This post was originally published for Self-Therapy Month at Techealthiest.
It's crazy how fast time seems to zip by during the summer months. It feels like I'm jumping from weekend to weekend with small obstacles placed in between.
All of the sudden time comes to a screeching halt and it's September again, but it doesn't have to be a depressing transition back to real life as summer starts to wind down.
I'm going to show you how to create a September to remember.
All it takes is a few simple life tweaks to ride your summer momentum into the sobering, back-to-work reality that is September.
Here are six smart tips for creating a therapeutic end of summer:
1) Momentum, momentum, momentum. Stay in motion. Don't slow down when life gets more serious after Labor Day. Keep on moving. The happiest people on Earth always stay in motion. They avoid states of inertia by engaging in frequent activities that feel meaningful and productive. Go outside of your movement comfort zone for a short time each day. Treat your mind and body to a good sweat. Extend your workouts or neighborhood walks. Seeing yourself as committed to stating in motion will generate a wave of self-care momentum that will carry your happiness deep into the colder months.
2) Replicate what relaxed you during the summer. Choose one or two calming summer activities and commit to replicating them in September. For example, if you enjoyed reading at the beach, then take out your lawn chair after your responsibilities are complete and read outside. If you were a social butterfly this summer, then invite your friends over for a September social gathering at your place.
3) Create anticipation by planning events. There's nothing sweeter than anticipating unique occasions planned for the not-so-distant future. Schedule a concert to attend in late September. Plan an awesome hiking day trip. Treat your coworkers to a backyard BBQ. Anticipation is a wonderful end of summer depression buster. Period.
4) Restart your attention to the minutia of life. It's quite common to let things slide over the course of the summer. After all, when you're in a summer time warp, it simply feels like there's no time for anything. Clean up a mess or two that you created over the past few months. This will grant you a welcomed sense of control and neatness. If you feel organized at the start of September, life will continue to feel lighter even if your summer high begins to fade.
5) Jumpstart that powerful morning routine you've been promising yourself. What better way is there to create an new source of happiness than to commit to a solid morning routine? How you construct your morning sets the stage for the day. Get in the habit of sitting with your own thoughts at the edge of the bed for a few minutes when you first wake up. Complete a small task to perfection to give yourself a sense of control and mastery. Play a fight song that motivates you to get going. Sweat a little bit with some brief exercise. Get outside of your early morning comfort zone and you'll love life more than you do now. It will also anchor you if your mood and motivation happen to drop dip a little bit.
6) Start a journal in September. Add a daily routine of writing your thoughts down in the morning or during your commute. Just 10 minutes of journaling a day significantly improves your mood and enhances your intelligence. You can reflect on your summer and have a permanent record of all of the cool things you did which you would normally forget if you didn't write them down.
Try these six steps and you'll feel the difference. Preserving the glory of summer doesn't take a lot of effort, just some smart planning.
Use these suggestions to fend off the blues when life begins to feel heavier for you and the days begin to shorten.
Any other September suggestions that work for you? Please do share.
Techealthiest is an exciting blog dedicated to teaching the technology of health and happiness. Learn innovative tips and strategies for improving your relationship, including the impact of your digital world on love and marriage.
Dr. Greg Kushnick is a Manhattan psychologist in private practice. He employs enhanced CBT techniques to help one New Yorker at a time. He has extensive experience working with people to alleviate their depression.