This post originally appeared in September 2019.

Sometimes it’s good to get back to basics. How do you handle your down days? Below are my top ten tips for outwitting life daily. I need them right now.

As a breast cancer survivor, I found that all you need are lipstick and an eyebrow pencil to feel better. It is amazing the difference they make in your appearance! I learned this in the American Cancer Society’s “Beautiful Me” class. It was free and taught survivors how to apply makeup to look good and feel good about themselves.

Not being a makeup person before cancer, the class taught me how to apply makeup to get the effects I desired. It was a sad group. Twelve of us were in a conference room, all at various cancer stages. Every woman had that pale white glow and wore a head scarf or hat. Talk about depressing!

Five years ago, sitting at that table, I was suddenly struck with how did my life come to this? It was surreal.

Have you found yourself in a similar place? Perhaps at a grief group, an unemployment seminar, or a support group where the reality of your situation suddenly hits you? It can be pretty overwhelming!

Top Ten Tips For Outwitting Life

Here are ten ideas to help handle challenging days.

• Surround yourself with positive people – Stay away from people whose glass is half empty. Surround yourself with positive people that lift you and make you feel good.
• View your cancer (grief/challenge) as a detour in your life, not a dead-end – believe your situation is temporary. You are going to fight like hell and be a winner.
• Look for silver linings – Has this challenge brought you closer to your family? How about your faith? Is it allowing you to focus on what’s important to you?
• Each day is new; go moment by moment if you have to – If you have to, make a pact that you will not cry for the next hour, half-hour, or minute – DO IT. Wake up every day believing it will be a good day even if yesterday was awful.
• Get outside and breathe fresh air daily- Doing this in your PJs/bathrobe is okay! Just get yourself outside every day. The fresh air will help you.
• Listen to your favorite music – Put on whatever music makes you feel good. Find a Christian radio station and blast the alleluias! Music can change your mood instantly. Just don’t listen to any sad country songs. Lol!
• Choose happiness -You can wake up every day and choose to be happy. Do something right away that makes you happy. Create an affirmation for yourself that you repeat every morning. Control the thoughts in your head!
• Keep a gratitude journal – We all have something we are grateful for, no matter how bad things seem. Practice gratitude by writing down one thing (or more) you are thankful for daily.
• Celebrate small wins – Are you halfway thru chemo? Did you not cry this morning? Celebrate yourself with a treat. Eat some ice cream or get a foot massage; do something to recognize your accomplishment.
• Put on lipstick and eyebrows – If you look good, you feel better. Who cares if you are not going out. You can look good for yourself. Not to leave out the men – shave and put on some aftershave. You’ll smell good and look handsome.

Staying Positive Is Not Easy

I put the above tips into practice almost daily. The internet has a plethora of articles on staying positive. Here is one I like: https://www.healthline.com/health/how-to-think-positive.

I know how hard it is to live when you are demoralized by your situation. It would be best if you believe things will get better, so they will (can). Life is full of challenges; our only control is how we react. I encourage you to embrace the changes your challenge brings.

If you had told me five years ago that I would have breast cancer, lose my job and identity, nearly die from Sepsis, and be forced to sell our dream home, I would have called you crazy. Ditto if you told me I would suffer from depression and not get out of my pajamas or off the couch many days.

Deal With Your Reality

However, those things did happen, and I am still here! I figured out ways around my challenges, beginning with my earlier tips. It hasn’t been easy, and I expect it will continue to be complicated. But knowing I have these “tools” to use when I need them is comforting. They work; I am proof.

One of the biggest takeaways from my cancer experience is that you are never too old to try something new. Learning is everything to me now. Sometimes I don’t have enough time in the day for everything I want to explore. There is so much to learn between books, podcasts, and online courses. A new world has opened up to me.

Stop Thinking About the Past, Live Now

Why didn’t I figure this out before? I feel like I wasted so many years. Recognizing the opportunities before me, I am working double time now, absorbing all the knowledge I can. It makes me so happy! I once heard, “If you can accept your past, and realize it’s too late to change it, then the real healing can begin.” That makes a lot of sense to me.

Do you take advantage of learning new skills when you can? Have you started any recent hobbies lately? How would you spend your days if you had all the money you need? What is your dream job? Please do not wait for an illness or tragedy to explore these things. Life is too short.

If the above paragraph piques your interest, you might also enjoy a post I wrote last summer, https://www.outwittinglife.com/defining-your-lifes-purpose-after-cancer-or-tragedy/. It explores defining your life purpose after a tragedy.

Kindly comment below if anything I have said here resonates with you. We all deal with challenges, and while mine is breast cancer, these tips can help you face any obstacle. I hope you found one or more of them useful today.