We’ve all had that day when nothing is going right. You’re still lying in bed at 1 p.m., you aren’t particularly hungry, and the best description of your mood is “I don’t want to.” When walking around campus, it’s usually easy to just put your best face on and pretend you’re an incredibly productive individual. We can pretend that we’re feeling okay as much as we can, but sometimes we just need to be alone and with our own thoughts. For a while, I thought the remedy was to lie around and binge-watch Netflix all day. I did this up until I realized the wonders of retail therapy.
I realize the negative connotations of retail therapy. When you think of retail therapy, you picture an annoying girl that calls herself a shopaholic walking around the mall with a ton of shopping bags. Get this out of your head immediately. Retail therapy is a way to make yourself feel better while also making it feel like you’re being a productive adult. It is officially time to get out of bed and go shopping alone.
The best way to approach therapy of the retail variety is to not spend a ton of money to try and make yourself feel better, because you’ll just have buyer’s remorse. You can go to Bath and Body Works and load up on yummy smelling lotions or buy a really cute pair of shoes that are on sale. Buy items that are going to make you feel really good after the “high” of buying them wears off. I’ve also realized that shopping for clothes isn’t the best idea when I’m trying to accomplish retail therapy. It seems that when I’m in a bad mood I don’t feel great about how I look, and trying on clothes can sometimes make me feel worse.
I honestly can’t explain why retail therapy works, but somehow, it does. Every day won’t be the best day of your life, but you can stay positive and try to make the day better. Retail therapy is an excellent solution to short-term mental health problems and making your day just a little bit more productive. Mental health problems, however, sometimes last for more than just a day. This is an issue very close to my heart, and listed below are resources you can reach out to if mental health isn’t your strong suit. Remember: You are all beautiful and incredible women, and you can do anything you set your mind to.
Additonal sources:
1. http://www.mentalhealth.gov/
2. http://activeminds.org/issues-a-resources/mental-health-resources
3. http://www.counseling.ufl.edu/cwc/
Photo credit: shoppertunity.com