I don't know about y'all, but when the cool air finally hits I'm usually too stressed to take it all in and get excited for the pumpkin spice lattes. It seems like a pretty common phenomenon, as the school year ramps up we all start getting susceptible to the last thing we need impacting our hectic schedules: the mean reds. Or, in the real world, those days where you have to remind yourself that you do actually like what you study, and that the other 99% of the time you are interested in what's going on around you. Last week I got hit with one of those days and there are a few tried and true tricks that help me pull myself out of it that I wanted to share here. 

1. Watch your favorite movie. Whether it's Breakfast at Tiffany's, Frozen, or Star Wars, sometimes taking a break and getting sucked into your favorite movie (or book) is just what you need to get your head back in the game 

2. Take a long shower. This is one of my favorites because it is one of the most relaxing things I can do for myself. Sometimes it's the perfect escape and lets me just think through everything that's getting me down or stressing me out. Plus, who doesn't feel better after a good session of shower singing? Come on, you know you do it. Everyone does, and if someone says they don't, they're lying. 

3. Spend a couple of hours with friends. Sometimes you need to just take a break, step away from the work and the to do lists as well as the personal drama that we all get bogged down in. I've noticed that, for me, late night conversations almost always end up in talking about ideas, goals and aspirations. Often these conversations are the sounding board that help me realize that that "stupid idea" I had that just had to be out of reach, isn't as far away as I thought. 

4. Realize that sometimes these won't work. Sometimes the mean reds will last longer than just a day. Sometimes it's because there's something larger on your mind, or there are just too many things going on at once and the only way to make yourself feel better is to keep pushing through it. You know what? That's okay, and here's why:

5. Realize you don't have to be "on" or happy all the time. We live in a time where we are surrounded by everyone else's high light reel thanks to social media and constant communication. It's not a new sentiment. You don't always have to be okay or happy. You don't have to be smiling every time you're face to face with another person, because you know what? You're a person too. As long as you can generally say that you are happy with who you are as a person, then anything else you want is attainable.