Last updated : Thursday, March 26, 2009

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10 Healthy Ways To Heal After Heartbreak

From ice cream to martinis ...  the go-to antidotes for a bad breakup are often about distraction rather than relief. What's more, they tend to injure more than assuage, as if the breakup itself didn't cause enough pain. So, we've identified 10 healthy ways to deal with getting dumped that don't include booze, food or flings:

1. Buy the Dumped! Fun and Games Activity Book. It offers such whimsical games as "I Cried to Smell Few (I Tried to Tell You)." Help broken-hearted "Sam" decipher what his friends have been telling him about his now ex-girlfriend in lines such as "Why stink clue fan screw fetter." Translation: "I think you can do better."

2. Surround yourself with happy people. Recent research from Harvard and the University of California, San Diego shows happiness is "infectious," so take up with a group of friends or organization that you know is high on life.

3. Log on to breakup blogs such as "just been dumped." Submit your breakup e-mails or IM conversations. The names are changed, so it's an anonymous way to have complete strangers tell you what a jerk he was. Your friends need a break anyway.

4. Listen to these top breakup songs. From Pink to Kanye, these tunes are all about getting back on your feet.

5. Learn boxing. Boxinggyms.com lists locations around the country. Get angry, then get ripped.

6. Give your home a makeover. Following feng shui principles can help you clear out the emotional and physical clutter from your previously shared space.

7. Get even without getting a restraining order. Take out your frustrations at the gym. Then when you have a run-in with him three months later, you'll be looking good (and feeling good too). 

8. Write. Whether on a blog, in a journal or in a letter you may decide never to send, getting the words from brain to paper or screen can improve your mental and physical health.

9. Volunteer for a cause you feel passionate about. Or to help those whose plight might give you a new perspective on your own. VolunteerMatch can help you find the right place and the right time.

10. Fall in love with a new scent. Learn to associate the smell of a new perfume, candle, flower or detergent with your new, improved and single self. Take a sniff every time the breakup blues arise.

Of course, sometimes a glass (ok, or a botttle) of wine, meeting someone new or buying a hot new dress is the just what the doctor ordered. Ultimately, do what feels right to you.

Written by Genevieve Lill YourTango

More From YourTango:

The Bad Girl's Breakup Rx

How Men Deal With Breakups

My Boyfriend Cheated . . . With A Man

For more great advice on dealing with a breakup click onto iMag's Love Section. 

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