A whole bunch of people has said I need time off. I got news for you.  "Time off" does not make me feel better.  EXPRESSING myself makes me feel better.

Now what makes YOU feel better?

Breathing. I know it's so simple, but it works.

That is pretty funny, not "funny haha", but "oh, interesting". I was just talking about this with a co-worker today that can barely take a week off of work because she can't handle that much time off.

Time off (alone time, bath time, reading, writing time, etc) always makes me feel better. I have got to have it to recharge the batteries. Also, I like physical stuff (to help ground me, since I'm always in the clouds) such as home cooked meals, fragrances, soft blankets, etc. All that stuff makes me feel better, and it makes me want a nice hot bath followed by wine tonight...

Expressing my feelings. Talking to friends. NOT getting advice.

I can relate.  For me time off is either a nice long car ride alone,  or a huge pile of firewood with an axe.  It can go either way, depending on the emotion. 

Oh one more thing, PLEASE   Elsa can you tell me again what is going to happen to people who refuse to do their dirty work and refuse to step away from the dead thing. It's not that I wasn't listening,  its just that my anatomy prof is hell bent on getting us to memorize every damm part of the nervous system,  that includes the brain.  Now you know why mine  blew a head gasket.  LOL 

Happy Thanksgiving and may you find your definition of the word peace.

Ranting, OR getting time alone and away from the people who are driving me up the wall.

"Elsa can you tell me again what is going to happen to people who refuse to do their dirty work and refuse to step away from the dead thing."

They are going to get hit by a truck.

Expressing myself -- absolutely. And one thing that drives me nutty is when I express myself and others offer opinions/advice. I de-friend people on Facebook for this reason. I'm probably not explaining that the way i mean......  but it rang a bell when Liz wrote "NOT get advice" --

Sometimes i'm sad, depressed, feel like crap, whatever for whatever reason. Can't stand the "turn that frown upside down" folks who have trouble with the "negative" emotions.

But this thread was supposed to be about what helps. What makes me feel better: writing, music, food, being social with people i like, my meditation class which I am missing now because my apartment lost  power and i think i better wait for the landlady. A nice slow drag off a cigarette makes me feel REAL good. But I'm trying to quit. Again.

Coffee!!! oh and the time to enjoy it!!! ;P

VEnting, which might include a tantrum. 

a hot bath with salt n' soda.

A good pot of soup or a fresh salad 

A nice hearty glass of wine.

Calling up a friend who is sympathetic & intuitive  and asking for her impression.

Making art (if I'm past the anger stage.)

" "Elsa can you tell me again what is going to happen to people who refuse to do their dirty work and refuse to step away from the dead thing."

They are going to get hit by a truck."

I can see this happening to one of my Brother's partners. Instead of taking responsibility for his role as sales and in the office, he placed blame on the other partners. The pressure increased and now he has pulled a shot gun clause. The company is making money but instead of fixing his own mistakes he's about to be bought out instead by my brother. He has a history of attracting clients but at the expense of the companies he has worked for. The chicken is coming home to roost. He's a bad salesman. Sad it is. But the truck is coming. 

Alicia- Other than the wine*, all the things that you mentioned work for me.

[*  I can't drink wine, just beer and the occasional scotch. ]

On the other hand, if I overdose on the bath's, blankets and alone time, I go squirrely!  

Since I didn't take responsibility I got hit by a bus in the past before. :(

Oh, I meant a truck! Ha ha.

Thank you for saying this, Elsa!

Time off almost NEVER makes me feel better. I haven't gotten this advice much, but I really don't understand why people say this to me if I'm upset about something. Or why they say things like 'you'll feel better in time', or 'you'll eventually get over it. To answer your question, I'm not sure what makes me feel better. But I know that the surest way to make me feel worse for a while is to say that I should take some time off. 

Maybe this is because time is sort of surreal for me, it doesn't just 'progress'? Or maybe because I like to work hard and be engaged and understood. It's funny. In fights with various loved ones over the years, they seem to think that leaving me alone, giving me space, will help. Hours or days later, I see that the time off has definitely helped them; but it has not helped me at all! To my mind, if there's a problem with something, then nothing has changed just because some "time" has passed. I guess I can say that what makes me feel better is being understood. If I'm feeling understood, I can do anything at all, and can operate very well under a great deal of pressure. 

"You need some time off," I told the soldier.  "The fuck."

"They never say that to me, P. If they did, I'd say okay, see ya, bye!  They'd never see me again."

I snorted, put my arm around in the tub, condescendingly. "Yeah, you really need to get some rest, honey."

"Okay, give me 50 bucks and I'm out of here!"

"Elsa can you tell me again what is going to happen to people who refuse to do their dirty work and refuse to step away from the dead thing."

"They are going to get hit by a truck."

LOL!

Same as you Elsa, expressing myself.. and also baking.

a good hard workout, preferably in sparkly dancing shoes

or in bed

followed by a hot steamy shower

*smiling at the though of Shannons sparkly dancing shoes* sounds like fun!

Talk talk talk talk talk, brood brood brood brood brood.  Repeat.  Then once I'm sick of talking and brooding, OUT.  DO.  Go somewhere, anywhere, and moooooooove.

For the small upsets of life, petting a fuzzy butt is a sure-fire cure.  Bad day at work?  Bring on the butts!! 

I have to spend time every day absolutely alone....to quiet my mind.....it can be as little as 20 minutes, then I'm good to go.  Once I get to the point of venting......ranting......you can pretty much believe I have slipped over the edge and completely lost my Virgo self-control.  The razor tongue gets loosed and people can get sliced up (verbally, of course; I'm not a violent person unless backed into a corner or something I love is threatened). Moon/Mars conjunct in the 4th house square Mercury in the 7th.

Time off is always welcome, it relieves stress so significantly that I look and feel completely different by the end of the week, people often comment on the change. But of course I have to work, the difference with this kind of work is that you want to do it, it's your hobby.

good company