While 2020 was an incredibly difficult year for many of us, it also showed us how important it is to prioritise our mental health and take care of one another. Our mental health influences how we think, feel and behave in daily life. It also affects our ability to handle stress, face and overcome challenges, maintain, and build relationships, and recover from difficulties and setbacks. Being in an era called the “Age of Anxiety” and a “mental health crisis,” many of us struggle to place mental health on our never-ending lists, never mind keeping it at the top. Then the wake-up calls come.
While we cannot necessarily control the pressures of our modern demands or completely avoid the inescapable afflictions of life, I am sharing a wide range of activities backed by science that you can intentionally use to protect and elevate your mental health. We all feel pain and emotion, it’s just a part of life. Everyone deals with their emotions differently, but it is essential to your mental health that you do deal with your emotions, which is why it is so important to talk to someone you trust. It helps to talk things through with someone you can trust, the old saying a problem shared is a problem halved’ well – it’s still relevant. Another important tip is to take care of your body. We all know that exercise is important for your physical health. But it’s equally as important for your mental health and wellbeing too. Engaging in physical activity has been proven to increase endorphins, the happy hormone – in turn, self-esteem and can reduce stress and anxiety.
Let’s not forget to set realistic goals when we set one. Setting goals is amazing. They can motivate us to help pursue something we really want, whether it be a new car, that promotion at work, or even simple tasks such as making sure you went to the gym. It’s important to set realistic goals as unrealistic ones are hard to meet which then leads to increased stress. This can have a negative impact on your motivation which damages your mental health. Always remember to set boundaries, if you haven’t started already this will be a great way to take care of yourself. You can’t say yes to everything and still have the time to make mental health a priority. Decide what’s most important, then make the decision to delegate, renegotiate, or change your responsibilities. Mental health can quickly erode in the face of too many yeses.
Your mental health is everything. And it is time to put you and your mental health at the top of your priority list. Remember, it is never too late to reach out for help and find support. If you are struggling or don’t know where to start you can always reach out to me with your concerns and questions to mamtasaha@icloud.com