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Best Advice for Someone Going Through a Breakup: Unexpected Self-Care Rituals

Breakups hit like a tsunami of emotions, leaving even the strongest among us feeling lost. What if the best advice for someone going through a breakup wasn't just about ice cream and sad movies? Th...

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Sarah Thompson

August 5, 2025 · 4 min read

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Person practicing self-care rituals as best advice for someone going through a breakup

Best Advice for Someone Going Through a Breakup: Unexpected Self-Care Rituals

Breakups hit like a tsunami of emotions, leaving even the strongest among us feeling lost. What if the best advice for someone going through a breakup wasn't just about ice cream and sad movies? The truth is, your body experiences a legitimate neurochemical withdrawal after a relationship ends. Those feelings of desperation, confusion, and heartache? They're as real as physical pain, according to neuroscience. This explains why traditional breakup advice often falls short – it doesn't address what's happening in your brain and body.

When seeking the best advice for someone going through a breakup, most people hear the same tired suggestions: "keep busy" or "time heals all wounds." But what if there were unexpected daily rituals that could actually transform your recovery journey? These aren't just feel-good activities – they're science-backed practices that rewire your brain's response to loss. Think of them as heartbreak healing techniques that work on a neurological level.

The self-care revolution for breakup recovery isn't about grand gestures. It's about consistent, unexpected daily practices that gradually shift your emotional landscape. Let's explore how these unconventional approaches provide the best advice for someone going through a breakup by working with your brain's natural healing processes rather than against them.

Morning Rituals: The Best Advice for Someone Going Through a Breakup

The moment you wake up can set the emotional tone for your entire day. That's why morning rituals form the foundation of the best advice for someone going through a breakup. Start with the 90-second rule: when emotions arise (and they will), acknowledge them fully for 90 seconds. Research shows this is approximately how long the chemical response of an emotion physically lasts in your body before it's your thoughts that keep it alive.

Follow this with a 3-minute breathing exercise that activates your parasympathetic nervous system. This isn't just feel-good advice – it's a neurological reset button. When practiced consistently, this anxiety management technique creates new neural pathways that make you less reactive to thoughts of your ex.

Physical movement is another crucial morning ritual. Even five minutes of stretching or dancing disrupts rumination cycles by shifting blood flow and changing your brain chemistry. One study found that brief morning movement reduced intrusive thoughts by 23% throughout the day – making it some of the best advice for someone going through a breakup who struggles with obsessive thinking.

Combine these elements into a 5-minute morning ritual: 90 seconds of emotional acknowledgment, 3 minutes of breathing, and 1 minute of movement. This simple practice stabilizes your emotional state by working with your brain's natural recovery mechanisms rather than fighting against them.

Sensory Healing: Unconventional Best Advice for Someone Going Through a Breakup

Your senses provide direct pathways to emotional regulation that bypass your rational mind. This makes sensory healing techniques some of the best advice for someone going through a breakup when logical thinking fails you.

Scent works directly with your amygdala and memory centers. Choose a new fragrance that has zero association with your ex, and use it only during positive experiences. Your brain will begin associating this scent with pleasure instead of pain. This olfactory reprogramming technique has been shown to reduce emotional distress by creating new positive neural connections.

Sound frequencies between 432Hz and 528Hz reduce cortisol levels during emotional distress. Creating a 10-minute playlist at these frequencies provides strategies for emotional growth that work even when you're too upset for traditional approaches.

Tactile grounding techniques interrupt anxiety spirals by bringing you back to the present moment. Keep different textured objects nearby – smooth stones, soft fabric, or textured stress balls. When emotional flooding begins, focus intensely on these sensations to activate your brain's orientation response, which naturally interrupts the stress cycle.

Transform Your Recovery: Implementing the Best Advice for Someone Going Through a Breakup

Combining these unconventional rituals creates a powerful daily practice that transforms breakup recovery from the inside out. The key is consistency – these techniques work by gradually creating new neural pathways that change how your brain processes the breakup.

Start by implementing just one ritual from each category. As these become habitual, add additional practices. This gradual approach prevents overwhelm while still providing the best advice for someone going through a breakup who needs immediate relief.

The beauty of these techniques is that they build emotional resilience that extends beyond just breakup recovery. The same neurological changes that help you heal from heartbreak also strengthen your emotional regulation in all areas of life. Ready to begin your transformation? Choose one unexpected ritual to try tomorrow morning – your future self will thank you for this best advice for someone going through a breakup.

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Emotions often get the best of us: They make us worry, argue, procrastinate…


But we’re not at their mercy: We can learn to notice our triggers, see things in a new light, and use feelings to our advantage.


Join Ahead and actually rewire your brain. No more “in one ear, out the other.” Your future self says thanks!

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