The modern world moves fast. It is dizzying and stressful. It is full of a 24-hour media cycle and political unrest. Every person has trauma and impactful events from their childhood that continue to affect them. Many of us live sedentary lives at our desks and go from the office to the couch. For decades, mental health has been stigmatized. Between the state of the world and contemporary life, mental health has become a topic of discussion. It’s necessary for everyone to take care of themselves in this regard. Below are five tips for mental self-care.
Get Outside & Exercise
One of the most effective things you can do for yourself is to go outside and exercise. It doesn’t have to be strenuous, and it doesn’t have to be for hours, but if you go take a hike, ride a bike, go for a run, or play a sport in the outdoors, you will benefit greatly from it. The human beings today aren’t spending enough time in the sun, and they aren’t using their bodies enough. We were biologically designed to spend nearly all our time hunting and gathering amongst nature. When you make the effort to spend time outside and get enough exercise while you’re at it, you will be a lot better mentally. Stress, anxiety, and depression are alleviated by working out in the natural world.
Eat Healthily
You’ve heard it all the time, “you are what you eat.” There is some truth to it, though. If you don’t eat well, you won’t feel well. Eating a balanced diet of low sugar and salt foods will help you feel better mentally. Keep the carbohydrates low and eat good fats and vegetables. Fruit is good for you, but you should be careful with how much fruit you eat because it is full of sugar. You should limit your alcohol intake, which greatly improves your mental health. However you look at it, a healthy diet leads to a healthy mind.
Sleep Enough & Well
Sleep is probably the most important thing in life. When you aren’t sleeping well, your whole life is affected. You eat more because you are tired. You aren’t motivated to do anything. You will feel more depressed and anxious. You should put your sleep above most things in your life. Mental health is greatly improved by quality sleep. When you’re asleep, your body and mind are healing. This is when your body literally heals itself. When you don’t get enough sleep, try your best to get enough quality hours in.
Make Time for Yourself
It doesn’t matter who you are, what you do for a living, or what your family is like, contemporary existence can be stressful. It is ridden with worry and anxiety over things that wouldn’t matter so much in the past. It is incredibly vital to make time for yourself. It’s necessary to do things you want to do, spend time with family and friends, and just sit quietly. If you aren’t taking the time to do what's good for you, you won’t ever recover. This doesn’t mean you need to hibernate or detach from certain people and things, but you should always see to it that you have alone time and time with people you love to recharge your batteries.
Practice Mindfulness
Mindfulness refers to the simple act of being in the moment. This can be accomplished several ways. You can do a guided meditation by sitting on a soft surface, closing your eyes, focusing on your breathing, allowing your mind to wander, and bringing it back to the present moment. Mindfulness can be accomplished even by listening to music. Listening is a form of mindfulness. You don’t have to listen to spiritual singing bowl music to be spiritual either. For some people, this means putting on some jazz or classical music, or even modern rock, pop, or rap vinyl. Whatever helps you be present and mindful is a valid way to practice mindfulness.
Mental self-care isn’t easy, but it’s something that everyone can achieve. Self-care should be at the top of your priority list. You can’t take care of others if you don’t take care of yourself. It isn’t always fun, but if you practice self-care in the ways above, your mindset will improve. You may not be able to treat your mental health ailments completely, but you will have a better understanding of what is in your control. Once you have a better idea how you need help, you can get the necessary treatment. Start with self-care and go from there!
