1. Eat, sleep and exercise well
The human mind and body are strongly linked meaning that it’s important to know that taking care of your body is tied with a healthy and good state of mind.
Eating healthily not only results in a healthy body, but also a healthy mind as well. For example, iron deficiency in your blood can make you at risk of depression (due to iron’s connection with dopamine), but can be remedied by eating iron-heavy foods such as leafy vegetables like spinach.
A good night’s sleep also helps your body to recover from both physical and mental exertion, but is also good for avoiding adverse effects of sleep deprivation like depression, stress, and anxiety.
And finally, exercises like jogging, playing sports, or even something as small as a walk in the park (so long as it’s consistent and you get your body moving). These things help release feel-good chemicals like endorphins and dopamine that boosts happiness, and among many other reasons help give you a feeling of accomplishment and achievement.
2. Balancing mood and stress levels (from what you do, to who you talk to)*
Doing feel-good and activities helps make you feel happy and boosts your wellbeing. For example, interacting with good friends, watching, reading, and playing, take your time to enjoy and do all the things that make you happy.
Taking the time for leisure and fun every now and then is always good to relieve stress. It lifts your mood and promotes good mental health.
3. Helping you by helping others: giving to and helping others, caring and connecting relationships, and engage in meaningful work
Small acts of kindness, giving and helping others are all promoters of good mental health and wellbeing alongside reducing personal stress (and it gives positivity for others too).
From thanking someone properly, being a good listener, helping those who might need help, there are so many small opportunities that anyone can do, that the benefit falls not just on the people you help but you as well.
An example of this can be seen in volunteering activities. It allows you to connect with and help your community, but also helps give you meaning and purpose, builds self-esteem and improves mental health.
4. Talk about how you feel (especially with those you trust)
Sometimes, keeping your thoughts and troubles alone and bottled up can even lead to increased levels of stress.
Making sure you let out your feelings to someone you know can be a good listener is important to make sure you stay mentally healthy. It makes you feel supported, lessens the burden in your mind and reduces the stress from keeping it all bottled in.
It is challenging, awkward and not always something you might be comfortable with, but occasionally it is something you need to do to sort out what you think about your wellbeing, and for others to know if they want to support as well.
Speaking up also helps others do the same, and can be a starter for seeking further help and actions to take care of your mental health.
5. Mindfulness practices, counting your gratitude and meditation
Mindfulness is the practice of taking the time to focus on what you sense and feel at the moment without judgement (knowing what you are feeling right now is right or wrong, good or bad, just that you sense and feel them). It can be done through meditation acts among many, and helps give you time and space for a moment to relax, learning to regulate emotions, a moment of calm, concentrate on your feelings and to reduce stress. Practices of which can help care for mental wellbeing.
In addition to mindfulness, counting down gratitude and noting them down each day (the 3 things you are grateful and happy for written down in a journal for example) helps bring awareness of the positivity you feel each day to help improve mental wellbeing.
