I love that you mentioned productive and creative, because my psych warned against busyness for busyness sake. One day I walked and walked and walked just to get my head to shoosh. It worked ok but then I was miles away lol
Ive found that sometimes gardening, particularly weeding, is good. There’s that grounding, nature element as well as sense of accomplishment. Or just getting my thoughts out on paper if I don’t have the mental space to concentrate on an assignment 🙂
At the moment, it feels like the only way to escape the bad thoughts/bad news is by occupying our mind with other things and keeping super busy! It sounds like you're doing some really helpful things like using creative outlets and exercising. When I feel overwhelmed and start having those 'not so hot' thoughts I like to go on a long walk in nature. To help keep me grounded, I try to be really aware of my surroundings - even just focusing on the type of trees I can see or if I can hear any bird noises. I think exercise is one of the best distractors and also has the added benefit of boosting our endorphins!
It really sounds like you are doing lot's of productive, positive things to keep you busy - have you tried any puzzles? I find they can be a really good distraction when things aren't going so well!
You have asked a good question because everyone is different, but what I used to do was paint and in that, I mean, paint the timber windows outdoors, even if they didn't need a coat of paint using a large size paint brush, and painting because I could see and benefit from a change.
Other people like to walk, while others enjoy going to the inside/outside pool.
