conflicts with state laws or licensing requirements.
Confidentiality
There is a higher risk of data security breaches during online therapy sessions. This can be especially scary if you want to talk to your therapist about sensitive issues.
It’s important to choose a provider with a lot of experience who has strict privacy policies.
Lack of immediate response during the crisis
Online therapy could be dangerous for patients in a crisis because they can’t get immediate help.
It might be because therapists are really busy or have other commitments.
However, it can still feel like you’re not getting the support you need when you need it most.
Let me give you an example here.
Let’s say a patient has suicidal tendencies or other serious mental health problems that need immediate help.
Now, what if that patient can’t get in touch with a therapist who can give him support and advice right away?
It’s important to remember that therapists are doing their best to help as many people as they can.
But it’s also okay to reach out to in-person sources of support if you’re not getting the help you need.
Affordable couple’s therapy
If your relationship is going through a rough patch, you may wonder if couples therapy can help.
You know, the research shows that couples therapy positively impacts 70% of couples receiving treatments.
So, how can affordable couple therapy help your relationship online?
Couples can talk to an online couple therapist about any relationship issues like communication problems, worries about parenting, trust issues, and more.
Online couple therapists provide guidance, advice, and support through phone or video conferencing sessions.
Therapists can help partners learn how to resolve the issues.
For example, couples can get advice on how to talk to each other better, work out their differences, and deal with deeper problems like cheating or managing money.
How Can You Get Affordable Therapy Without Insurance?
One of the best ways to get affordable therapy without insurance is by exploring online options.
Many online platforms offer discounts and sliding-scale fees.
What do sliding-scale fees mean?
Sliding-scale fees allow individuals and families to pay what they can afford for counseling services based on their income. Clients can usually select a payment plan that works best for them with no questions asked.
So you can find an option that fits within your budget.
Another way to access affordable therapy without insurance is through organizations like community mental health centers and church-based counseling services.
Is online therapy effective?
The answer is yes!
Online therapy can be immensely effective for non-clinical conditions such as anxiety and depression.
It gives the same level of care and support as traditional face-to-face therapy, but you can get help from anywhere in the world.
Is online therapy effective for people with severe mental disorders?
Well, the answer is not so straightforward.
Recently, a study was done to find out how online therapy affects patients with severe mental disorders (like psychosis, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, etc) and their families.
The results show that online therapy can help families with mental health problems in many ways, making them feel less stressed.
Research also showed that when people got online therapy, the severity of their positive symptoms got better, and they went to the hospital less often.
There is still not a lot of proof that it works to treat more serious disorders.
This could be because people with serious mental conditions often need more intensive care that can’t be given in an online setting.
So, people with serious mental disorders can consider in-person therapies combined with occasional online sessions.
You must always do your research and choose the right online therapist, even for non-clinical conditions.
But what about the confidentiality risk?
Here is a solution!
According to Kati Morton, a certified therapist and YouTube sensation, creating a safe space for therapy is key.
Kati states that if we worry that someone is listening in on us, we won’t feel comfortable enough to fully open up and work through our issues.
Find out more about making the online sessions effective in this video!
by The Lovely Refinement Team | Aug 18, 2022 | Dealing With Emotions, Happiness Tips, Self-Esteem & Self-Love, Self-Improvement
There is no doubt that anxiety can be a horrible thing to deal with it but it is actually very common and there are ways that you can manage it and have a happy life. You might feel like you are being suffocated right now but that is not a feeling that will last forever. These anxiety tips have been put together with you in mind so start putting them into practice today, and you will notice a big difference in your mental health in no time.
1 – Take Care of Yourself
Sometimes when you get anxious thoughts, it can be easy to reach for things that are bad for you in order to try and feel better, but that is only going to make the anxiety worse. If you tend to comfort eat or drink too much alcohol to deal with your anxiety – stop and incorporate healthier habits into your life instead. Not only is it bad for you to over-indulge in unhealthy foods and alcohol, it can actually increase your anxiety. You may not realize it, but if you “treat” yourself to feel “better”, it can be a reinforcer for the anxiety since your mind knows that it will enjoy what comes after. Eating nutritious food and exercising regularly can be very beneficial for your mind as well as your body. These good habits will make you feel better in the long run. It’s all about switching your bad habits (we all have them!) for good ones.
2 – Keep a Journal
Overthinking and anxiety go hand in hand but that is not going to be beneficial if you are constantly turning things over in your mind. Journaling is one of the best tools for helping you deal with overthinking and ruminating. These thoughts need to go somewhere. If you have a lot that you want to get out, journalling can actually be super beneficial. Whether it’s as simple as writing your mood, about your day, or your worries – keeping a journal that you spend as little as 10 minutes writing in every single day can make such a positive impact on your life. Sometimes it even helps you to find out things you didn’t even realize were bugging you or on your mind until you end up writing it down with a flow of thought.
3 – Think Positive and Practice Gratitude
People with anxiety often get stuck in a negative mindset that can be extremely hard to break and get out of. It is really important that you start looking at things differently but that is easier said than done of course. A good way to get started in changing your way of thinking is to practice gratitude. You can write down one thing every day that you are grateful for or better yet, you can say it out loud as an affirmation in the mirror. It doesn’t have to be anything mind-blowing every day, it could be something as simple as your morning coffee but you have to think of something!
4 – Face Your Issues
If you have anxiety, it could be very broad or it could be about something in particular. Many people with the condition automatically want to run away from their problems but guess what? That will just make your anxious thoughts worse! Perhaps you are anxious about work or school; focus on these areas. If your anxiety is around your relationship or friendship, perhaps some tough conversations need to be had and some even tougher decisions need to be made. All of this isn’t going to be easy of course but look deep inside so that you can figure out what your internal issues are and try to deal with them in the way you know you need to.
5 – Find a Hobby that Makes You Happy
It is likely that you are in your head a lot and keeping yourself busy with something you enjoy is key if you want to start enjoying life again. You might already have a hobby but if not, find something that you really enjoy doing and focus on motivating yourself that way. That could be anything from running, dancing, writing, gaming, traveling, photography, or taking a class to learn something new. When you do something that you enjoy, your mood is instantly lifted and that is what you need right now. Starting a hobby and finding something that you are truly passionate about is not only good for your mental health in general, but it also helps reduce anxiety.
6 – Get an Anxiety Action Plan
Having an anxiety action plan is essential when anxiety becomes a regular occurrence in your life. When you are hit with anxiety, if you don’t have the right tools to manage it, you’re left with more anxiety and more stress. Being proactive is the best thing to do for yourself. Anxiety Action Plan is a great tool to use so you can go through the step-by-step program with an ebook and workbook. You deserve to be happy rather than fearing your next anxiety attack.
7 – Talk to Someone
It is so important that you do not leave your anxious thoughts festering inside you because this tends to make anxiety worse. Although sharing your worries isn’t always easy, it is important that you do it. Talk to friends or family members about your anxiety, somebody you truly trust to be there for you. For people struggling with anxiety, having a trusted professional therapist or counselor has been extremely helpful to many. There are many choices, including online professionals if you’re too busy to miss work or drive to appointments.
Conclusion
No matter how long you have had anxiety, there is always hope ahead. Trying to ignore the anxiety and the disruption it causes in your life usually compounds the problem so you are already headed in the right direction by searching for solutions. It can be a battle but it’s worth it to do the work and learn how to manage anxiety. Using the tips in this article will help and staying informed is always to your advantage.
by The Lovely Refinement Team | Jun 27, 2022 | Happiness Tips, Self-Improvement
Where to find happiness? It’s an age-old question and the simple answer is: Happiness is found within yourself. The type of happiness that lasts and is truly fulfilling is within you and is not dependent on others.
What more can be satisfying than the chance to enjoy life at its best? A good life is rarely a luxurious one. More than the possession of material things, a good life must be one wherein you laugh more, cry less, and feel gratitude.
The truth about people is that they come and go. Nobody stays with you permanently, including your spouse or children. They all have their own lives and you cannot always tie these people to you. The same is true with material things, titles, power, and events that make you happy. While these things can make you happy, the happiness associated with these things is only temporary. If you want that satisfying, no-guilt kind of happiness, you need to look within yourself.
Be a champion of your own life
One of the many reasons we find it hard to be happy is that we tend to sabotage ourselves. When something good happens, we love to overthink and discount the fact that we deserve it. In the back of our minds, we question if we’re allowed to be this happy or start thinking that our happiness will come with a price.
You see, tomorrow is never certain. No one knows for sure if we’ll be here, so we might as well make the most of what’s today. Enjoy and bask in your happiness without feeling guilty. Be a champion of your life because happiness, contentment, and satisfaction are an inside job — nobody can do it for you.
Work on your goals
Some people engage the services of a life coach to help them get on track. While this is helpful, remember that a life coach can only help you if you also supply the discipline and the burning desire to achieve your goals. They may be working closely with you, but nothing will happen if you refuse to help yourself. Again, this is another classic example of the reality that you are the captain of your own ship — the master of your destiny.
When you say desire, it’s not just “wanting” to change something. It takes self-discipline. This means that you must be committed to yourself and your own goals and that no matter how challenging your circumstances are, you won’t fall back to your old destructive patterns.
While a life coach can help you achieve positive results in your life, it’s you who will carry much of the work. You have to break your old patterns. You have to move out of your comfort zone. You have to commit to change. It’s like working out in the gym with a fitness coach. Even if your coach plans your workout and fitness goals, you will do most of the work because it’s your body. The plan will only prosper if the subject is willing, committed, and does the work.
Break the negative mindset chain
When you ask people if they consider themselves successful, only a handful will answer that they are. Why? Because most are caught in the negative belief system that success is hard to earn and that they’re not worthy of success. These negative thought processes will manifest themselves in your life results.
You may wonder why despite your effort, you still can’t get that promotion. You may also wonder why even if you spend more time working, you’re not earning enough money. If you find yourself in these situations, remember to work on your belief system first.
You can start working on your negative thoughts by turning on your “flashlight of awareness” and you will then see how much potential you are hiding because of your limiting belief systems. This is the first step in claiming your birthright to success.
When you were younger, your parents might have unknowingly conditioned you to limit yourself. For example, when you were trying to reach for the cup in the cupboard, your mother stopped you because you might fall and get hurt. The motive might be good, but this harmless act can lead a grown person to think that he shouldn’t try to do risky things because he might get hurt.
Help yourself identify these negative thoughts and transform them into positive ones. Now, instead of saying “you can’t,” you’ll confidently claim that you can.
Be accountable for your own life, decisions, and results
Another reason why people can’t find happiness within and by themselves is that they love to point fingers. They blame everyone except themselves. You see, if you take control of your life, it’s less burdensome and less complicated. You act for yourself and not to please others. You also become more attached to your plans because you know you’ll benefit the most from your successes.
The sad reality is that people love to complain. If something doesn’t turn in their favor, they blame everyone else except themselves. If you ask yourself why you’re not living your dream life, you may catch yourself saying any of these common excuses:
- That your parents are poor, and you never had the means;
- That your parents weren’t able to send you to a great school;
- That your professor in college was unfair and inconsiderate; or
- That life didn’t open opportunities for you.
You blamed everyone else except yourself. Maybe the only reason you’re not living your dream life is that you keep making excuses and refuse to take action. This can be a source of resentment too. Because you think someone’s controlling your life, you rebel against them and suffer the consequences miserably.
If you supply the desire and commitment to change, you can point yourself in the right direction. By realizing what you could have done better, you take responsibility and work towards positive change. You make your goals, plot action plans to achieve these goals, and cheer yourself as you work your way to your dream life.
Understand relationships with the people in your life
Resentment, disappointment, and hatred happen if people misunderstand how other people show and communicate their feelings. If you find that many of your issues with other people tend to lean on your own negative perceptions rather than the basic facts. Just because we perceive someone has wronged us or does not care – doesn’t mean we are always right. Often we twist things into a negative light due to our own insecurities. It is for our own happiness and successful relationships that we explore possible misunderstandings and clarify with others to fact-check our interpretations of actions.
By realizing these barriers, you relieve yourself of the burden to try and fit others’ perceptions and ideas of things in the universe. You also hate less. You no longer get disappointed quickly and become more tolerant of the people in your life. Instead of spending your time and energy on these negative emotions, you let them go because you now understand it’s not because of you. At the end of the day, you learn to be genuinely happy and at peace with the people in your life, your thoughts, and yourself.
Takeaway
We can conclude that happiness is found within. We are responsible for our happiness and no one else can be our source of happiness alone. Sometimes, we chase people, titles, and events, hoping to find happiness in them. After a while, we realize that the happiness they bring is fleeting.
We have the power to be happy regardless of what is happening around us. We can be happy despite what other people think of us.
by The Lovely Refinement Team | Jun 13, 2022 | Happiness Tips, Self-Improvement
Life can be a difficult journey. The world has a penchant for throwing unexpected curveballs. Things like sudden car trouble, illness in the family, or trouble at work are tough to deal with when you’re already doing well. When you’re struggling already, these surprise difficulties can create situations that seem almost impossible to deal with.
Luckily, you’re not alone. While everyone’s journey through life is different, absolutely every person on the planet will hit a rough patch every once in a while. Here are some of the top tips that successful people give for getting through these tough times without pulling your hair out.
1) Accept The Inevitable. Change the Changeable.
Attitude is important. The way you think and feel about a problem can have a massive impact on how you deal with it. It’s incredibly common for people to get fixated on problems that they simply cannot affect, allowing the issue to cast a massive, negative shadow over their daily life. Don’t do this! Some things are truly unchangeable. Try to think of these things as passive obstacles that you have to overcome. It’s okay to complain about them every once in a while, but make sure your goal is to climb over the mountain, not to whine about it.
One of the best things you can do when faced with an impossible situation is to analyze it and figure out what parts you can change. Life’s challenges tend to be complex and usually have multiple components that you can interact with. Even if you can’t change the core of a problem, you can often take action to make the other parts more manageable. For example, there’s not a lot you can do about a loved one being diagnosed with a terminal illness. You can, however, spend time with them, make sure they’re comfortable, and make sure that appropriate end-of-life arrangements are put into place before it’s too late. The core of the problem is still there. It’s still important to take steps to increase your ability to deal with the situation.
The flip side of this is that many people tend to give up on small and medium issues too quickly. There are a lot of things in life that are very much under your control. Many of these are difficult to change, requiring effort stretched out over months or years. Others just require a few short, difficult interactions. Don’t put these off. If there’s something that’s bothering you, make sure that you’re doing everything you can to fix things. This might mean starting a long journey of self-improvement, finally making a tough phone call that you’ve been putting off, or just doing a bunch of unpleasant chores around the house. Bite the bullet and start as soon as you can. Even if it doesn’t seem like a big deal, reducing small stressors can have a profound impact on your overall quality of life.
2) Don’t Fight Alone
When the going gets tough, don’t be afraid to reach out. Talking to a friend about your situation can have a profoundly positive effect on the way you think about your problem and give you insights into what you might be able to do to fix things – and this is without your friend doing anything other than being a good listener. Your friends can often offer recommendations from their experience in similar situations and volunteer valuable help so you don’t have to pull yourself up by your bootstraps. You shouldn’t expect them to solve your problems for you. Sometimes, however, your issue will turn out to be something that they can fix almost effortlessly. When you suffer alone, you miss the opportunity to take advantage of this.
Some issues are difficult to share with friends. Other times, you’re stuck in a long-term rut. Other issues are just hard. If you feel like you’re not in a good place mentally, reach out to a mental health professional sooner rather than later. Counselors, therapists, and psychiatrists won’t judge you or your problems. Instead, they’ll try to offer as much help as they can and give you a safe space that you can use to figure out how you can tackle life’s issues. These days, affordable therapy is accessible and easy to find. Don’t wait until you’ve fallen into a deep rut to seek out a professional. Instead, try to talk to one as soon as you can to keep your journey as happy and healthy as possible.
3) Remember the Importance of Self-Care
The harder life is, the easier it is to forget about self-care activities. Try not to do this. Instead, try to do the opposite. Tougher tasks and stressful days will require you to be at your best, meaning you should put even more effort into taking care of yourself.
First, prioritize the basics. Try to make sure you get plenty of sleep. Set a strict bedtime, practice good sleep hygiene, and don’t let friends and work trick you into staying up late when you don’t want to.
Eat well. Make sure you’re following a healthy diet. Spending time on meal prep might seem impossible in your current situation, but you’ll appreciate your easy meals later on when it’s time to eat. It’ll also give you a forced break from the other activities that are stressing you out. Even if meal prep isn’t your thing, make sure that you’re taking the time and effort to eat healthy foods in appropriate quantities at the right intervals. Skipping lunch will almost never help reduce your stress level.
Be sure to exercise. It’s hard to find time for exercise during a difficult life period, but it’s something you should prioritize. Don’t limit yourself to ruling out exercise altogether because you’re too stressed or don’t have enough time to go to the gym. You can fit in several walks around your work or at home between other activities you’re doing or even go for a jog, do yoga, and do other types of exercise you like. Exercise will help increase your energy levels and allow you to maintain a more positive outlook during the rest of your day. It’ll also provide a forced break. Many of the most successful individuals on the planet swear by their daily jog or walk. It’s often the source of their best ideas, as It gives them an incredible opportunity to tackle their issues from a different perspective.
Take care of your environment. If you’re stressed, it’s easy to fall behind on keeping your house clean or let your workplace become messy. This can have a pretty big effect on your mental outlook. If you can, try to find time to build an environment that you enjoy spending time in. It might not seem like a great use of your time immediately, but you’ll be a lot happier when you work and relax in the future.
None of these things are one-time activities. All of these self-care journeys are just that: journeys. When life throws an unexpected curveball, don’t start sprinting backward along these other paths. Even if you don’t think you can make progress forward in terms of your diet, exercise, sleep schedule, or environment, do your best to at least stay where you are at the very least. This will have a profound impact on giving you the stability you need to tackle your other problems.
Try the Ultimate Mental Health Book + Happy Days Planner.
4) Take Time For Yourself
You’re valuable. When you’re working through a rough patch, it’s easy to lose track of this idea. It’s even easier to neglect to take proper action and fail to treat yourself well. Try not to do this! The harder life is, the more important it is to take a little bit of time off and do things you enjoy.
No matter how hard your problems seem, make space for you to have fun. This might mean going on a hike, having a spa day, spending time with friends, or seeing a movie. If you can’t find time for these activities, try to find ways to treat yourself within the confines of your busy schedule. This might mean ordering a nice meal, having something you like shipped to your house, or upgrading your environment. You’re worth a bit of time, money, and effort. Not only will these activities help you feel better, but they’ll also give you space from your problems and provide a valuable break for your brain.
You shouldn’t ever let yourself feel guilty for taking a short, appropriate break for self-care. That said, be mindful of your goal here: you want to sharpen the saw, so to speak, not run from your problems. Some people go overboard and take too much time off, allowing their issues to grow more frightening while they’re away. Using your weekend as personal time instead of going into the office is probably a good idea. Taking a whole week off of work when you’ve got a major project deadline approaching probably isn’t.
5) Work Through It
A lot of the time, our biggest problems can be solved by a blast of concentrated effort. This can be hard for a lot of reasons: our problems might be abstract, meaning we won’t see progress. The actual work involved is often tedious, difficult, or both. We’re also not always used to giving it 100% every day, making the shift into high gear a hard, unfamiliar process.
Don’t let these barriers dissuade you. Instead, try to put your best foot forward every day and make as much progress towards your goals as you can. Even if you don’t see results, concentrate on doing your best. You’ll start building positive habits, making it easier to continue. As long as you don’t give up, you’ll continue to make positive progress and eventually hit your ideal endpoint.
Remember: it’s a marathon, not a sprint. Even if you can’t give 100% on a given day, show up and try to get something done. As the saying goes, a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. No matter how bad you feel, try to at least put your shoes on and walk out to the path. From there, it’ll be a lot easier to make a few steps and bring your destination a little bit closer. You might not be able to see it, but it’ll really help when it comes to the overall journey.
6) Compare Carefully
Modern social media makes it almost trivial to feel small. All you need to do is open your favorite website or app to be blasted with images of the most beautiful and successful people in the world.
Try to avoid comparing your situations with the ones that you see on the internet. Photos, posts, and stories have to survive an incredibly competitive environment to show up on your feed. This means that you’ll only see the prettiest faces, the best houses, and the most talented people out of literally millions of submissions. If you compare yourself to the very best in any given category, you’re almost always going to come up short, even if you’re incredibly talented and successful yourself.
Try not to compare yourself with your friends and family either. Everyone’s journey through life is different. Some people are blessed with incredible, unfair opportunities. Others aren’t. This means that you shouldn’t feel bad because a friend is more successful than you. It also means you shouldn’t try to base your self-worth on how much better you’re doing than other people.
You can, however, learn a lot from successful people. This means that occasional, mindful comparison of specific things can be incredibly valuable. If you’re in sales, for example, don’t get hung up on the difference between your monthly sales and the person with the most sales in the department. Do think about comparing the way you both approach a sale and see what they do differently. Other people struggle with the same sort of obstacles and challenges that you do. Taking the time to analyze their approach and seeing how they overcome these challenges and obstacles can give you new tools and techniques that you can use to make your own life easier.
What To Do When Life Gets Hard
Everyone’s journey through life is different. One thing that we all have in common, however, is that all of our journeys get rough at some point. When this happens, things will be tough. There usually isn’t a miracle fix. It happens to everyone. You can, however, take some steps to make things a bit easier on yourself and maximize your ability to work through your problems. Fix what you can fix, accept what you can’t, and put yourself in a position where you can accept the help of others. Look for affordable therapy, make time for self-care activities, and stay on top of your basic needs. Put in as much work as you can to move forward and get past your current obstacles. Finally, make sure that you’re not basing your self-worth on unfair comparisons to others while keeping yourself open to learning new techniques and skills from people in similar situations.
Utilizing these techniques and ideas won’t magic your problems away. It will still take a lot of time, energy, and effort to get through your rough patch. You might not see results right away. Over time, though, you’ll begin to pull out of your slump and make progress toward tackling your personal challenges. These techniques will make the journey a little bit faster and more pleasant, putting you back on the path you want to be on.
by The Lovely Refinement Team | Sep 29, 2020 | Happiness Tips, Self-Confidence
Looking for some ways to feel better about yourself? Great! I have 19 mood and confidence-boosting ideas for you. We all have bad mental health days at times. What makes those days worse is how hard we are on ourselves.
There’s a strong mental health stigma out there that tells us we should be doing better than we are. And if you struggle with depression or anxiety, it makes you feel like a failure of some sort. But this is NOT true. Trust me, it’s not. And the truth is many many people struggle with their own mental illness. It’s not a bad thing and you don’t have to keep making yourself feel worse. Which is why I want to talk about some awesome ways you can feel better about yourself. Because YOU are awesome! If you need a reminder of that today, then here it is.
19 Ways To Make You Feel Better About Yourself
You’re doing the best you can. You’re trying and that’s all that matters. To make yourself feel better you need to be calm and realize the progress you want to see in your life will come. You will have days where you fall backward, and that’s ok. Because you will also have days where you feel on top of the world. To feel better about ourselves is a struggle we all face. Unfortunately, I don’t think it’s possible to always feel better or happy no matter how perfect your life may be.
Striving for endless happiness is like striving for perfection… it doesn’t exist.
What does exist is learning how to accept who you are. That’s the easiest way to make you feel better about yourself. Whether you’re in a bad mood or a good mood. Trusting yourself and knowing you’ll push through the tough moments will turn you into a resilient badass. Sometimes that is what is required to make you feel better about yourself.
1. To feel better, pay attention to what your thoughts are saying
Instead of ignoring your thoughts, spend some time listening to them. What are they saying to you? If you aren’t feeling your greatest right now, why? Is it because of something not going how you expected in your life?
To make you feel better you need to identify your struggles and respect them. This can help you learn to listen to yourself more. From every experience and those small wins, remember what you did to make you feel better. Check out this book on Amazon which was a great read to help me feel better.
When you ignore yourself it’s easy to feel down because you haven’t fully accepted what your thoughts are trying to tell you.
2. Listen to yourself and make sure to take it easy
If you don’t want to see anyone today, clean your house, or get groceries then don’t! Basically to feel better, don’t force yourself to do something you hate. You might think “But I’m an adult and need to take care of my responsibilities.” which, yes is true. But, your chores can wait until you’re better. Cut your to-do list in half and just work on the things that you can. Sometimes our minds and bodies give us a sign, to tell us that we need a break.
To make you feel better, let the other things wait and listen to yourself. Today might just need to be a Netflix day. Yay!
3. Stop making yourself feel guilty for not feeling good mentally
When you’re depressed it’s really hard to act like you care about something when you really don’t. Like when your boyfriend wants to spend Saturday doing a bunch of errands and you’re over here like: I need to be in bed with no interruptions. Which can make you feel guilty for not supporting the people you love.
- Your mind has other plans for you and you have to cater to that.
Sometimes to feel better you don’t have to feel guilty for giving yourself a much-needed mental health day. If it’s an everyday thing, then it’s always good to talk to someone about it.
4. Write out all your worries in a journal
When you wake up in the morning and already feel like today is just going to suck, get your thoughts out. Only you can make you feel better. Write down all of your worries about your life, about the day, and just about anything. This is a great way to reel in your worries and take care of your mental health. Because once you get these thoughts, you’ll feel better about yourself and be ready to take on the day.
One way to make you feel better, try out the Tiny Buddha’s Worry Journal to help you let go of worry and anxiety.
5. Buy yourself something nice, the best way to make you feel better
When you’re not feeling good about yourself, make yourself go out and buy something nice. Take a trip to the mall or buy something on Amazon you’ve been wanting. Treat yo’ self! This is a good form of self-care to remind yourself that you matter and realize that you can feel better with a little bit of a splurge on yourself. Now, you don’t need to buy the whole store or anything but something simple that makes you feel good will do the trick. This could also just be some ice cream to help boost your spirits. Let’s be honest ice cream will always make you feel better even when everything else fails.
6. Eat a healthy & fulfilling meal
You can treat yourself and eat a healthy meal all on the same day. It’s called balance! Fuel your body with the proper nutrients that you need to improve your mental health. A healthy meal makes your body feel better which improves your mindset!
7. Trust yourself more
To feel better, listen to your heart. If you’re unhappy a lot of the time, listen to why that is. If you always say yes when you should say no, learn how to set boundaries. For the longest time I did not trust myself and I always looked to other people to boost my confidence. Make your own confidence. Don’t sit and wait for a sign, stand up and take accountability. But, this never lasted because when nobody was around I didn’t feel good about myself. I spent a lot of time learning how to trust my instincts and listen to myself more, and now I feel better about myself and my circumstances. This takes some time, but if you make it a goal of yours then you will start to feel better quickly.
8. Spend time with supportive people
To feel better, it helps to have a strong support system because you can’t always pull yourself out of a funk, or make issues just disappear. If you aren’t your best today, call up your closest friends. Vent to them or ask them to hang out so you can be around positive people. Positive people can make you feel better instantly. Don’t be afraid to reach out to the people who care about you when you’re struggling mentally, because they need you to reach out to them.
They won’t judge you and care about your well-being.
9. Listen to upbeat music
Sometimes you just need some good music to pull you out of a bad mood. Dance around to your favorite songs for 15 minutes. Tune everything out and put your headphones on. Enjoying yourself where you get out of your head for a while can help you gain a different perspective on things.
Related: 13 Hobbies That Will Reduce Anxiety and Make You Feel Better
10. Write down all of your amazing qualities
Even when you’re not feeling your best you can counter your bad thoughts with good ones. Write down your favorite qualities about yourself. Is it the way you easily forgive people around you? Maybe you’re a really good listener, or like being so easygoing. Whatever traits you have, make yourself write them down. And if you can’t think of what you like about yourself, write down the things other people like about you.
11. Hang out with animals
If you have any animals at your house, spend some time with them. Cuddle your cat or go on a hike with your dog and make some friends. And if you don’t (but do like animals), go to a nearby animal shelter. If you find an animal you like, you can ask to hang out with it. And who knows? Maybe you’ll even end up getting a furry companion! Animals can be a great form of therapy because they are so innocent and pure. They are very forgiving, provide an endless amount of love, and have zero judgment.
12. Cry it out
Crying is a way to release all the built-up emotions you have in your mind and body. Sometimes you just need a good cry session to let everything out. I definitely feel better about myself after I cry things out for a little bit. If it’s just one of those days for you where you do feel on the verge of tears, don’t hold it in. Allow yourself to feel however it is you’re feeling so you can get back to being your best self.
13. Break/Punch something
So if you’re sad you cry, and if you’re angry you can punch something. I keep getting this urge to break some dishes when I don’t feel my best. That is usually a sign that some good old punches or kicks are required.
But if you’d prefer to punch something instead, sign up for a nearby kickboxing class. This can help you relieve a lot of tension…
14. Get some alone time
If you aren’t feeling your best sometimes being alone can be just what you need. This helps you re-center yourself. You also block out all of the outside noise. If you have a judgmental family, a difficult work environment, or just feel super stressed out then being alone can help a ton. Either go to your bedroom and shut the door for the night, go on a hike and shut off your phone, or take a 2-hour long bath for some privacy.
15. Go on an adventure to make you feel better
Sometimes we don’t feel our best because life feels boring. If you’re stuck in the same routine and feel like your life isn’t going anywhere, change it up by going on an adventure. This could mean a trip to the next town over or a road trip vacation. You don’t have to wait for a sign. Depending on how you’re feeling, set up a plan to get out on an adventure and explore something new.
16. Take a mental health day
If you wake up in the morning and just cannot get yourself to go to work, take a mental health day. We all need this from time to time. And don’t feel guilty about it either! A mental health day is amazing when you’re overwhelmed and burnt out. If you know you won’t be able to focus or work productively today, then it’s best to take a break from everything. This can help in so many ways and it can actually benefit your employer because you’ll feel refreshed and recharged after a little mini-break.
17. Get some exercise
Go on a run, take a hike, or do some yoga at home. Your body and mind work together to help you feel your best. Make sure to take care of your body and listen to what it needs. It already knows how to make you feel better, you just need to guide it.
Activities like running or HIIT get your endorphins going and your heart pumping, so you’ll feel better pretty quickly. And if you’re looking to calm down and be more in tune with your body, then yoga, pilates, or a peaceful walk can help you get there.
18. Read a good mental health book
If you enjoy reading like I do and like to focus on self-improvement, here are some of my favorite books to read to help you feel better about yourself:
19. Help someone else
Sometimes what you really need to make you feel better about yourself is to help someone else. Look around your life and see what areas you can help in.
- Are there people in your family who are going through their own struggles?
- Do you have a friend who could use a break from her kids?
Pay attention to other people around you asking for help and lend a hand.
by The Lovely Refinement Team | Aug 28, 2020 | Finding Motivation, Happiness Tips, Self-Improvement
There’s a Japanese word called “Ikigai,” which means “a reason for being,” and which aligns perfectly with the idea of passion projects.
The concept is to find meaning in life, a purpose that guides and directs you, and a cause that makes your existence worthwhile. Of course, this entails plenty of things, including the ability to do something you enjoy while providing a benefit to society and those around you. The big question though is where and how can I find passion project ideas?
Naturally, you’d need to make money to fund yourself and have the needed financial independence to manage something of this magnitude. And this is where passion projects come in.
What Is a Passion Project?
A passion project is a project you work on that aligns with your interests or hobbies, makes money for you, and benefits people around you. It could be your main business or a side hustle, but most often, it starts out as something small that requires a few hours (maybe only one) every day and grows little by little into something big and beneficial. A passion project is a bit more involved than a usual hobby but look at these 13 hobbies as some of them might actually resonate and align with your passion.
What Are the Advantages of Passion Projects?
You might be wondering why someone might want to add just another task on their to-do list with all the ones we can barely keep up with. Well, passion projects are definitely worth it if you pick the right ones. Here is what makes them worthwhile:
1. Boost Happiness
Everyone feels happier when they have a higher sense of control over their life, and that’s exactly what a passion project does. It enables you to pick what the project will be, its goals, its size, the deadlines, the standard you want to live up to, the plan to complete it, when it’s done, and the metric for its success.
2. Keep Yourself Creative
If you only finish work-related tasks throughout your day, how would you be able to think in different ways that aren’t shaped by your job? A passion project keeps your mind active and continuously provides you with fresh perspectives, which, in turn, help you achieve more in your everyday life and possibly your primary job as well!
3. Add Accomplishments to Your Portfolio
This is especially important for people who work in fields that require practical projects, not only certificates and degrees. For example, someone who wants to get a tech job would definitely need a portfolio of all the projects they worked on to prove the experience they’ve gained.
4. Stay Curious and Learn New Skills
If you pursue new ideas, you’ll need to learn skills that enable you to continue working on them and bring them to life. For example, if you want to enhance your writing, you might be looking for a program that collects synonyms and displays them in exemplary sentences.
Well, you could look for one, but a passion project would be to create your own! The possibilities are endless and are all quite promising.
Ideas for a Passion Project
Naturally, the first thing that comes to mind when discussing passion project ideas for students is to start a blog. There’s a high chance anyone reading this already knows someone who has their own blog, and these are pretty easy to start on different hosting platforms like Blogspot/Blogger, WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, and plenty more.
All you have to do is find the topic that interests you the most, like psychology, programming, or fashion, and write everything you know about it. The way I started was by using the “Launch your blog biz” course from the team at CreateandGo.com. This course helped me to build this exact blog you are reading. It’s a simple to understand and comprehensive step-by-step course. Can’t recommend it highly enough.
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Launch a YouTube or Vimeo Channel
I can bet on the fact that almost all of us have thought about becoming YouTubers at one point or another in our lives. If you’re into fashion, you can do “haul” videos, gamers can upload walkthroughs, and bookworms can upload videos of their book reviews.
There’s pretty much something for everyone and every interest. As long as you have something you love and find some free time to get creative about it, you’ll do quite well.
If you’re super talented with artistic work like animations or short films and have storytelling skills, you should totally opt for Vimeo.
Podcasts are the new hype. After all, they fit the modern person’s needs: get a lot of information quickly and compactly. Having your personal podcast is like having a YouTube channel, but it’s all audio, so you have to be a vocal and well-spoken person. But most importantly, you have to be really passionate about the topic you’re going to tackle.
You could tell Greek mythology stories, discuss your favorite books, review movies, or talk about trips and tricks to learn a certain skill that you’re good at.
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Have an Online or Physical Store
An excellent way to make money would be to sell things. I’d recommend an online store for students, but you can still have a physical one if human interaction is an important pillar for you.
There are so many free websites and apps that allow you to run your store such as Etsy (for handmade crafts), Shopify, Amazon, Carousell, or others. I’d recommend that you go through the subscription fees and the rules/regulations to start selling before you venture into that, though.
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Run a Facebook or Instagram Page
An excellent way to make use of your free time doing something you love would be to post on social media, such as Facebook and/or Instagram. All you have to do is post useful and meaningful content, which would be easy for you if you’re writing about topics you’re passionate about.
It’s a great way to build a community with like-minded people, and if you want to get some money out of it, you can definitely do so with some ads, especially if you curate good traffic.
If you’re good at something, like pottery, coding, makeup, you name it; you can definitely make a profit by teaching others how to do it. Holding a workshop is a fantastic way to share your knowledge as well as make some money on the side.
If you don’t have the time, place, or means to hold a workshop, you can replace it with an online course. It’s the same project idea, but you’ll be doing everything online. This means that you need to have incredible social and communication skills.
You can use Instagram (or any photo-hosting website) to start an online gallery of your drawings, paintings, or art. Of course, you can take it to a real-life gallery, but an online one would also be just fine.
This is the most creative of them all. Whether you want to solve a problem by creating something that doesn’t exist yet or modifying an already popular product, bringing your own unique idea to life would be one fantastic way of enjoying and monetizing your passion.
Passion Project Ideas by the Niche
High school students probably have the best head start when it comes to starting a passion project. This is because they have a suitable amount of time for a side project, don’t have something to do full-time, and can spare some effort for a genius hour project.
Middle-schoolers and kids can also benefit from how much free time they have, though their skills are probably still taking shape. So what are some passion project ideas for high school students? Do they differ from passion project ideas for middle-school students? And what about passion project ideas for kids?
I’d recommend online projects like Facebook pages, online stores, or YouTube channels for anyone. And if you want some creative inspiration, here are profitable niches that could serve as a compass and guide you to your future passion project:
For anyone interested in makeup and has a sense of color coordination and beauty, starting an Instagram page that shares tips or a YouTube channel with tutorials would be the perfect side hustle.
Are you a fashionista who knows all about the latest trends? Always flaunting your OOTD (Outfit of the Day, for those who aren’t into fashion)? Or perhaps, you were able to reach the perfect balance between being fashionable and preserving the environment by dressing vegan? These are all perfect ideas for blogs, vlogs, or content in general.
Love testing new games and reviewing them? Want to help other people by walking them through the toughest parts of the gameplay? Then, you have excellent content to share online and benefit from in the long run!
If you’ve built an incredible set of skills when it comes to a craft like pottery, knitting, crochet, or anything similar, then you’ve got a lot to share! People love to check out tips and tricks from passionate and experienced people. If you have those two, you should definitely start a YouTube channel or a blog to share what you’ve learned.
Art could entail creative writing, paintings, illustrations, animation, calligraphy, videography, or photography. It could also refer to performing arts like dance, music, spoken word poetry, and theater.
If you’ve got tips to share regarding these topics, like step-by-step tutorials or recommendations for the best equipment, you can build a strong community and benefit people as well as benefit yourself from this knowledge.
Do you love trying out new restaurants? Cooking unusual recipes? Taking aesthetically pleasing pictures of your favorite plates? You can make use of that by starting a page for it on Instagram, a blog, or a YouTube channel for cooking tutorials.
Do you love camping? Going on hikes? Taking day trips? Do you know all the places, secret spots, or hacks for backpackers or people on a budget? Make use of this information by sharing it online or by becoming a part-time local guide. There are online websites for that, like showaround.com.
Are you a gym rat with fun and engaging workout plans? Do you know the best tips to follow a diet religiously? Have you been through a successful weight loss trip? You can’t imagine the number of people who would love to hear what you have to say about it!
If you’re a thrifty shopper with a good sense of interior design, you will definitely do a good job in terms of home improvement. Plenty of people would love to renovate their room/house but don’t have the budget for it, so if you can give them tips on how to do it, you’ll have an incredibly wide fan base.
Just like home improvement, a lot of people are into DIY jobs as they provide more affordable alternatives to everyday objects. If you’re talented when it comes to building things using cheap materials, this is the niche for you.
This is one topic that everyone needs tips on. So, if you’ve already been through the ups and downs of raising a baby, you can definitely share your experience, tips, and things you’ve learned with other parents who are going through this satisfyingly life-changing journey.
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Personal Development and Self-Care
Self-care, mental health awareness, and improving oneself are all incredible topics that aren’t as tangible as others, which means they’re harder to tackle. If you’ve managed to do that, you can definitely use this knowledge to influence people and help them become better versions of themselves.
Though many people might limit this to career coaches, I think anyone could give career advice, especially those who have managed to shift careers. I think this is one of the most sought-after topics, so if you have information and experience, you can benefit from them.
Do you have advice on how to increase savings? Manage money? Be more thrifty? A lot of people have trouble with their finances, and they could definitely use your two cents!
From product reviews to tech-savvy how-tos and explanations of tech-related topics that aren’t as easy to grasp, the tech niche has endless possibilities, and focusing on a certain concept would widen your base and gain you lots of traffic.
3D printing is the new hype. If you’re into model building and 3D modeling, you can share all the tips and tricks with your audience. And since it’s a very skill-focused hobby with intricate details and complicated processes, it would definitely help that you’re passionate about it, and you’ll have an advantage in this field.
How Do You Write Down Your Passion Projects?
If you’re not sure exactly where to start, here are the general steps you need to follow to bring your passion project ideas to life:
1. Decide the Benefit You Have to Offer
You should prepare a list of benefits that someone could derive from your passion project. How would it help people? Try to think of all the possibilities.
2. List All the Project Possibilities
When you decide on a benefit, set a timer of around 20 minutes to come up with all the ideas you’ll filter through. Keep filtering them until you get to the top 3 ideas.
3. Don’t Divide Your Energy
You might be tempted to start more than one project to have backup options in case one project doesn’t work out. However, I would strongly advise against that. Choosing one thing and committing to it would be a much better route.
4. Set Milestones and Goals
For a project to be fruitful, it has to achieve something and make progress. That’s why you have to decide on short-term goals and long-term ones. Plan on the goals and how to reach them, how to stick to them, and when to decide that you’ve achieved them.
5. Commit to Your Genius Hour
Though deciding on a passion project is pretty hard, it’s only the first step. The tough part actually comes with setting an amount of time per day to work on it and grow it. So, make sure you’ve planned this out really well. Don’t overwork yourself, even if your passion pushes you to do so. Set one hour per day (The Genius Hour) and stick to it.
6. Document the Process
Even if your passion project is not a blog and doesn’t involve journalizing or writing, work on documenting the process. This gives you more credibility and serves as proof of experience and knowledge if you need to use it for future purposes like applying to a college or a new job.
7. Take the Leap of Faith
Most of the time, people are afraid of starting their projects because they think it’s not a suitable time or that they don’t have the means. However, in life, the best time to start something is right now.
Don’t stress yourself with something big or grandiose; just pick something you’re passionate about and love. Stick to the genius hour rule and make sure you’re making progress no matter how small. Remember, slow and steady wins the race.
Final Thoughts
When all is said and done, a passion project turns out to be as simple as it sounds: having a passion for something and then having the consistency and commitment to stick to a project. These two qualities together can guarantee massive success for the idea you’re considering.
Don’t let other commitments or a full-time job weigh you down or stop you; all a passion project takes is an hour of progress per day!
