How to have a Brilliant Blue Monday
Blue Monday or Blooming Brilliant Monday, every Monday? You decide!
We often look at a new year as a fresh start, but the truth is that a lot of the change, uncertainly and the problems we faced last year are still on going. This is not how anyone wants to start a New Year off.
With the so called ‘Blue Monday’ here I thought it would be a good time to share some motivation and inspiration to help you thrive, boost your mental and emotional resilience and keep well and happy every day of the year.
I don’t know about you, but Monday 11th January was pretty crazy here for us and arrived with a big shock. First Monday of national lockdown V3 with tighter restrictions, homeschooling my boys, juggling life, business, clients and dreams. Plus needing to do all the other things that I normally manage on a Monday like the food shopping, cleaning, admin tasks and generally adjusting from the weekend and easing myself into the week. Not Monday 11th January though, that Monday felt stressful. I was in overwhelm. I found myself constantly saying that ‘I can’t do this’, ‘this is impossible’. I placed an enormous amount of pressure on myself to be able to do it all, to become some super human with unlimited energy and time.
So I took some deep breaths, realigned my thoughts and reminded myself that I can’t do it all, but I can do my best. The pressure eased and life became manageable again.
Brilliant Mondays with Suzi B
So what is Blue Monday? And what sort of wizardry can I perform to make it a brilliant one for you?
Apparently Blue Monday is believed to be the most depressing day of the year. The bluest day of the year. Blue Monday, takes place on the third Monday of January. Created by psychologist, Cliff Arnall, who came up with the concept of Blue Monday in 2004, when he conducted the formula for the January blues. Thanks Cliff, great research.
It’s the time of year when we are supposedly feeling most blue and at our lowest. When we’re thought to be susceptible to feeling down because the weather’s cold, we’re back at work, we’ve got to make up all the money we spent at Christmas, we’re feeling guilty about breaking our New Year’s Resolutions, and our waist bands may be feeling a little tighter? And this miserable analysis was discovered way back in 2004, pre Covid. I suspect if Cliff Arnall ran the stats through his computer now, it, and he would probably have a melt down.
Ironically, blue is one of my favourite colours, it’s the colour of the sky, ocean, sapphires, butterflies, birds, so it surprises me that Blue is also used as an expression for feeling low.
Blue is also associated with the throat energy chakra that is linked to communication, wisdom, truthfulness in our actions and speech, and it helps us to speak our deepest desires.
So if you are feeling a little low today, you’ll be joining many others around the world. So have a scream, cry, punch a pillow, let your emotions flow free, as that’s called being human. But remind yourself that having a bad moment, day, week, doesn’t mean you’re having a bad life.
Try not to worry about the months ahead otherwise you’re living in the future and not in the present. Avoid looking back on the past, that ship has sailed. Be here, in this moment. Look around you, and write everything down that you are grateful for, create a list on your phone, make sure there are no negatives, just positives. If you’re struggling, start with the basics, the comfy chair you’re sitting on, the lovely cup of tea you’ve enjoyed in your nice warm home.
And whilst so many of us find ourselves in different situations, we must remind ourselves to count our blessings every day, re-read your list when you feel you need to. And be thankful for what you have, not sad for what you don’t have. Count your own blessings, not those of others. One of my favourite quotes is: Jealousy comes from counting others blessings instead of our own.
The reality is Blue Monday isn’t true. It’s a made up day based on stats and given a title, it hasn’t been scientifically proven. Although, Mondays do seem to be considered the worst day of the week by many. To me, they symbolise a fresh start, a new week, new beginning, a day to take positive actions to ensure our week gets off to a good a start.
I like to use January to check on my mental and emotional health, overall wellbeing and set some powerful intentions for the year ahead. I also like to reflect on and acknowledge the previous year, and oh what a year 2020 was. (check out my Thrive & Dream Big post to ensure you thrive no matter what’s going on outside)
So rather than automatically think you ‘feel blue’ on Blue Monday or any Monday, you could ‘check in’ and reflect on your mental and emotional wellbeing, your physical and spirit needs, and continue to do this all-year round.
As a family we’ve been checking in on a Sunday evening and discussing ways we can take action and make small changes if things feel out of alignment, or we feel unhappy or stuck in anyway. We find that talking openly about this is useful, and it seems to help us share and talk about our feelings more openly, rather than spending time thinking about a problems and issues. We also keep a gratitude jar that we add to each Sunday. As a family, we enjoy talking about all the good things that have happened in the week and reflecting on this.
Another thing we do in our house is state a positive affirmation before we go to bed. This will be a positive quote, a saying or idea that helps us frame up a positive intention and vision for the following day. For example. ‘Tomorrow we will achieve this…’ or a reminder that we can do things, be kind, love and be happy no matter what day of the week it is.
Although I do these things with my family, they would be just as affective for you to write in your journal on a Sunday evening and reflect back on throughout the week. These techniques will help you to connect to love and gratitude and the help you mentally and emotionally thrive.
Please reach out if you have any questions.
BIG LOVE
Suzi B xxx
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