Simple But Powerful Ways To Improve Your Mental Health
Our mental health is something that we should ALL pay attention to. It’s not just for those who might have a particular or specific mental health condition. Good mental health can support you when life throws you a curve ball and there are many techniques that make it possible to make this kind of change for yourself. Here are a few ideas – some might seem obvious, while others may encourage you to think in difference ways.
Work On Your Diet
People often don’t make the connection, but diet is inextricably linked to your mental health. The better your diet, the more likely it is that your mental health is going to be strong too. If you put junk food in, and don’t look after your gut health, this can have a massive impact on the way you think, how focused you are, and even effect neurotransmitters in the brain that are responsible for mood. A poor diet can also impact your sleep. In addition, if your physical health plummets, you might end up stressed or worried – all for something that might have been prevented!
Get More Sleep
You can think of sleep as a necessary restorative process, the kind without which you are going to struggle to keep your mind in check. If you ever have any kind of mental health issues, you will undoubtedly find that they get worse when you are not getting enough sleep. Fortunately, improving your sleep can be easily addressed with some simple changes such as:
- Limit alcohol intake
- Ditch the caffeine after lunch
- Go to bed the same time every night if you can
- Ban screens for at least an hour before going to sleep
- Try something calming in the evenings like yin yoga, mindfulness or a warm bath
- Get comfortable – get yourself a good quality hybrid mattress and keep your bedroom cool
- As soon as you wake up, resist the screen and get outdoors to set your circadian rhythm
Make More Connections
It’s hugely important for human beings to make connections with other people on a regular basis, despite our personality differences and so on. If you want to take good care of your mental health, it is always beneficial to think about whether you are spending enough time with friends and family or not. If not, make an effort to find more time for them, and you should soon find that you feel a lot better in yourself in general. It really can be amazing how much something this simple can help, and quality time turns out to be really important.
Practice Meditation
Not everyone enjoys meditation or finds it useful, but many people do, and it is definitely something to consider if you are trying to give your mental health a boost. A daily meditation practice can be one of the best ways to generally improve your wellbeing, and you might be surprised how quickly this change comes about too. The key with meditation is to find something that works for you. You don’t have to sit in the lotus position for hours on end. You can try interactive apps, a walking meditation or simple breath awareness.