COMIC: Science-backed mood boosters to (almost instantly) snap you out of a funk

In a slump and want to turn your day around? Try these science-backed techniques to help improve your mood in a matter of minutes.

They can help you feel energized when you feel sluggish, calm when you feel stressed or connected if you feel lonely. No special tools or materials required (unless you want to jump in the ice bath!).

Footnotes

1. Is Being ‘Hangry’ Really a Thing ― or Just an Excuse?, Cleveland Clinic, 2021
2. What are the health benefits of watching cute animals?, University of Leeds, 2020
3. What Nostalgia Is and What It Does, University of Southampton, 2013
4. More than a feeling: Autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR) is characterized by reliable changes in affect and physiology, PLOS One, 2018
5. Breaking Up Prolonged Sitting to Improve Cardiometabolic Risk: Dose-Response Analysis of a Randomized Crossover Trial, Med Sci Sports Exerc., 2023
6. Feeling Artsy? Here's How Making Art Helps Your Brain, NPR, 2020
7. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy assessment of reward perception based on visual self-expression: Coloring, doodling, and free drawing, The Arts in Psychotherapy, 2017
8. Jumping into the Ice Bath Trend! Mental Health Benefits of Cold Water Immersion, Stanford Lifestyle Medicine, 2024