Mental health IS health. You can’t ignore your mental health, or pretend it’s not part of your physical presence on earth. Here are 10 ways to look after your mental health.

Talk about your feelings.

Don’t keep your feelings bottled up. A healthy release of emotions is a good cleanse for the soul and mind. However, it must be a healthy release. This means talk that’s done in a healing, non-judgemental environment.  It does not mean temper tantrums, screaming at another person, or becoming physically violent.

Keep active.

Keeping active is no easy task when you’re depressed or anxious. But being active helps your body release chemicals that your brain needs to balance itself. Go outside and release some anxiety and stress by enjoying the calming effect of nature. Jog. Swim. Golf. Whatever makes you happy.

Eat well.

Eating well is important when you’re anxious or depressed. There’s two ways you can swing with food – indulging too much or starving yourself. Keeping a proper, balanced diet prevents your body from having to deal with sudden weight gain or loss. Important brain chemicals and hormones that regulate mood function best when you eat healthy, nutritional food.

Take a break.

Stressed out? Take a break. Whether its 15 minutes or 2 hours, a break helps you refocus and get back to concentrating on the task at hand. A break refreshes your mind, body, and soul. Anxiety is reduced because heart rate goes down. Nutrients have a chance to be properly absorbed and processed by your body. Muscles relax and breathing becomes deeper, allowing more oxygen into the body and to the brain.

Drink sensibly.

Too much stress and anxiety can drive any person to drink. Sometimes that drinking becomes too much. Too much alcohol in the blood is bad for you, because the alcohol molecules bind to protein bases that do important tasks. Alcohol also depletes oxygen levels in the blood, and creates more carbon dioxide waste. It’s that waste overflow that gives an alcohol headache. Thus drinking sensibly is good for mental health.

Keep in touch.

Keep in touch with people you know. This helps keep you connected to life. In depression, a person feels disconnected and alone. Friends, family, even co-workers can be the lifeline keeping a depressed person alive. Friends can help bear some of the load if you’re stressed out. Non-judgemental friends also give you a safe space to clear your head of negative thoughts.

Do something you love.

Being active and taking a break are great ideas. But you have to do something you love when you’re active or taking a break. Otherwise, it’s just another chore, a task to be completed. If you love running, then jog. When you do something you love, your mental health improves because in those moments you are enjoying life.

Love who you are.

Loving who you are is the most important thing in having good mental health. Not the self infatuated type of self-love. But the self-love that says you’re a good person, one who deserves love and kindness. Focus on the good in you. Love who you are now. Accept that the past is over, so let it go. Release guilt because that’s holding onto past pain.

Ask for help.

It’s not a big deal asking for help, even though many people are raised to believe the opposite. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness. It doesn’t mean you’re not a man, or you’re damaged goods. Asking for help means you realize your limits. Someone can help you past that point you believe you can’t go past. Once you go past that point, you’ve learned a new skill to process pain and realize that you are more powerful than you think.

Care for others.

Taking care of your own mental health shouldn’t mean that you can’t help someone else who is struggling. Be compassionate. After all, you’ve been there where this person now is. Be non-judgemental. Simply tell the person how you got through your pain, if the person wants to hear about it. If not, then let the person know you are there as support.

 

You’re stronger than you  believe!

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