I’ve struggled with maintaining my mental health since I was a teenager. “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” seems like a great quote until you realize that it isn’t. Sometimes what doesn’t kill you depletes you and makes you feel weak. It’s hard growing up with anxiety, depression, etc., but it can be just as tough if not more so as an adult.
Keeping your mental health in check isn’t as easy as it once was. With society trying to pull you into the rat race all day every day and the almost unavoidable busyness of life, quieting your mind and staying calm are not easy tasks. Therapy is a great resource, but there are other less expensive options out there. Below, I’ve listed a few strategies that I have learned over the last few years that have improved my life significantly when done regularly.
Do Something for your Mind, Body, and Spirit Daily
Humans are complex creatures with many layers. Each of those layers may need something different to help them along throughout the day. Your mind may benefit from reading your favorite book at the end of your day while it energizes your body to do yoga every morning. A walk out in nature may be good for all three.
The needs of our minds, bodies, and spirits may overlap as well. There is mounting scientific evidence for the connection of the three. Examples of that are women in abusive situations showing signs of physical illness or those with great mindsets being able to overcome cancer quicker and easier. The research has been piling up over the years leading many to speculate that how you care for each one will affect the others. Keep this in mind as you schedule self-care.
Prep for the Week
If you don’t like prepping, I promise you it’s worth a try. By setting aside time before your week starts to go over your calendar, sort out your priorities, and cook food for the next few days, you will save yourself from so much stress. Prep anything that you know you stress about during the week.
A friend randomly messages you and wants to take you out to lunch? You now know whether you can realistically fit that into your schedule. Had a long, terrible day at work? No worries about dinner, because you already have meals waiting for you in the fridge. You can even check the weather and lay out all of your outfits for the week if you want. Removing decision making from the equation during the week allows you to turn your focus to what really matters and eliminates unnecessary panic attacks or low lows.
Keep Your Space Clean
For me, this is essential and reflects the kind of week I’ll probably have. A messy space equals a messy mind, and that is a recipe for compounding preexisting mental health issues like depression and anxiety. This is not a great feeling.
Instead take an hour or so before your week starts to clean up a bit. Open the windows if you can and let in some light and fresh air while listening to music that brings you joy. Creating a happy environment to do a chore that may be even harder while struggling mentally helps tremendously and sets the tone for a better week after it’s done.
Journal
I know, what a cliché, right? In my experience, sometimes, journaling can be better than any therapy session. That may sound crazy, but there are a significant amount of studies that suggest brain dumping is vital to working through things mentally. Getting things off your chest by writing every thought that comes to mind and not judging it gives us some perspective about what’s really going on in our own head when it’s a mess up there.
When you are suffering with mental health issues, sometimes the best thing you can do is let it all out. Keeping in mind that word vomiting and therapy are absolutely not the same thing, there is a time for both. Some of my most amazing breakthroughs have happened in a therapist’s office, but many have happened alone in my apartment while journaling. You never know what you will find when you allow yourself to express how you really feel.
Stretch and Move Your Body
Again, back to that very real mind/body connection. Anytime I feel stuck mentally, I stretch or move my body. The mental paralysis subsides when I do this, and I can work again. There is something about exercise or just moving your body in some way that reactivates the brain when it’s failing us.
If you can’t go for a run, take a walk even if it’s just up and down your stairs. If you don’t have the energy to go to the studio for some hot yoga, find a video on youtube and do five to ten minutes of it. Just stretch if that’s all you can muster up the strength to do. Anything is better than doing nothing for yourself.
There are ways to live and strategies to implement that alleviate stress and the mental health issues that follow. Try a few of the tips above, but also don’t be afraid to Google search and ask friends to find what works. You are not truly stuck until your mind believes that it is.
Living with this doesn’t mean you throw in the towel. It just means that you may need to become a problem solver to find a way around the obstacles. Don’t accept where you are when you’re in the dark. There is a light at the end of the tunnel that is worth reaching. Although these thoughts and emotions can make you feel weak and vulnerable, you are strong. Please remember that you are stronger for having worked through what you have already and for fighting what you haven’t yet overcome.