The happy list

There couldn't be a better time to make this post. The reason for that is that lately I've been having quite the hard time in my life. I'm not going to get into too much detail but all I can say is that I had quite a heavy phase of depression. I don't know if anyone noticed but I had this blog blocked for a little while. But I don't want to be all sad here and explain all the reasons.

  For the moment I still can't safely say that it is all over but lately I've been having these random unexpected but very heavy moments of happiness in times and places where there is not that much to be happy about and they've truly been a breath of fresh air. A very huge part of me getting better were the people who either saw that I really needed help and provided the best they could or didn't see anything but not knowingly were there for me when I needed it the most. I could not be more grateful for that. 

  So I'm very happy to make this list of the things that finally do make me happy:

1. Being able to make this list. While being in my very sad moments I would remember that making this list always had made me look on things from a different perspective and it had always made me realize that there are so many thing to be happy about. But  I just could not think of anything  that would make me happy and that would make me even sadder. So I am very very happy to be able to think of things that make me happy! 

2. My orchids blooming. All my life all I could manage to do with plants would be to kill them. But for the past year I've been growing three orchids in my room and last week one of them bloomed!

3. Those few friends that were there for me. I had really really bad thoughts and they made them go away and I couldn't thank them enough (I literally tried to thank them as muchas humaly possible).

4. The laugh I had with my grandma today. I am a type of person that visits her grandparents every week. I love them very much and I know that they won't be around forever so I try to have as much time together as we can. But my grandma is always very worried about everything and even though we talk a lot, we don't usually joke around. However, today me and my grandma had a really nice laugh together and it's really nice to see a different fun side of her.

5. Spending time with my dad. I do not live with my dad and being a medstudent I don't have a lot of free time so I rarely see my dad. I know that I'm 21 and it's time to grow up and find a life, but I really do love my dad a lot and I really enjoy spending time with him (because we have that special father-dauther bond). So doing something with him for a whole afternoon made me really happy.

6. My permit to the university GYM. I had a holiday week and suddenly having all this free time was really confusing to me. However, that meant that I had all the time I wanted to spend working out. Everyday I spent at least 2 hours in there and it was like a personal therapy. It really became my happy place.

7. Reading. This is funny but I'm really happy that I can read. The other day I was cleaning my room. When I was dusting my pile of books, that earlier mentioned random moment of hapiness struck unexpected. I remembered how many joyful moments were brought to me when reading those books and how they can make me travel in time just by reading. And I just couldn't help myself but be really happy that I can read.

8. Becoming an assistant for the speakers in TEDxVilnius. I love love love TEDtalks, I watch them all the time. So this year I decided to become a volunteer for this event. I should have been a normal non-important volunteer but then my friend who is a co-organiser there recommended me for a promotion and I got the assistant duty. So this makes me happy in two ways: first of all, I'm very happy for the job itself, I can't even believe what I'll be doing! But second and even more important source of my joy is that somebody trusted me enough to recommend me for these big resposibilities.

9. This website. It helped me A LOT. And even though I'm better now, I still like to switch it on every free moment I have.

That's all I can think for now but that is still more than I could say a little time back, so I'm grateful for this. I think I should write this list regularly just because I wouldn't sink in sadness no more. This way I would constantly need to think about something happy. But we'll see how that goes.

Thank you for reading!

The happy list #2

Some time ago I did this happy list thing when I found it here. And from then I kinda forgot about it and moved on. But lately I am really into doing lists of... well, of everything! So I thought what could be a better idea, then to again make a list of things that make me happy, so that when I'm down, I could just take a quick glance at my list and remmember that there is much to be happy for and that I should really appreciate it!
So today I'm happy because:
1. Of the sunshine outside my window that appeard for just a minute.
2. It's spring already!
3. I'm in love with my major even when it's hard, even when it's too hard.
4. Of finally going to a french class after more than 2 year-long break and enjoying every single minute of it.
5. Of having chances to dance so many times a week.
6. I'm getting better at my volleyball practice's.
7. Of finally jogging outside in the park and achieving the challenges I set for myself.
8. Having friends with whom I can discuss everything from miracles of the mind to what movies are great to watch. And it  only takes a 30-minute long lunch to do it.
9. Of finding new beautiful music everyday.
10. Today I went to my favorite pizzaria with a very close friend.
11. Of the tea I bought yesterday - it is amazing! 

Love
Kamilė

Like a room without a roof

Today it was finally sunny again. The weather felt so warm that you could go out without gloves and it was nice to just be outside without freezing my ass off (excuse me for the language). When the weather is getting warmer and sunnier, I always feel my mood getting better. All those long gray months can really stress you out. Unlike most people, I really like winter - the snow, the never ending teas, the staying in, getting cozy and watching a movie bundled up in blankets part. But a girl need sunshine, and it's not just me - it's scientifically proven that sunshine makes you produce vitamin D and it's the vitamin of hapyness! So the lack of sunshine really puts all those frowns on our faces during winter. And another thing that I miss during the winter so much is being in the woods. When  it's warm, I spend a lot of time in nature. wether going camping, fishing, mushroom picking, hiking with my dad, or canoeing, horse riding or chilling near some lakes with my friends, I always find myself in the freshness of nature's air. But when it's winter, I don't really get out of the city too much and it starts to drive me more and more crazy when the winter goes on.

So today my mood is really up. But I also learned to handle my problems and my mood not being so dependent on the sunshine. So here's my personal tips on how to stay focused and happy happier while still waiting for spring to come:

1. Go to bed and wake up earlier. I know that everyone's sleep is really different - some people need a lot of sleep, some are fine with just a few hours, but for me (when sleeping the same amount of time) getting to bed earlier means that I'll wake up more motivated and fresh.

2. Go to bed tired. The first tip will not work if you go to bed when you're not sleepy at all and just waste time rolling around and getting irritated of not getting to sleep. My days are hard so I always feel tired even about 4 hours before bed. But if you have a sitting job and use your car getting to places, you should do a little exercise or jog a little about an hour before bed. It will make you fall asleep faster and your sleep will be sounder.
If you don't have an idea what moves you should do during an exercise, you can check out my pinterest "no more excuses" board to find some that suits you.

3. Yoga. Do some easy yoga right after waking up. It makes your blood flow a bit faster and awakens you. It also burns fat and stretches your muscles - which feels really nice in the morning.

4. Eat healthy (or at least healthier). I used to make myself feel better or energized by eating a lot of sweats. Now I seek comfort in fruits and vegetables, even though I didn't give up on eating sweats (but I use them less).

5. Think positive. You'd be surprised how your thoughts affect you. Stop thinking "I can't" and start saying "I can!". It sounds cheesy, but a different attitude makes problems disappear and there are only challenges to step over. And the feeling when you overcome yourself is one of the best feelings ever.

I hope these tips will come in handy to you, 'cause they surely work for me!

Love, Kamile