Ten ways to improve your mental health
1. Spend time in nature
Spending time in nature is one of the best things you can do to keep yourself mentally healthy. For this, you have several options:
- you can go for a walk in a park
- For hiking in the forests
- If you are fond of tourism, you can arrange a trip to explore breathtaking nature sights around the world.
Being in nature has a calming effect on the mind, reduces stress and anxiety levels, elevates mood, and creates a sense of happiness and contentment.
2. Spend time with your family and friends
Having strong relations with your family and friends can help you live a more balanced and mentally healthier life. These social connections benefit us in the following ways:
Provide support during challenging situations
Help combat feelings of isolation
Meaningful connections with family and friends lead to sensations of happiness and joy.
3. Healthy diet
A balanced and well-nourished diet is extremely important to keep your body healthy and full-filled and makes you a mentally sound person. The diets that are good for your mental health are:
Fruits(e.g. strawberries, apples, oranges, blueberries), avocadoes
vegetables(e.g. spinach, carrots, Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes)
Nuts, seeds, legumes, healthy fats (olive oil)
Moderate consumption of dark chocolate can also provide you with potential mental health benefits.
4. Play with your furry friend
Having a furry friend in your home is the best way to keep you mentally healthy. Playing and cuddling with your four-legged companions reduce the level of stress hormones e.g. cortisol and boost the release of love hormones e.g., oxytocin and serotonin, which are associated with feelings of relaxation and happiness.
5. Take a break from social media
Constant exposure to social media can be the source of comparison and competition, mindless scrolling before bedtime disturbs your sleep cycle, reduces mindfulness, and hence reduces productivity. All these things are destructive to your mental health.
Taking breaks or limiting the use of social media can save you from all these harmful effects and enables you to live your life with maximum potential.
6. Do regular exercise
Doing regular exercise not only makes you physically healthy but also mentally as well. For this:
- You can go for several exercises such as walking, jogging, swimming or cycling, or outdoor activities that allow you to enjoy nature
- Engage in sports and recreational activities
- Join group fitness classes
Staying physically active leaves positive effects on your overall mental and emotional well-being such as:
It relaxes your muscles, reduces stress, improves mood, and gives you the feeling of contentment.
7. Establish attainable objectives
By setting attainable targets you are enabled to achieve them easily which increases your self-confidence, boosts your inspiration to move ahead fearlessly, and alleviates your anxiety. Specifying accomplishable goals also enhances your focus, and productivity, and gives you a sense of purpose and fulfillment. Thus, outlining practical milestones gives you the feeling of satisfaction and hence improves your overall mental outlook.
8. Develop stress management skills
Unmanaged stress is the root cause of developing mental disorders. Acquiring stress resilience skills e.g. deep breathing, mindfulness practices, and engaging in social activities or hobbies help you to manage your emotions skillfully and you are able to maintain your mental well-being even during difficult times.
Remember that developing stress-handling abilities requires upfront work and constant effort and seeking mental health professional advice can bring magical results for you.
9. Avoid alcohol and other substances
Alcohol and other substances are initially used by people to cope with detrimental feelings and distressing emotions, but ultimately they become the cause of their mental and emotional instability, mood swings, reduced motivation, and decision-making skills.
By staying away from such substances you diminish the likelihood of experiencing these conditions and allow your natural mental health mechanisms to work better.
10. Develop healthy sleep habits
Getting not enough sleep brings a lot of problems to you such as fatigue, facing difficulty in staying alert, reduced ability to retain information, increases risk of hypertension, metabolic disorders, and also weakens your immune system.
Maintaining good sleep hygiene makes you think clearly, enhances your ability to cope with difficult situations, makes you less prone to emotional outbursts, and thus increases your overall quality of life.
