A few days ago, I took a personality test that told me I was a “defender.” Defenders want to do things right but can quickly become overwhelmed. Well, that kind of suits me.
Nevertheless, I know how important it is to build resilience and deal with negative feelings (here‘s a short article about resilience), so I do the following things when I feel sad and/or stressed.
- Meditation. I have a special cushion and a scented candle, and I use those when I listen to Meditation Mountain on Spotify. Guided meditations are my preferred type.
- Journaling. I have a gratitude journal where I write five things I’m grateful for that day. Every once in a while, I read previous entries, as they help me remember great things (and small things) for which I’m grateful. I also have a regular journal where I write about my feelings and the things that happened during the day. The regular journal is especially useful when I get stuck or paralyzed.
- Video games. I give myself time to do things I enjoy. Some weeks, I’m so busy that I don’t play anything, so I try to enjoy every minute that I can dedicate to video games, as I know they are not common, and they help me relax (a lot).
- Extra: Biking. Even if I’m just an amateur, I enjoy biking around Bogota. I should do this more.
- Extra 2: Talking with people I love. I am not a fan of talking about myself (ironically, I have a blog), but I am lucky to have people I can count on and share my feelings with. Isolating ourselves does no good. Reach out.
Coping with negative feelings is hard, so I hope you can heal and recover from all the bad things in your life. I hope we get more resilient and (why not?) happy.
PS: Let me share with you a funny compilations of funny animals (and some mean animals) so you can smile for a while 🙂 The video doesn’t belong to me but to The Pet Collective.
About the Author:
I’m Astrid, a biologist who made a career shift to become a virtual assistant and an accountability partner. My journey from the world of science to customer service and freelancing has given me a unique perspective on life, and I sometimes share it here on WordPress.
Do you need a capable and reliable accountability partner? Contact me on Fiverr or LinkedIn.
Latest posts
-
What Biology Can’t Decide for Us: The Making of a Good Person
What does it mean to be a good person? View all responses Being a good person is not simply about what kind of brain you were born with. Biology clearly plays a role. Genetics and… Read more
-
Multitasking is overrated… and not good. An opinion
Focusing on one thing at a time is way better, although complicated nowadays. What do you think about multitasking? Read more
-
Technology is training your attention span… to shrink
Recent headlines might make you feel like your brain is failing you, or maybe you have noticed on your own. Well, that’s not surprising. On August 20, 2026, new coverage of Dr. Gloria Mark’s research… Read more
Leave a short reply here! This helps a small content creator.