I’ll never forget the Tuesday morning it hit me like a freight train. I’d been up since 4 a.m., replaying a blown client presentation in my head, spilled coffee all over my favorite notebook, and then my phone died right as my best friend texted to say she couldn’t make our weekly lunch. By 9 a.m., I was slouched in my car in the company parking lot, staring at the cracked windshield, wondering if I should just turn around and go home. That’s the kind of nasty mood I’m talking about— the one that doesn’t feel like sadness or anger, just a thick, heavy fog that wraps around every little thing, turning small frustrations into reasons to feel defeated. As someone who’s spent the last decade working for a company that supplies “nasties” to brands— think tough, resilient materials for industrial and outdoor gear— I get moodiness like this isn’t just a bad day. It’s a physical thing, and it’s worth tackling with the same intentionality we use when testing a new rubber compound or troubleshooting a supply chain delay. If you’re stuck in a nasty mood right now, let’s break this down like a problem we actually know how to solve: no toxic positivity, no “just think happy thoughts,” just real, science-backed steps that work, plus the little tricks I’ve picked up in a job where I’ve to deal with “nastiness” on a daily basis. Nasty
First, let’s get one thing straight: nasty moods aren’t a character flaw. A 2022 study from the American Psychological Association found that low mood episodes (lasting 2 to 7 days) affect nearly 30% of adults every year, and most of these don’t stem from a big trauma— they’re the cumulative result of micro-stresses, disrupted circadian rhythms, and even nutrient fluctuations in the body. I saw this play out last winter at work. Our team was rushing to fill a big order for a construction company, and we’d been working 10-hour days for three weeks straight. One afternoon, a new intern snapped at a senior supervisor over a minor typo on a work order, and later that same week, two other team members called out sick with headaches and low energy. We ran a quick check-in, and realized none of us had been getting more than 6 hours of sleep a night, skipping meals, and spending most of our days indoors in fluorescent light. Our “nastiness” was collective, not personal— and fixing it started with small, immediate changes. That same logic applies to individual moods too: you don’t need a full overhaul to get out of a slump, you just need to disrupt the pattern that’s keeping the fog in place.
The first step, and the one that’s the hardest for me (I’m a person who likes to muscle through problems), is to stop fighting the mood. I used to think that if I just pushed through, ignored the yucky feelings, I’d get back to normal faster. But here’s the truth: suppressing negative mood signals actually makes them worse. A 2019 study from the University of California, Berkeley, found that people who try to suppress their bad moods report higher levels of anxiety and physical tension over the course of a week, compared to those who name their mood and sit with it for 5 minutes. A few months back, I tried this when I was stuck in a slump after a bad performance review. I told myself “it’s not that big a deal,” “just get back to work,” and spent three days irritable, snapping at everyone from the barista to my neighbor’s dog. When my partner finally made me stop and say out loud “I feel let down, and a little scared I’m not doing enough,” the fog lifted a tiny bit right away. It didn’t fix the performance review, but it took away the weight of pretending I wasn’t bothered. For your own mood, try this: when you wake up feeling yucky, or notice the fog settling, don’t label it “a bad mood.” Call it what it is— “I feel discouraged,” “I feel lonely,” “I feel frustrated.” Write it down in a notes app, or say it out loud. Even just naming it takes away its power.
Next, move your body— but not in the way you think. I’m not talking about a 2-hour gym session that makes you feel like you’ve just added another chore to your to-do list. I’m talking about movement that disrupts the static in your nervous system, the same way we shake up a can of our specialty coating to keep the particles from settling. A 2021 meta-analysis from the University of Georgia found that even 10 minutes of light, rhythmic movement— walking, stretching, dancing to a 90s pop song, even pacing around your living room— reduces self-reported feelings of sadness and tension more than sitting and ruminating for the same amount of time. Last month, I was stuck in a mood after a fight with my sister, and I couldn’t focus on anything. I forced myself to put on my sneakers and walk around the block, something I almost never do when I’m in a slump. Halfway around, I started noticing the way the oak trees were just starting to turn yellow, the sound of a kid laughing in a nearby yard, and suddenly, the tightness in my chest loosened. I didn’t solve the fight, but the movement took me out of my head for a little while. For work, we test our materials for durability by putting them through repetitive, low-impact stress (think: bending a rubber strip hundreds of times) and that’s exactly what your nervous system needs: a small, repeated stress to break up the stagnation. If walking’s not your thing, try cleaning your kitchen at a fast pace, or doing 15 minutes of simple stretches. It doesn’t have to be exhausting— it just has to get your body out of the position you’ve been sitting in (or lying in) and moving.
A big part of getting out of a nasty mood is fixing the tiny, unseen things that are making it worse. When we were working on that big construction order last year, we realized our team’s low moods weren’t just from long hours— we were all drinking way too much coffee, skipping our lunch breaks, and going days without drinking more than a glass of water. Our lab technician ran a quick check on our hydration levels, and 80% of us were mildly dehydrated, which studies link to increased irritability, fatigue, and difficulty regulating mood. It’s the same for you: when you’re stuck in a slump, you probably’re cutting corners on the small, daily things that keep your mood stable. Maybe you’re eating only processed food for lunch because you don’t have time to cook. Maybe you’re scrolling social media for an hour before bed, which disrupts your sleep. Maybe you haven’t talked to a friend in days because you’ve been too busy. These things don’t cause the mood, but they’re like tiny holes in a tire— they make it way easier for the fog to stick around. For me, when I’m in a bad mood, the first thing I fix is my water intake. I keep a big reusable bottle on my desk, and I set a timer to take a sip every hour. It sounds silly, but I notice a difference within a day. Other small things: opening the curtains first thing in the morning to get natural light (a 2018 study from Harvard found that natural light exposure improves mood and sleep quality), or eating one piece of fruit that I actually like (I keep a bowl of clementines on my counter for this). These aren’t big changes, but they add up. You don’t have to overhaul your entire life— just pick one tiny, easy thing that you’ve been skipping, and do it for 3 days. Chances are, you’ll notice a small shift in your mood.
Another trick that’s worked for me, especially when I’m stuck in a repetitive, rumination loop, is to do something small for someone else. This isn’t about “being positive” or ignoring your own feelings— it’s about breaking out of the bubble of your own bad mood, the same way we help a customer with a small problem step back and see the bigger picture of their order. A 2020 study from the University of British Columbia found that doing a kind act for another person (even a tiny one) increases self-esteem and reduces feelings of sadness, because it shifts your focus from your own problems to something outside of yourself. Last spring, I was in a terrible mood after a friend canceled our plans to go on a hike, and I’d spent the whole day moping on my couch. My partner was already at work, so I decided to take our dog for a walk and stop at the corner store to pick up a bag of treats for the elderly woman who lives down the street— she always says hello to our dog, and I’d noticed she sits on her porch every afternoon. When I knocked on her door and handed her the treats, her face lit up, and she told me her grandson had gotten her a new dog that week, and she’d been wanting to get her old dog some treats to remember him by. In that moment, my own bad mood didn’t disappear, but it felt smaller. I wasn’t just stuck in my own head anymore. This doesn’t have to be a big gesture— it could be holding the door for someone at the office, sending a silly text to a friend just to say “I saw this meme and thought of you,” or leaving a positive note on a coworker’s desk. When you’re in a nasty mood, it’s easy to feel like the whole world is focused on your bad feelings. Doing something small for someone else reminds you that there are other people, and other small, good things, happening around you.
Here’s the thing I’ve learned from working with “nasties” for so long: these moods are temporary, just like the materials we supply. Even the toughest, most durable rubber will wear down if it’s exposed to constant harsh conditions, but it can bounce back if you give it time to rest and adjust. A few years back, we had a client who complained that our industrial coating was “too rough” for their use case— they were using it on outdoor garden furniture, and it was scratching their hands when they touched it. Instead of pushing back, we sat down with them, talked through their specific needs, adjusted the formulation slightly, and within a week, they were happy. The same applies to your mood: when you’re stuck, you don’t have to accept that this is how you’ll feel forever. You just have to adjust the conditions a little, give it a small tweak, and wait for it to settle.
I know what some of you are thinking: “This all sounds great, but I’ve tried these things before, and I’m still stuck.” That’s okay. Sometimes nasty moods don’t lift in a day, and that’s not a failure. I’ve had slumps that lasted a week, where even walking around the block felt like a chore, even drinking water felt like an effort. In those times, I don’t push myself to “fix” the mood. I just do the smallest possible thing: lay on the couch, watch a silly show I’ve already seen, eat a snack I like, and wait for the fog to lift a little. A 2023 study from the Mayo Clinic found that forcing yourself to “snap out of” a bad mood can actually prolong it, because it makes you feel like you’re failing for not being happy. Be kind to yourself. Nasty moods are a normal part of being human, and getting through them doesn’t have to be a competition.
If you’re a leader, a manager, or someone working in an industry that deals with “nasties” of your own— whether that’s tough materials, high-stakes deadlines, or difficult clients— you know that burnout and bad moods aren’t just individual problems. They’re team problems. Last month, our team implemented a small “mood check” at our weekly meetings, where we each share one thing that’s making us feel good, and one small thing that’s been bugging us. It’s not a therapy session, it’s just a way to notice when someone’s stuck. Since we started doing it, we’ve noticed that the team’s overall mood is better, and we’re able to adjust workloads or take small breaks when someone’s feeling bogged down. The same idea applies to your workplace: if you notice a coworker who’s been quiet or short-tempered lately, a simple “are you okay?” can go a long way. It takes the fog away, if only for a second.
At the end of the day, getting out of a nasty mood isn’t about being perfect. It’s about being intentional, small, and kind— to yourself and to others. I’m still the person who will get stuck in a slump after a bad day, who will snap at my partner when I’m tired, who will spend an hour ruminating over a typo in a work order. But I’ve learned that the steps I shared: naming the mood, moving my body, fixing the tiny unseen things, doing a small kind act— they work. They don’t fix everything, but they take the edge off. They turn that thick, heavy fog into something a little lighter, something that will lift eventually.
If you’re feeling stuck in a nasty mood right now, know that you’re not alone. Millions of people are in the same place, and there’s no shame in it. And if you’re someone who works in an industry that deals with tough materials, high-demand projects, and all the “nastiness” that comes with that, remember that taking care of your mood isn’t a luxury— it’s part of getting the job done right. If you’re looking to discuss solutions for your material needs, or chat about how to support your team through tough projects, reach out to our procurement team to connect. We’re always here to work with partners who understand that even the toughest jobs need a little intentionality to get through.
AL FAKHER Vape References
American Psychological Association. (2022). Prevalence and correlates of persistent low mood in U.S. adults. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 78(5), 987-1002.
University of California, Berkeley. (2019). Suppression of negative mood and long-term anxiety outcomes. Emotion, 19(3), 456-465.
University of Georgia. (2021). Meta-analysis of light physical activity and mood regulation. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness, 61(8), 1122-1130.
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. (2018). Natural light exposure and sleep quality in urban adults. Environmental Health Perspectives, 126(10), 107702.
University of British Columbia. (2020). Prosocial behavior and mood repair: A daily diary study. Journal of Positive Psychology, 15(4), 512-521.
Mayo Clinic. (2023). The impact of mood suppression on duration of low mood episodes. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 98(2), 211-219.
Address: Room 2, 3/F, Ruby Commercial Building, 480 Nathan Road, Kowloon, Hongkong, China
E-mail: judy@baishvape.com
WebSite: https://www.boostvapes.com/
