EP 96: Bouncing Back From a Bad Day

Have you ever woken up to a morning where it felt like everything that could go wrong did? In this episode, host Elex shares a chaotic real-life morning story involving a broken picture frame, stepping barefoot in cat vomit, and managing a panic attack right before an important work presentation. Drawing from insights shared by life coach Kim Maybury of Lilac Farms Life Coaching, Elex breaks down the psychology behind bad days and offers practical, actionable tools to flip your mindset, reset your nervous system, and regain control when life feels overwhelming. Key Takeaways The Brain as a Search Engine: When you tell yourself "today is going to be a bad day," your brain actively searches for evidence to prove you right. Mind Your Prompts: Just like AI tools, your brain relies heavily on the prompts you feed it. Shift the Question: When bad moments stack up, transition from asking "Why is this happening to me?" to "What is this telling me?". Grace Over Perfection: Focus on meeting your basic needs during survival weeks and separate a single bad situation from a bad day or bad life. 9 Tools to Reclaim Your Day 1. The Circuit Breaker: Perform a physical action—like showering, washing your face, or putting on fresh PJs—to signal to your brain that the stressful moment is officially over. 2. Flip the Prompt: Counter negative defaults by asking yourself positive questions, such as "What's the best that could happen?". 3. Micro-Wins & Rewards: Stack small victories (e.g., making your bed or folding laundry) and give yourself something small to look forward to. 4. Protect Your Input: Avoid doom-scrolling, bad news, or sad music when you're feeling down. Curate your environment and feed with positive energy instead. 5. The Grievance Timer: Set a strict 5-to-10-minute timer to vent, cry, or feel your emotions completely before intentionally moving forward. 6. The 5-5-5 Perspective Check: Ask yourself if the situation causing you stress will matter in 5 minutes, 5 days, 5 weeks, or 5 months. 7. Somatic Grounding: Calibrate your nervous system using the 5-4-3-2-1 sensory awareness technique or box breathing (inhale for 4, hold for 4, exhale for 4, hold for 4). 8. The Friend Test: Offer yourself the same grace, empathy, and constructive advice you would give a best friend in the same situation. 9. Dump and Distance Technique: Write out all your unfiltered frustrations on paper to externalize them and trick your brain into feeling like they are handled. Resources: Life Coach Guest Mentioned: Kim Maybury (Lilac Farms Life Coaching) Mental Health Hub: Visit mentalmixology.org for national and local Mid-Missouri resources. Crisis Line: Call or text 988 for immediate mental health support. Enjoyed the episode? Please leave a rating and review on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or YouTube! Be kind to yourself, be kind to one another, and tune in next week for more!