We’ve all experienced the ultimate crappy mood. If you’re reading this post, it means that you are human. And because you’re human, you will undeniably have access to (and utilize) the entire spectrum of emotions while you are here on Earth.

And while we will all have many beautiful moods that we wish we could capture in a bottle to be able to access any time, the reality is that we will have an equal amount of access to the darker moods – the ones that don’t always feels so good but ultimately have the ability to help us grow and expand.

So, back to the crappy mood. I’ve definitely had some of these lately. They are the kind where it feels like nothing will ever feel right again – the kind where you just know that you’ll never feel joy again – the kind where you can’t imagine ever feeling light and free. Yep, those kinds of moods.

And, what I’ve noticed is that when I accept these moods as a part of being human, they tend to not carry as much weight. When I am able to step away from them (just a tiny bit, even), I can feel how they will eventually pass. I am even getting to the place where I can embrace and feel a little bit of gratitude for the mood while it’s there because I know that it’s helping me learn more about myself and recognize how I’m feeling.

This awareness hasn’t come overnight. And it’s still something I’m working through, to be completely honest.

But  it is happening.

And the most powerful part of this is to know that if I am able to find gratitude (even the littlest bit) in such an emotionally rocky moment – and if I can feel and fully experience how that little bit of gratitude is helping me to embrace the mood, then I can find gratitude in any moment of my life. 

And knowing that has really helped me a lot lately. It’s helped me see that I truly do have access to gratitude in every single situation in my life – not just the happy, rose-colored, everything-is-absolutely-perfect experiences, but in the messy, dark, bleak experiences as well.

That feels SO good to realize! It’s absolutely wonderful and empowering and freeing and light.

Because of this awareness, I no longer fear or resist or run from my darker moods. I am able to allow them, reflect upon them, and feel grateful for them. 

Now, this doesn’t mean that I’m welcoming them with open arms or inviting them to stay for as long as they want or seeking them out and looking for ways to feel them more often. 🙂 It just means that if and when they show up, I might as well make the best of it and make them feel welcome rather than resist them or stuff them or do everything in my power to avoid them. I know that doing this always makes me feel worse, which oftentimes will prolong the bad mood.

Also, I’m not saying that when I’m in a bad mood, I instantly embrace it and feel grateful for it and go from a 1 to a 10 (where 1 is the crappiest mood of all and 10 is the best mood of all) in a few seconds (or even minutes). I’m just saying that if I look for even the tiniest speck or ounce or teeny piece of goodness in that bad mood – if I shine the smallest bit of gratitude on it – then I feel a bit of relief. And that relief turns into a little bit more. And a little bit more. And I have stopped the downward spiral from continuing. I have stopped the momentum.

That feels really amazing to know that I have the ability to do this. To know that we all have this ability.

It’s a choice that we get to make in each and every mood that we’re experiencing. We get to decide if we want to feel open or constricted. We get to decide if we want to feel unhappy or grateful. We get to decide if we’re going to accept or resist.

I’m finding that gratitude is the way toward complete acceptance and complete relief, which is a beautiful way to feel (bad mood or not). 

I wish that for each of us – to find some relief in each part of our life. Adding in even just the smallest bit of gratitude will help us do that. I promise. 

Hugs,