5 Things I Do On Days When I Don't Feel Good in My Skin
Occasionally, we all experience days when we don’t feel good in our skin. Whether we feel bloated, unattractive, or insecure, having these feelings is part of being human. It’s important though, we those days don’t outnumber the ones when we feel good or at least neutral about our bodies.
On some days, I feel like crap overall - nothing feels right, everything I touch turns to mess, and no matter what I do, I simply don’t feel good enough. On other days, I feel like crap physically - I don't feel good in my body; I feel like nothing I wear looks good on me; I feel like I have the ugliest makeup and hair, and occasionally, I feel like I look like the ugliest person in the world compared to everyone else.
How common these feelings are depends on many factors. I can go weeks without feeling shitty about myself in either way, and then I could feel like crap a few days in a row. However, over the years, I’ve created a few-step routine that helps me to get through those days without making it worse.
So, on those days when I don’t feel good in my skin, here’s what I try to do:
1. I don't fight those feelings, but I don't pick at them either
One of the essential things on my list of steps I try to take on days when I feel especially shitty (either about my body or myself in general) is trying not to fight those negative emotions that I feel. Over the years, I’ve learned trying to fight them makes everything so much worse for me, plust I often don’t really know where they came from. Sometimes there is a particular trigger (like trying on a piece of clothing that doesn’t fit, being bloated for days, etc.) but most of the time, there’s no particular trigger at all - I simply feel shitty. The important part, though, is that yes, I don’t try to fight the emotions, but I don’t pick at them either; I don't ruminate on them, I don't dwell in them, I simply let them be and try not to pay too much attention to them.
More often than not, the negative feelings simply come and go. Those feelings are just temporary; I know they will pass, and I know I don't need to pay them much attention.
2. Try focusing on something other than your body
I found this step especially helpful on times when I A) I feel shitty about my body and B) I’ve been feeling shitty for multiple days in a row. What I do is that I try to shift my focus from my body to something else:
I try to focus more on work and really try to nail the tasks/project at hand
I try to focus more on the podcast and prepare some extra episodes or posts
I try to focus more on my relationships, maybe plan a date night or some trip with my husband
or even do something so simple like listen to music and dance or watch a movie or series I’ve been wanting to watch
It may sound stupid, but it often really helps to shift my mind from those negative feelings to something else completely.
Source: Pexels
3. I wear something I feel comfortable in
On days when I don't feel good in my body, I want to make myself feel as comfortable in my body as possible, so I make sure to wear something that I will make me feel that way. I don’t care whether my outfit is stylish or pretty, I don’t care what anyone may say about it, I simply want to feel good. So whether that’s jeans with an oversized t-shirt or yoga pants and a hoodie, I'm in. Also, on those days, I try to avoid making a mistake I’ve made on multiple occasions - wearing something new/something I’ve never worn before. Wearing something I may feel uncomfortable or insecure in is a risk that I simply don’t want to take.
4. I work out
I know this may sound weird, but hear me out - on those days when I feel shitty about myself, I found working out to be helpful. But not because I would want to change my body or because I’d hate it less or something like that. But for two reasons:
I instantly feel better after finishing a workout because of the spike in endorphins
It helps to shift my perspective from feeling negative about my body to simply my body moving - it gives my body a different purpose, the one I'm grateful for
Whether I'm going to a gym for a short run or I put my headphones on and dance in my apartment (regardless of how embarrassing my dance moves are, lol), I focus on moving my body and how good it makes me feel. I feel so grateful for having a body that allows me to do all sorts of different things, so once my workout is done, the positive feeling remains.
5. I eat “normally”
One really important thing I want to mention is that I try to eat “normally”, regardless of how I may feel about my body. I put eating “normal” in quotes because that’s a relative and subjective term. What I mean by “normal” is my regular eating habits without any extremes (restricting or binge eating).
I know food is fuel, and I need to eat. Skipping meals or binge eating isn't going to help me in any way; if anything, it would only make me feel worse. Plus, I don’t want negative feelings or insecurities to affect how much or how often I eat. I might have woken up in the morning feeling like crap about myself, but that’s not a reason to skip breakfast or have just salad for lunch if I crave something else.
Lastly, a few things I DON'T do:
Now that I’ve talked about things that I try to do on days when I feel like shit about myself and my body, here are a few things I DON’T do:
I don't starve myself
I don't punish myself for eating
I try not to do negative self-talk - I used to make things worse in the past by engaging in negative self-talk, overanalyzing every part of my body, and comparing my body with people on social media
What are your go-to tips for dealing with days when you feel shitty about yourself? Let me know in the comments below. In the meantime, take care and talk to you soon. :)
