Getting out of the house

Chollita

I'm having a rough time at the moment psychologically and can't work, so I'm stuck at home and very very bored. And probably boring as well!

Any suggestions as to what I might do to get me out of the house? It has to be free or cheap, and to complicate things I live in Spain ... also are there any free or cheap online courses as I would like to exercise my brain (there's a psychology course I'd like to do but it's £300).

Also any ideas as to what me and OH could do together (aside from the obvious)

skintas_2

snap me too im bored outta my brian, kids are at school. i get so bored i fall asleep, then it gets worse cos im up all nite. today i got up and went for a walk. is this the january blues, im feeling so lost at the moment. if u do the course is there anyway u can do it and pay installments, what part of spain do u live x

supersmith

Hey Chollita,

Sorry to hear you're feeling down and stuck in the house. I've suffered from depression in the past and found it really good to just go for a short walk every day. Even if it is just down to the end of the street and back at first. I found it really nice to go to the park, and even sometimes I didn't feel like it was helping at all, after a while it did lift my mood.

Other things might be, maybe volunteering at a local charity shop (if they have then in Spain!) or a local group, do you have any friends nearby that you could enlist to get you out of the house, maybe they could drag you out for a walk when you're not feeling like it! Or meet for a coffee. You could also try the library for some free reading material maybe.

Hope that you feel a lot better soon and I'm sure some more helpful people will be along soon <<hugs>>

Chollita

I'm in Barcelona, it's warmer than the UK, and sunny, but I still feel crap... but that's a whole other story, and I'm trying to do something about it. Course can be paid for over a year, although that costs more ... but I also need to get out of the house, I know that .... as for you, could you do some voluntary work? P/t college course? Not that I'm the best person to give advice hoho

Chollita

Bit short on friends at the moment. Charity shops are scarce here, they're the one thing I miss about England ... I'm seeing someone at the Mental Health Centre next week, so I'm hoping they might have some classes or something.

There are some lovely parks here, I do try to walk a lot, but have just got over the lurgy, so haven't been out much the last couple of weeks.

supersmith

Those sound like good ideas, doing a class especially if it's something you're interested in i've found to be a good way to meet people in the past. Are there any sports you enjoy? Could your OH's help be enlisted, maybe to play a sport together or do something else outside, to get you out of the house?

newlywed

Have you got a camera? Can you join an online club like ephotozine and then challenge yourself to go out and take a series of photos or something and post them on there where they all give opinions and suggestions of how to improve?

Can you do your shopping by walking to the local shops each day? Just buy what you need for that day - then you have to go out again the next day? (that's what I've started doing in my lunch time from work - walk to different lots of shops each day for a few things each time).

Get a map and just pick somewhere you think you can walk to - another village/town/area of the city - just for a look around? Or get a cheap bus to another town for the day?

Can you and OH pack a picnic (if it's warmer and drier than here :rolleyes:)? Flask of warm tea if it's not too warm out

Are there any historic sites nearby? Free museums?


Sometimes when I need to get out I go to a town just 7 miles away, nose round the shops and buy a coffee and cake and that usually does the trick of making me feel like I've done something/gone somewhere

Chollita

I am so non-sporty ...like yoga though. Do have a camera.

Think I might nip off to see an exhibition, there's a place about 20 mins walk away that has free exhibitions and they're usually pretty good.

Keep the ideas coming, they are much appreciated.

newlywed

Are there jumble sales or car boot sales to look round?

Is there a local paper with all the coming events listed?

Can you get a guide book for the tourist type walks that are suggested and do some walks or sight-seeing in your own area?

newlywed

Me and my sister used to do kiddie days - where we went round toy shops/craft shops/boot fares and bought cheap little things we used to love when we were younger - like sweets, those pattern style colouring books, glitter pens, puzzles, just cheap daft stuff that made us smile. It was great fun hunting for things that triggered memories too - not sure if you can do that in another country though

jo101_2

Hi

I used to live in Barcelona in Sant Cugat Del Valles which is a lovely old town a 20 min train ride from Placa Catalunya on the FGC metro de Valles , it’s a cheap train ride and there are quite a few little shops to look round (which shut for a few hours in the middle of the day) and its quite nice to be out of the city.

Have you ever seen a copy of the free Metropolitan magazine? It is a wealth of information for English speaking people in the city and has lots of info of things going on, regular clubs etc and is a great way to meet people, it seems that they have a website too - http://www.barcelona-metropolitan.com/

We used to like going for walks along the coast at the weekend and our favourites were Tossa Del Mar, Sitges and Casteldelfels, all easy to get to by train and the transport is very cheap.

I also seem to remember that some of the museums and galleries have days when they are free or cheaper, I expect this info can be found in the Metropolitan.

Parc Guell is another lovely place to go and is free.

I hope this helps – enjoy the sunshine, even though its milder at this time of the year there I remember it was always so sunny and I was never without my sunglasses, I must admit I like being back in the UK but I do miss the weather there.

Jo