A divorce is a life-altering event that can leave many people feeling empty when all is said and done. Despite the many changes that come along with divorce, there are things you can do to get yo ur groove back and make your life even better than it was before you got divorced.
Get busy. The worst thing you can do is sit around the house and watch TV all day. Keeping busy will not only keep you from thinking about the end of your marriage but will also open up new doors. Fill your schedule with dinners with friends. Get out and meet new people; consider taking up a hobby that maybe you hadn’t had time to explore.
The possibilities are endless. As you’re keeping busy and finding new activities you’ll start reinventing yourself and may discover interests and skills you never knew you had. Think of this time as a beginning, not an end. When you do, you’ll see the difference.
Get control of your finances. All of your joint bank accounts and credit cards should have now transformed themselves into your own personal accounts. This can be overwhelming, especially if you have leftover expenses from the divorce that you are still trying to pay.
If you weren’t the one who maintained the family finances and checkbook, you may feel an extra weight on your shoulders. While you can try to navigate your finances on your own, you may also want to look into getting a financial advisor to help. He or she will sit down with you and help determine your expenses as well as how much you should be trying to save each month. Once you set a budget and new financial goals, you can begin to manage things on your own. It’s an empowering feeling to be in control of your finances.
Start a journal. Anyone will tell you it’s not good for you to keep all of your feelings and emotions bottled up inside; you need to have an outlet. For some people that outlet is social media. But, that venue is not the best to share, or in many cases overshareyour most private thoughts. Writing in a journal is a better alternative. You receive the benefits of getting your feelings out without the whole world having access to them on social media.
Work out. If you worked out when you were married and through your divorce then you know about the benefits of exercise and those feel-good endorphins that it releases. If you have never worked out, there’s no time like the present. Those feel-good endorphins are just what you need to help get you out of the slump you may be falling into.
Scientific studies have shownthat regular participation in aerobic exercise can decrease overall levels of tension, elevate and stabilize mood, improve sleep, and improve self-esteem. It only takes about five minutes of aerobic exercise to stimulate anti-anxiety effects!
Practice self-care. Self-care is incredibly important both during and after your divorce. You can practice self-care by doing the things that make you feel good; this can come in many shapes and forms. Perhaps you want to have a spa day or buy a new outfit or get lost in a new book. Maybe you want to do something as simple, yet rewarding, as taking a hot bath.
Also in the category of self-care are things like getting enough sleep, not drinking too much, and eating healthy.This is a great time to get back on track; take the time to do it and you’ll feel that much better.
Remember, you can get your groove back after divorce. Treat the process as a marathon, not a sprint and you can achieve anything!
