It can be hard to be optimistic when it’s been raining for months.
The daily grind can sap your energy so easily. Add into the mix the inevitable challenges and life events that arise from time to time and the doom and gloom of news and views from around the world.
When the going gets tough do you get tougher?
Or do you find a way to balance your pain with joy?
Recently I interviewed, Dr Atul Bansal on my Podcast and he shared the importance of the daily DOSE.
To remain balanced and grounded with the potential to experience joy instead of hopelessness we need the following on a daily basis:
- Dopamine – the “reward chemical” created by anticipation and living life with purpose (not the quick hits of screen time)
- Oxytocin – the “bonding hormone” derived from hugs and social connections, creating feelings of trust and closeness
- Serotonin – the “confidence chemical” promoted by good nutrition, sunlight and connection
- Endorphins – the natural “pain reliever” from exercise and time spent outdoors
Together these 4 feel-good chemicals shape our motivation, emotional stability, relationships and resilience, enabling us to feel more positive and upbeat despite not because of our circumstances.
Imagine it’s another grey, rain-soaked morning. You’re running late, the train is delayed, and someone ahead of you in the queue starts chatting: bright, upbeat, almost annoyingly cheerful.
Your instinct might be to withdraw, scroll your phone, or silently stew.
But what if, instead, you leaned in?
You smile back. You exchange a few words. You step outside at lunchtime, even briefly, and notice the freshness in the air rather than the inconvenience of the rain. You message a friend just to check in. You take a short walk before heading home.
Nothing dramatic changes—and yet everything shifts.
You’ve nudged your DOSE:
- A sense of purpose in choosing your response (dopamine)
- A moment of human connection (oxytocin)
- A lift in mood from movement and daylight (serotonin)
- A physical release from walking and breathing deeply (endorphins)
The rain hasn’t stopped. But the weight has lifted.
This week, don’t just tolerate the “great weather for ducks” people.
Become one.
Choose one small, intentional action each day to boost your DOSE:
- Start a conversation
- Step outside, whatever the weather
- Move your body
- Reach out to someone
And notice what happens, not to the world around you, but within you.
Because resilience isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass.
It’s about learning how to walk, maybe even smile, through the rain.
Don’t tolerate the annoying people. The
ones who sing hello and chat in queues. The
ones who won’t let sunset go down without
applause and say “great weather for ducks”
when it rains. Don’t tolerate them. Become
them. They have it. The answer. Because this
life is hard and it will have its way with you
one way or another, my friend. But if you’re
looking up and letting in the light, if you’re
drinking from the fountain of joy that
surrounds us – it might just balance the pain.
And you might just have a chance
of feeling alive whilst you live.
– Donna Ashworth –