Uma Campbell A breakup or divorce can be an emotionally draining and devastating life event. No one ever wants to go through a breakup, but most of us will deal with at least one break up in our lives. You often cannot control a breakup, but you can control how you handle and cope with the event. Even if you can’t change the outcome, you can change the process and aftermath to ensure you come out the other side as healthy as possible. How you handle or cope with a breakup can affect your overall health, so it is in your best interest, in more ways than one, to learn how to make it through breakups in a healthy way. Instead of falling prey to a stress-induced candidiasis issue or wallowing in the post-breakup depression, use these healthy tips and tricks to cope with a breakup.
Natural Feelings
No one should expect you to bounce back right away after a breakup. Dealing with a breakup is a sad, depressing, stressful matter that can affect your mental and physical health. It is perfectly normal to feel these things after a breakup, but there is a difference between normal feelings after a breakup and problematic, disruptive, or unhealthy grief. Even though dealing with a breakup can make you want to abandon regular self-care, you must continue everyday life, so the breakup grief does not fester and worsen over time.
Express And Understand Your Emotions
In the middle of a breakup, your emotions are running wild, and it can be hard to see through the fog. What you feel is valid and real, but it takes time to digest and understand your emotions so you can move forward. While things feel overwhelming, stop, and write down what you are feeling and thinking so you can start to understand the core of what is making you upset. Writing down your thoughts and emotions is a fantastic and safe way to get the chaos out of your head while giving you materials to work with later. Getting over a breakup is not easy, but writing down what you are feeling can help you express your emotions, calm down in the moment, and reflect on the situation so you can start the process of moving on.
Small Steps Matter
It may be cliche, but it is perfectly acceptable to grab a tub of ice cream and curl up with a good movie after a breakup. Selfcare is not selfish, and taking the time to indulge in self-care is a perfect idea after a breakup. Do what feels useful to you, whether that is taking a long bath, ordering from your favorite restaurant, or chatting with a close friend. Do not fall prey to toxic positively and force yourself to pretend everything is fine. It is okay, normal, and encouraged to take your time with self-care, so you have a stable foundation to work with when you are genuinely ready to move on from the breakup.
Force Good Habits
Self-care is essential and a critical part of the recovery process, but it can become detrimental if done incorrectly or improperly. It is natural to get some comfort food after a breakup, but be careful that it doesn’t replace your regular diet. Embrace self-care, but also force yourself to incorporate healthy habits so you can get on the road to normalcy. Even though eating healthy might not sound tempting, a healthy diet will be better for your overall health than pure comfort food. Add a walk around the block to your daily routine, cook a new recipe for dinner that centers on anti-inflammatory foods to help your overall health, and pick up a new hobby you have meant to try. Forcing good habits might feel unnatural or like a chore, but over time these habits will help you move forward after the breakup in a healthy way. There is no magical cure to breakup sadness, but reinforcing healthy habits helps you train yourself to make progress over time, even if it is slow.
Going through a breakup is hard; everyone handles the emotional hardship and stress differently, but everyone can take some healthy steps to cope with a breakup. The first step is accepting that your feelings during these challenging times are valid and real, then you must understand and process your emotions so you can move forward. Write down what you are thinking and feeling to get the chaos out of your head and let you self-reflect later. Small steps of self-care matter and can help improve your mental state. Selfcare is not selfish, so take the time to listen to yourself and practice the care you need. Do not become complacent with self-care and incorporate helpful habits like daily walks and a healthy diet to make your post-breakup recovery even better.
