My Top 5 Novels that Should be Adapted to Dramas
Hello, guys! I'm finally back to my beloved MDL, it has been a hectic couple of months for me. Now that I'm slightly less busy, I have realized that I had not watched a drama in months! Read that again, MONTHS! I used to cram in 2 to 3 dramas weekly. If I was not watching a drama, it was because I was asleep. But then everything changed when married life, and its responsibilities, hit me like the fateful white truck of doom. Even when I had time, I did not find anything that caught my attention. This is the reason why I decided to write the steps I took to get myself out of my suffering. They might not be foolproof, but if they help at least one drama-sis (or bro) out there, it will be worth it.
FORGET ABOUT YOUR FAVORITES
This might sound counterproductive when it comes to getting ourselves out of a slump, after all, what would be more effective than our favorite actors in a new drama, but bear with me for a second.
Your incredulous self right now...
Are you still here? K... As I was saying, jumping into your faves when you are in the middle of a long slump might actually worsen your situation. First, we tend to be extremely selective, or even picky, when we don't feel like watching anything, we scroll and scroll looking for the perfect drama to watch. Choosing a drama just because your favorite actor is the lead won't make it enjoyable, there are other variables such as script, genre, etc. The fact that your bias or favorite actor was not able to make you enjoy a drama might be a reason why your slump is getting worse, after all, if my platonic perfect love cannot make me happy while watching a drama, who will? This results in us dropping dramas with beloved actors left and right - we might even lose hope that we will ever find the will to watch anything with them in it again.
What to do instead: Pick a newbie, someone fresh enough to make the drama feel like a new and interesting experience but also skilled enough to appeal to your interests, this way, even if you don't enjoy the drama, you won't feel like it is the end of your existence and it won't kill your love for your bias.
How did it work for me: Besides helping me out of slumps, this method has helped me find precious jewels of dramas as well as new hotties to add to my ever-growing list of babes I'll marry in my next life.
MIX THINGS UP
Besides looking for a new actor or actress that might get you interested, I recommend trying a new genre and new countries. Again, you might say "oh, but I'm already not interested in those, how will they help me with my slump?", but you might be surprised how much fun watching something different can be, the hardest part is to take the first step.
Graphic representation of slump
Let's be honest, most of us drama watchers stick to one or two countries and a couple of favorite genres, some might even try new ones every once in a while but it just doesn't stick. This might hold true most of the time, but I believe our state of mind is different during a slump and something completely new and unexpected might do the trick of getting us back into our glorious bingeing days.
What to do: If you are not sure how to go about it, you might just click on the "explore" tab, hit top shows, and then pick a country you have not tried, or even if you have, maybe this time you'll find something that gets your attention. I suggest that you pick a very famous drama in the genre or country you have not tried before, something with great reviews might make it easier for you to enjoy. The first few episodes will be the hardest, either because you cannot get used to the language or because the mood just doesn't feel right (in the case of a new genre or tag), but I assure you that if you stick around you might find yourself finishing the drama and looking for more from that country.
How this helped me: I first developed my love for Thai lakorns during a slump when I had absolutely nothing to watch and just didn't feel like rewatching anything, so I just started to look for some other countries (at the time, I only watched Japanese and Korean dramas). I stumbled upon Full House Thai and the rest is history. I enjoyed it so much that I continue to watch lakorns, even if most of them are hit-or-miss with me.
DROP DRAMAS COMPLETELY
This is where you say "now she has gone completely crazy", but again hear me out first, ok?
You right now.
I'm not saying that you have to stop watching dramas forever, what I'm saying is that maybe you need a rest. Just like we can get a stomachache from eating too much of our favorite sweet, we can get tired of watching too many dramas. Go sit in the park, watch a movie at your friend's house, go watch the latest buzz movie in the movie theater, do whatever breaks your routine. My point is, maybe you just need to give dramas a rest for a little while in order to enjoy them again.
How can this help you: After a little bit without watching dramas and doing some other activities, you will feel refreshed and will even crave the feelings you get when watching a drama.
TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT YOUR MENTAL HEALTH
This point is a little more serious than the others and I will not go too deep into it since it can be a touchy subject, but because of personal experiences, I wanted to at least mention it. So keep reading.
Sudden loss of interest in activities that we usually enjoy might be a sign of stress, anxiety, and/or depression. Now, I'm not saying that every person that loses interest in an activity is depressed or in need of mental evaluation, far from it, we are all entitled to dropping or changing as many hobbies as we please. BUT, for people like me, with diagnosed issues, suddenly losing interest in previously rewarding and enjoyable activities is a red flag that our anxiety or depression is acting up.
My advice: Touch base with close friends, family, or your therapist (if you have one) and talk about anything that is going on with your life, this is the best stress reliever and it might help you pinpoint anything you are missing. The most important thing is that you are safe.
