How To Feel Happier Instantly – 13 Proven Ways

While there are several ways to lift your mood and feel happier instantly ― and luckily, they’re simpler than you think. Lets have a look.

No matter whether you’re actually PMS-ing or had a bad day at work, mood swings are something that has become too regular these days.

Yes, the world feels super crazy at times and I also feel down when it doesn’t seem like anything is going to pick me back up again.

I’m sure that similar things happen to you as well. But let me tell you that even if you’re not waking up in a super-duper happy mood every day, it’s fine.

In fact, it’s natural. Our emotions, like all the others, isn’t always permanent. But when you’re feeling miserable, take a pause and indulge in doing things that you enjoy.

Ways to feel happier instantly:

1. Talk to someone you love.

This is the best healer that I know of, and it always works for me. Most of the time when we feel sad or upset, and something keeps bothering us – it’s good to share it with someone.

Not only will this lessen your burden and declutter your mind, but conversing with someone you love & trust will also make you happier.

2. Try to meditate.

Meditation heals. There are plenty of studies that emphasize the benefits of meditation – whether it’s lowering your stress levels or helping you relax.

Often, we need to empty our mind of the thoughts that make us worry, in order to be happy.

There can be nothing better if you can meditate daily for 15 minutes at least. It’ll surely pump up your positivity, help you concentrate better at work and make you feel happier in general.

3. Hang out with someone who is happy.

Happiness is actually contagious and when you’ll be around folks who’re happy-go-lucky, you can’t afford to be sad. Our choice company affects our mood – thus, spend time with the positive people who make you feel good.

When you need that instant boost of positivity, head towards those smiling faces who’ll just give you a warm hug and crack the silliest jokes to make you happy.

4. Go for a run or try some yoga.

Sweating it out often helps in reducing stress & anxiety, helping us to feel happier. Put on your joggers, plug-in your earphones, and go for a run.

Otherwise, you can just roll out your mat and bend your body for some yoga. Both of these activities will give you an adrenaline rush, and you’ll instantly feel more alive as well as your circulatory system will be very pleased with you!

5. Make a quick gratitude list.

Often, when we are upset, we try to think of all the bad incidents/ decisions in life and link one to another – creating a chain of unpleasant thoughts.

To break free from that, take a paper and a pen – start making a gratitude list.

Write down 10 things that you’re grateful for, at this moment. They might be little things – like a hug from your mother, or a smile exchanged with the liftman, or maybe a hand-made card gifted by your 4-year-old nephew – anything!

6. Go for a digital detox.

Often, spending too much time on social media affects our sanity, making us feel low. It’s quite general to check someone’s feed and thing, “Wow, she’s traveling so much!” or “What a happy couple they are!” or maybe “He looks super dashing, hitting the gym regularly”!

But we tend to ignore the fact that on social media, we only see a part of their lives – and we never know what actually might be the real stories of their lives.

Each and everyone has their share of good and bad things in life, and if you keep comparing yourself to others, you’ll keep being sad. So, take a break from social media whenever needed – limit your time double-tapping people’s pictures and you’ll soon start feeling much happier.

7. Eat some dark chocolate!

Oh yeah, you read that right – eating dark chocolate can make us happy and it’s scientifically proven!

Dark chocolate contains a higher concentration of antioxidants that reduce inflammation, a condition linked to the onset of depression.

That’s the reason why people refer to chocolates as ‘happiness drug’. However, it’s also important to keep a check on your sugar intake and not to eat more than half an ounce of chocolate a day.

8. Read a motivational book.

There must be one book that makes you feel good every time you read it, right? For me, it’s ‘The Book of Simple Living’, by Ruskin Bond. I’ve read the book several times, but every time there’s something new to discover in it – something beautiful to connect with my life.

Motivational books essentially create a positive and optimistic impact on our lives. They boost our confidence and help in developing a positive outlook on life.

At times, when you feel upset & stressed, pick up a motivational book and flip through the pages – you never know, you might just come across some life-changing lines.

9. Cry out loud, if you want to.

While we’re always taught that crying is a sign of weakness, let me tell you that it’s not. In fact, it takes a lot of courage to pour your heart and cry out loud.

It might sound counterintuitive, but research has proved that crying can be therapeutic and lead to a positive increase in mood following the flow of tears.

So if there’s something that’s bothering you for long and you feel like there’s a lump stuck at your throat, loosen up and cry.

No one is gonna judge you for this – and you’ll eventually feel a lot more lighter & happier.

10. Plan for a much-awaited trip.

This surely is one of those things that makes me happy instantly! Whenever I’m upset or depressed with something, I try to shift my focus and start planning a trip. I

can spend hours checking flight tickets and hotels, and if you check my search history, you’ll find links to several travel blogs!

Needless to say, anticipating a holiday can give your brain the rush of energy it needs to get through a particularly stressful day and nothing can be better than getting excited about an adventure ahead of you.

11. Sign up to volunteer for a cause close to your heart.

An act of kindness will not only help others’ but it can make a big impact on your life too. It has been observed that volunteering for a social cause not only improved participants’ well-being and life satisfaction but was also linked to decreased depression & anxiety.

Trust me when I say this, during my volunteering trip to Kenya, the meaning of ‘Happiness’ got redefined for me, as I saw those adorable little ones rushing to hug me every morning.

No matter whether you wish to teach at a local school or help in protecting the environment – taking a small step as a volunteer would make a huge difference.

12. Take a power nap!

You might think I’m joking, but often our mood swings are directly related to extreme fatigue & lack of sleep.

In today’s date, when we are all chasing our ambitions and trying to achieve bigger goals, we tend to pay less attention to our health and cut down on your sleep.

According to science, our body needs at least 8 hours of sound sleep to function well – and if you’re having an anxiety attack or feeling low, it means you need to shut your eyes, breathe and relax for some time.

In short, a power nap is all that your body is asking for, and that’ll also lift up your mood – making you feel energetic, refreshed & happier 🙂

13. Listen to some soothing music.

A study from the University of Missouri has confirmed that listening to music can lift our mood. Create a playlist with your favorite songs, add some soothing instrumental tracks to it and listen to them whenever you feel low.

Listening to music that we can connect to helps the brain to release dopamine – the happiness hormone, and directly affects our mood in the most positive manner.

So now you know what you gotta do when you have to struggle to drag yourself out of bed or feeling terribly low.

These are some of the ‘tried and tested means to be happy’ that have helped me and some of my close people, but of course, things will vary from person to person.

As they say, one medicine can’t cure all – but you must know that you, my dear friend, are a beautiful human being & you deserve to be happy.

Have you tried any of the above-mentioned tricks to uplift your mood? If you’ve some other hack that makes you instantly happy, share that with me in the comments section below. I’d love to hear back from you!