Most of us feel grumpy once in a while. It’s impossible to feel sunny all the time – because gray mood clouds float in and out of everyone’s life. And that’s perfectly okay. In the long run, responding to an annoying or disappointing situation with the appropriate emotions is better for your mental health. 

Don’t Suppress Your Feelings

Imagine these scenarios; your partner forgot Valentine’s Day, the plumber charged 50% over his estimate, you’ve been passed over for a well-deserved promotion. How do you feel?

If you try to stay upbeat and not let these situations “get you down,” that tendency can lead to feeling sad and frustrated later on. New research shows several good reasons to let your crabby side out. 

From an evolutionary perspective, every emotion has its place depending on the circumstances, especially bad ones. For instance, stress and anxiety push us to be more alert and perform at a higher level. Sadness helps your mind recover from grief. Disappointment means you have goals and allows you to make realistic, informed choices.

Responding with anger is not a bad idea in an annoying situation where anger is justified. Short-term anger can trigger feelings of certainty and control. In some cases, people who react with anger feel more optimistic. The key is keeping your anger below a boil.

And let’s consider the case for being an occasional pessimist instead of an eternal optimist. Pondering the worst-case scenario has some clear advantages.

Pessimists seem to be better negotiators and more discerning decision-makers.

Optimists tend to downplay the possibility of adverse events, which dims attention to detail, saps motivation, and makes you more susceptible to deception. Positivity is can also encourage a few harmful behaviors like excessive drinking, overeating, and unsafe sex. 

Only looking for the positive in every situation might seem like the way to a happier life. Anger, sadness, and disappointment may be uncomfortable emotions, but those feelings serve valuable purposes. Accepting those feelings without judging yourself and understanding that they have value leads to better mental and physical health. 

Chronic mood disorders such as anxiety and depression cause prolonged emotional suffering and require professional intervention and mental health support. Negative emotions that are positive- are transient. They are the cloudy skies that gather over your life circumstantially and only for a few hours or days. They don’t threaten your long-term well-being and don’t impose on your loved ones’ lives.

If you wake up to your neighbor’s barking dog at 5 am, it’s perfectly okay to feel irritated. If that irritation lingers throughout the day, your grumpiness has gone a little too far. Try meditation, deep breathing, or going for a walk to gain peace of mind.  

Nourish Your Brain

Your brain processes a mind-boggling amount of information, all day, every day, and it needs specific nutrition to operate at its peak.

A brain not adequately nourished may experience memory loss and brain fog  – which could be the reason you’re overly irritated when you misplace your keys – again. Perhaps it’s time to consider a quality brain health supplement. 

Stonehenge Health’s Dynamic Brain provides potent dosages of essential vitamins and minerals that the brain needs every day. Dynamic Brain also contains cognition-enhancing ingredients like Bacopa, Choline, and Huperzine-A shown in studies to help improve your memory. _^(1-3)

There’s nothing more irritating than misplacing your keys, forgetting someone’s name, or not being able to get the right words out. If that’s happening to you more and more, getting back to a good memory may lead to you feeling less frustrated over the little things and feeling like you’re in more control.

 

Sources:
1. C., Stough, Nathan P., Lloyd J., Clarke J., Hutchison C., Downey L., and Rodgers T. 2001. “The Chronic Effects Of An Extract Of Bacopa Monniera (Brahmi) On Cognitive Function In Healthy Human Subjects”. Psychopharmacology 156 (4): 481-484. doi:10.1007/s002130100815.
2. “Nutritional Importance Of Choline For Brain Development”. 2021. Journal Of The American College Of Nutrition. tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0
3. Mei, Zhengrong, Peiying Zheng, Xiangping Tan, Ying Wang, and Bing Situ. 2017. “Huperzine A Alleviates Neuroinflammation, Oxidative Stress And Improves Cognitive Function After Repetitive Traumatic Brain Injury”. Metabolic Brain Disease 32 (6): 1861-1869. doi:10.1007/s11011-017-0075-4.
4. nationaltoday.com/do-a-grouch-a-favor-day/
5. goodtherapy.org/blog/value-of-anger-16-reasons-its-good-to-get-angry-0313175
6. bbc.com/future/article/20211214-the-surprising-upsides-of-foul-moods
7. livescience.com/459-anger-good.html
8. sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0022103108000693