A girl said the important thing to fighting her depression was trying 365 new things in one year — including drinking a shot out of a belly button, signing up for a surf class, and visiting a leprechaun museum.
After affected by depression and anxiety in the course of the pandemic, Jess Mell, 34, said she’s the happiest she’s been in a decade after checking things off of her activity list. A few of her new challenges were more tame, like poaching an egg, and others a bit wilder — like flying a plane.
The UK insurance underwriter said she was initially inspired to try 100 new things in 100 days but was sad when the challenge ended in April. She decided to extend the challenge — which began Dec. 27 — for the remainder of the year.
“I feel pretty emotional about it, to be honest. I can’t consider it,” Mell told South West News Service. “The primary 100 I had to do one thing every single day, but that was quite difficult so when I decided to proceed for the remainder of the year I decided I’d do 365 new things.”
Mell — whose list of firsts includes trying a Guinness and joining a neighborhood gardening community group — said she has no plans to stop trying new things.
She admitted she switched from trying something new every single day to trying 365 new things in the span of a year, because “life kept getting in the way in which.”
“I was going to finish off by swimming in the ocean, but I had not quite got to 365 yet, in order that ended up being No. 363 or something,” she explained. “I still wanted to finish it off with something exciting though, so in the tip, I finished up by convincing my dad to let me sit on the roof of his automobile as he drove down the road.”
Nevertheless, that also only got her to 364, so she ended her challenge in a really fitting way — by making her first Instagram reel of her year of challenges. She documented her whole year of new activities on the app.
“I’m going to keep [trying new things] in that it’s now just a part of what I do,” Mell declared. “I’ve all the time tried to find new things to do, so that may go on. Whether I track it the identical way I’m unsure.”
Although she’s unsure what the new year holds, she’s got some ideas about what she will be able to do in 2023 to challenge herself.
“I was originally pondering I’d visit every country in Europe, but I got talked out of it as I think it will turn out to be a little bit of a tick-box exercise,” she shared. “I need a new challenge I think, I might try to climb 12 mountains in 12 months.”
“They don’t have to be proper mountains, it could just be one in the UK, nevertheless it’ll mean I can travel and it’ll be manageable — but I just feel a bit lost without my challenge,” Mell continued. “I feel like I should always be doing something.”
Mell’s list:
- Got Instagram
- Made a Christmas dinner
- Watched “E.T.”
- Made a lampshade
- Grew a plant from seed
- Did a backward roll
- Bled a radiator
- Tried origami
- Went to hot yoga
- Dyed my hair pink
- Bought the Big Issue
- Did 1,000 piece jigsaw by myself
- Tried a pot noodle
- Accomplished a Rubik’s cube
- Made muffins
- Visited an aircraft hangar – got to start a passenger plane
- Used the “scary” gym equipment
- Got a henna tattoo
- Watched “The Great Escape”
- Learned how to do various kinds of knots
- Learned to shuffle cards
- Visited the Skygarden
- Had a pedicure
- Went to a life drawing class
- Accomplished a paint by numbers
- Learned to pick a lock
- Accomplished the Crystal Maze
- Tried a barre class
- Made/ate a vegan meal
- Went on a Boris bike
- Hung an image on the wall
- Tried first coffee
- Went to Bogan Bingo
- Learned to sew a button
- Learned some British Sign Language
- Went to a choir group
- Went to a board game club
- Went to a TRX class
- Learned to change indicator light bulbs in my automobile
- Tried a Guinness
- Joined a community volunteer group
- Ate using chopsticks
- Attended a primary aid course
- Went to the British Library
- Used the squat rack in the gym
- Had an espresso martini
- Used a stitching machine
- Poached an egg
- Played chess for the primary time
- Successfully accomplished some monkey bars
- Went to the Tate Modern
- Modified a automobile wheel (or helped to!)
- Drank a shot out of a belly button
- Made fudge
- Played golf
- Made a pizza from scratch
- Did a French braid
- Whittled some wood
- Learned a straightforward tap routine
- Tried to whistle with my fingers – couldn’t do it loudly!
- Drove my nieces in my automobile
- Taken care of my nieces by myself
- Made a rainbow cake
- Tried embroidery
- Went to the National Gallery
- Helped my brother prepare for the launch of his food business
- Was a part of a human pyramid
- Bowled without bumpers
- Visited a Mormon temple
- Tried to start a hearth without matches – failed!
- Managed to do/hold the crow yoga pose
- Tried soldering
- Learned how to fold clothes super quickly
- Got my eyebrows tinted
- Saw a play version of “Cluedo”
- Went on my first solo trip
- Went to Belfast/Northern Ireland for the primary time
- Saw the Giant’s Causeway
- Booked a mystery holiday trip
- Made butternut squash soup
- Went to a painting class
- Tried knitting
- Let my nieces do my hair and makeup
- Tried super hot curry dishes
- Drove a van
- Went to a clairvoyant audience night
- Watched reality TV (which I often avoid/hate)
- Went to Highgate Cemetery
- Upcycled an old stool
- Went paddle boarding
- Saw my mom get married
- Tried paper mache
- Visited St. Paul’s Cathedral
- Fixed my bathroom plug
- Watched a brass band – Old Dirty Brasstards
- Attempted to learn to play the ukulele (gave up!)
- Watched “Only Fools” and “Horses” for the primary time
- Watched a foreign film without subtitles
- Went on my first solo trip outside the UK
- Exploring around Budapest
- Went to a thermal spa
- Had a mini tutorial on how to fix my boiler
- Went on a ghost walking tour around London
- Made jam from scratch
- Made scones to go along with it!
- Went lambing
- Played skittles
- Fed a tortoise
- Visited Crystal Palace Park
- Went on a tour of Lloyd’s Constructing
- Made tapas from scratch including a Spanish tortilla
- Tried sherry
- Went to see Ed Byrne perform
- Explored somewhere nearby foot in my local area
- Went to Virginia Water
- Joined an outside fitness class
- Went on an organized walk
- Made space cakes! Potentially NSFW??!!
- Visited the Museum of London
- Made banana bread
- Went across the Royal Mail museum
- Tried geocaching
- Went to a butterfly house
- Visited Krakow/Poland
- Tried local dish pierogi
- Went on an e-scooter
- Visited Auschwitz
- Had peanut wotsits
- Tried Tyskie
- Went on a vodka-tasting tour
- Tried moonshine – 72% strength
- Visited some salt mines
- Went to a poetry reading session
- Got pooed on by a bird!
- Went to Bluewater
- Tried bubble tea
- Tried Zumba
- Went to the Bank of England Museum
- Saw Craig David
- Had a selfie with a sportsman
- Made a blueberry cheesecake
- Adopted an orangutan via WWF
- Did a correct tequila shot
- Tried reflexology
- Went to Leonardslee Gardens
- Went up the Monument
- Saw a gig at Knebworth
- Joined in a mosh pit
- Did a solo escape room
- Went to a neighborhood town’s museum
- Got a twig tan
- The above involves getting totally naked in front of a stranger in their kitchen
- Learned a magic trick
- Did an open-water lake swim
- Went to Sicily
- Tried Aperol and Limoncello spritz
- Ate lungs/spleen
- Ate fish eggs
- Tried aloe vera water
- Sampled local delicacies corresponding to cannoli and gelato brioche
- Used a bidet
- Went on holiday with my boss
- Tried tiramisu
- Began taking collagen supplements
- Tried teeth whitening strips
- Used Stitch Fix
- Attempted to create a world record with Joe Wick at Hyde Park
- Tried venison
- Went on a tour of Parliament
- Joined in a Pride march
- Saw the Changing of the Guard
- Went to Superbloom on the Tower of London
- Went to an Ibiza classic orchestra gig
- Sat on someone’s shoulders
- Watched Tower Bridge going up
- Went to Lates at ZSL
- Went to some local urban caves
- Tried cryolipolysis
- Tried to save a nestling – failed 🙁
- Tried a gooseberry
- Did a turmeric shot
- Acknowledged that my attitude to spending money and treating myself has totally modified – a reflective point
- Went to the Cotswolds
- Got a selfie with Brum
- Went kata kanu-ing
- Went to a Michelin-star restaurant
- Visited Glastonbury (place, not festival, unfortunately!)
- Tried a shakti mat
- Watched a play at an outdoor theatre
- Had a surf lesson
- Went to the Eden Project
- Went to Dopamine Land
- Tried a CPD drink
- Made my very own protein bars
- Went to an outside cinema screening
- .. And watched “Casablanca” for the primary time
- Made a poke bowl
- Went to a hot air balloon show
- Tried mac n’ cheese
- Went to an air rifle gun range
- Had a beekeeping experience afternoon
- Tried honey beer
- Went on a pedalo
- Watched a jousting tournament
- Flew with Ryanair – and didn’t have any issues – may need to reword this to just “well-known problematic budget airline?”
- Visited ROI/Dublin
- Visited Trinity College
- Visited Cliffs of Moher
- Visited Galway
- Went to a leprechaun museum
- Got Sea-Monkeys
- Tried breast milk
- Went to Sutton Hoo
- Went to Seven Sisters/Beachy Head
- Watched Alan Partridge
- Tried plantain
- Gave blood
- Went to All Points East Festival
- Got access to a VIP area
- Created a 360-degree video
- Made a scarecrow
- Went to Croatia
- Visited Split
- Went to Froggyland
- Went to Brac
- Swam in the ocean during a storm
- Went to Dubrovnik
- Went to Montenegro
- Played netball
- Had a photograph with a policeman
- Saw a black swan
- Went on a barge trip
- Tried tie dye
- Learned to do a correct bun hairstyle
- Had a go at being a window cleaner
- Volunteered as a race marshall for a half marathon
- Made apple cake
- Saw a change in royalty
- Tried reformer Pilates
- Went to Costco
- Had a bird of prey experience afternoon
- Went on a Midsomer Murders coach trip
- Saw where “Goodnight Mister Tom” was filmed (fave film)
- Watched a plowing contest
- Went on a tractor ride
- Tried pumpkin spiced latte
- Went on a Thames Rocket speedboat
- Went on the London Eye
- Walked along the Thames beach
- Went to a casino
- Went to an Oktoberfest
- Drank a stein of beer
- Finally worked out how to screencast from my phone to the TV
- Made a wax melt artwork
- Tried macrame
- Watched and painted along to a “Joy of Painting with Bob Ross”
- Featured in a company video for work
- Had a 1:1 psychic reading
- Flew a plane
- Made ice cream
- Went to a Kiran and meditation evening
- Went to Sweden
- Went to Malmo
- Went to Denmark
- Went to Copenhagen
- Went on a train over the ocean
- Slept in a “pod” at a hotel
- Saw the Little Mermaid statue
- Saw the Danish Changing of the Guard
- Tried stegt flaesk
- Went pumpkin picking
- Went to a football match alone
- Tried gold collagen eyepatches
- Tried a face roller
- Attempted crochet
- Went to puppy yoga
- Saw the Thames Barrier
- Went on a ship trip around a wind farm
- Watched “Hocus Pocus” for the primary time
- Went on a Murder Mystery Train experience
- Asked someone on a date
- Dated an older man – definitely a DILF 😉
- Went to Science Museum Lates
- Went to Letters Live
- Carved and painted some pumpkins
- Went down the ArcelorOrbital slide
- Ran up a downward escalator
- Went to a lights and lanterns display
- NSFW!
- NSFW!
- Skateboarded
- Drove a Tesla
- NSFW!
- Went to a sketch comedy show
- Had a ski lesson
- Went to Morocco
- Went to Marrakesh
- Had a selfie with a monkey (against my will)
- Ate snails
- Went to a hammam spa
- Went to Dans le Noir (dining in the dark)
- Went on a silent disco musical walking tour
- Attended a lecture about serial killers
- Had a CACI facial
- Tried virtual clay pigeon shooting
- Went axe throwing
- Went to an ice hockey match
- Made a key lime pie
- Had a selfie with a pigeon
- Tried mulled cider
- Toasted a marshmallow on a hearth
- Pulled a pint in a pub
- Tried shisha
- Took part in a Park Run event
- Tried a physalis (weird little fruit I’d never heard of)
- Snapped a wishbone
- Began an Excel course
- Went to a neighborhood historical society talk
- Took a well-being time off of labor
- Went to a ballroom dancing class
- Inadvertently failed to turn up at an awards ceremony in my honor (I thought the e-mail was spam)
- Picked my nieces up from school
- Went to a pantomime
- Attended a web-based cookery class
- Made katsu curry from scratch
- Tried curling
- Took the ice bucket challenge
- Went to Austria
- Went to Vienna
- Rode on a double-decker train
- Saw the Spanish riding school training session
- Went to a classic Vivaldi concert
- Volunteered for the Samaritans as a fund-raiser
- Caught a grape in my mouth
- Streaked!
- NSFW!
- Interviewed by media and can imminently be in print
- Went line dancing
- Went speed dating