{"id":272080,"date":"2026-01-30T14:59:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-30T14:59:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/272080\/"},"modified":"2026-01-30T14:59:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T14:59:08","slug":"feeling-a-bit-blah-how-to-get-your-spark-back","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/272080\/","title":{"rendered":"Feeling a bit blah? How to get your spark back"},"content":{"rendered":"

We all struggle to see the bright side sometimes, and even things we usually enjoy suddenly seem flat. It doesn\u2019t necessarily mean we\u2019re depressed \u2013 just feeling a bit \u2018blah\u2019.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s actually a word to describe this feeling: anhedonia, which comes from Greek, meaning \u2018without pleasure\u2019.<\/p>\n

Journalist and author Tanith Carey decided to look into it, after going through a \u2018blah\u2019 phase herself \u2013 and now she\u2019s written a book on the subject, called Feeling \u2018Blah\u2019? Why Anhedonia Has Left You Joyless And How To Recapture Life\u2019s Highs.<\/p>\n

Carey says that while depression is at one end of the spectrum and happiness at the other, the “grey space” in the middle, where many of us live our lives, is never discussed. “And because we don\u2019t address it, and keep accepting it as the status quo, we get stuck in a rut in this grey middle.”<\/p>\n

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In the book, she delves into how a number of things may contribute to feeling \u2018blah\u2019 \u2013 including stress, burnout and physical health issues. It could also be a legacy of childhood experiences, where you subconsciously learned it\u2019s unsafe to feel joy in case it\u2019s snatched away.<\/p>\n

Our diets may contribute too, impacting gut microbes, which are recognised as being linked with brain chemistry.<\/p>\n

“With all this to contend with, it\u2019s even more important we find ways to beat \u2018blah\u2019 and set out to find ways to circulate feel-good chemicals again,” says Carey.<\/p>\n

Wondering how? The author shares the following suggestions for banishing \u2018blah\u2019\u2026<\/p>\n

1. Take screen breaks to dial down cortisol<\/p>\n

We need cortisol, a stress hormone, to get us going. But when cortisol is consistently high, it never gets a chance to reset \u2013 and one of the reasons for this is constantly checking our phones (a recent study by Nottingham Trent University found we check our phones an average 85 times a day).<\/p>\n

“The deluge of notifications and messages constantly raises our levels of cortisol and tells us we need to get ready for threats, even when we\u2019re in no immediate danger,” says Carey. “Over time, this helps dampen down the action of feel-good chemicals like dopamine and serotonin.”<\/p>\n

After a spike, cortisol levels may be elevated for around an hour, so Carey advises people reset by taking a screen-free break of this length every day to relax.<\/p>\n

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2. Always have something to look forward to<\/p>\n

It feels good when you anticipate something you want, and then get it. Carey says this circulates the feel-good neurotransmitter dopamine around the brain\u2019s reward pathway.<\/p>\n

“One of the key ways to boost dopamine is by looking forward to things,” she says. “So every week, have at least one activity in your diary you\u2019re looking forward to, whether it\u2019s coffee with a friend, or a visit to a favourite beauty spot.”<\/p>\n

3. Write a no-do list<\/p>\n

Carey says research shows people need two hours of leisure activity a day to be happy, and a good way of finding that time is by redrawing your to-do list. She suggests writing a list of all the things you do every week, and asking yourself if you really need to do them, or are they just expected of you? Then decide which ones to cross off and which to delegate.<\/p>\n

“As you decide what tasks to drop, check there won\u2019t be any negative consequences for you, or anyone else, as a result,” she advises. “But once you\u2019ve slimmed down your task list, you\u2019ll feel lighter and more able to enjoy your downtime.”<\/p>\n

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4. Shake it up<\/p>\n

The brain releases more dopamine when it\u2019s seeking out or experiencing something new, says Carey. “As well as always having something in your diary to look forward to, search out regular novel experiences, like visiting a place you haven\u2019t been before or trying an activity for the first time.”<\/p>\n

5. Look around when you go for a walk<\/p>\n

When you\u2019re out walking, are you still checking your phone and thinking about your to-do list? Carey explains that researchers at the University of Southern California asked groups of walkers to really notice nature\u2019s details when they took a 15-minute walk once a week, and to take pictures of what they enjoyed seeing. After two months, they were found to be much happier and more socially connected than walkers who did the same weekly walk, but weren\u2019t asked to pay attention to what they saw and were allowed to keep using their phones instead.<\/p>\n

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6. Listen for birdsong<\/p>\n

We\u2019re wired to take notice of the sounds of nature for our survival, says Carey. “According to a 2022 study by researchers at King\u2019s College London, listening out for birdsong, even if it\u2019s recorded, improves mental wellbeing in as little as two weeks.”<\/p>\n

7. Sing along to your favourite chorus<\/p>\n

Carey says one of the easiest ways to get dopamine circulating is to sing along to a song you love, especially if it has a big chorus. “Your dopamine levels build as you anticipate your favourite bit,” she explains. “To get the maximum effect, sing along with others too, whether it\u2019s in a choir, at a concert or a football match \u2013 studies have found singing with others increases the release of the bonding chemical oxytocin as well as stress-relieving endorphins, for a triple whammy.”<\/p>\n

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8. Chat with new people<\/p>\n

Having small talk with people you don\u2019t know may sound awkward, but it helps blast \u2018blah\u2019 feelings, promises Carey. She says studies have found that although we expect to feel happier if we\u2019re left alone on public transport, when we strike up a conversation with a stranger, the opposite is true. We enjoy our journeys much more and feel happier and more connected afterwards.<\/p>\n

Feeling \u2018Blah\u2019? by Tanith Carey is published by Welbeck. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"We all struggle to see the bright side sometimes, and even things we usually enjoy suddenly seem flat.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":272081,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[103,61,60,410,411],"class_list":{"0":"post-272080","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mental-health","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-ie","10":"tag-ireland","11":"tag-mental-health","12":"tag-mentalhealth"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272080","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=272080"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272080\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/272081"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=272080"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=272080"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=272080"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}