4 Ways To Boost Your Mental Health

Your mental health and wellness should be a top priority at all times. Depression, anxiety, fatigue, and other mental health problems are at an all-time peak with the COVID-19 pandemic. With millions of Americans being forced to quarantine at home, balance a job, and provide for their families under these dire circumstances, 2020 has easily been one of the most stressful years in recent history.

With so much up in the air, it’s absolutely fair to feel like your mental health is on the fritz. If you are facing mental health challenges for the first time or your pre-existing mental health challenges are amplified during these tough times, the following tips will help you take time to reflect on your head space and well-being.

Prioritising your mental health will empower you to review and assess how your habits and behaviours affect your everyday life.  Naturally, working with a licensed therapist or doctor should be your first line of defence, but if you’re not yet willing to take that measure, there are a variety of ways you can start boosting your mental health from the privacy of your own home, today.

Unplug

Although social media is a fantastic tool for getting people together and staying connected with your family, friends, and colleagues, it can also be extremely isolating and leave you feeling like you have to uphold a certain image. On the emotional well being front, this form of attachment can be exhausting and depressing. Unplugging from your most-frequented social media platforms can help you concentrate on re-prioritising your mental health. 

It only takes a single click to deactivate your social media account and doing so can provide the solace and reset that you need from the constant doom-scrolling you subject yourself to. You may be able to find the clear-headedness you desire by minimising your time spent on these platforms.

To occupy your time in a healthy way, try these calming activities:

• Reading or listening to an audiobook
• Painting
• Crocheting
• Jogging
• Scrapbooking
• Sewing
• Writing letters
• Planting a garden

If you want to explore needle crafting, make sure to check out Yarnie, a platform for needle crafters. On Yarnie, you can subscribe to their newsletter to get weekly freebies, including free sewing patterns and also crochet patterns. This way you don’t have to spend a dime on high quality patterns.

Spend some time with Mother Nature

Did you know that boosting your mental health can be as simple as getting outside? It has been found that spending time outdoors can decrease the stress hormone cortisol, which can relieve the harrowing effects of anxiety and other mental health conditions. Other advantages of getting outdoors include lower blood pressure, improved immune system health, and increased energy levels. 

If you’re wondering where to start, there are a myriad of ways you can get yourself excited to get outside. Whether that means purchasing a hammock to set up in your backyard or making use of your bike by taking it for morning rides, finding reasons to spend some time in the sunshine can be simple.

Prioritise Sleep

If you’re not making it a point to get enough sleep on a routine basis, you’re doing yourself a major disservice. Sleep irregularities can intensify mental health issues and worsen associated physical effects. Poor sleep can do everything from impair the strength of your immune system to increase your risk of experiencing severe health issues further down the line. 

The good news is that while there are a range of situations and things that are out of your direct control in life, sleep isn’t one of them. If you’re looking to start optimizing your sleep efficiency, start by setting a bedtime, eliminating screen time before bed, and tracking how many hours of shut-eye you’re able to get each night.  

You can also try these sleep tricks:

• Taking melatonin before bed (this type of wellness supplement can help you doze e off)
• Using a white noise machine to drown out external sounds
• Taking a warm shower before bedtime

You could also make sure you relax more prior to bedtime. A massage has always been a brilliant way to completely relax those tired muscles and achieve a high level of calm, but with professional massages now out of the question, you could instead look at investing in a massage chair from Human Touch which offers support and comfort and sheer relaxation, and can be paid for in instalments, a fantastic investment if you suffer from chronic pain and discomfort.

Exercise

Getting routine exercise can help boost your mental well-being in several respects.  Regular exercise promotes brain neural development, decreases inflammation, and activates endorphins— the feel-good hormone that rejuvenates your energy levels.  Sticking to a regular exercise schedule will help you calm down and relieve your stress.

If you don’t know where to get started, try the following activities:

• Rollerblading
• Dancing
• Zumba
• Yoga
• Paddleboarding

Wrapping Up

With so much going on around the world, it’s so important to take a step back, and prioritise yourself and your headspace. Which of these tips will you try first? Let me know in the comments below.

Sharing is caring!