by Kay Elizabeth Pascale
Contributing Author, Conscious Reminder
Maintaining your mental health is more important than ever in our increasingly stressful and fast-paced world.
Having a good mindset can determine how we handle stress, make decisions, and form relationships. Here are five tips to boost your mental health.
1. Get some exercise
No need to become a CrossFit champion—take a stroll outside or do a quick round of jumping jacks to get your heart pumping and calm your brain down. Exercise has been shown to improve mental health and reduce stress, so any kind of movement can help. Find an activity you love, whether it’s a soccer game with friends or a workout video, and reap the benefits.
2. Take time to be outside
Nature is a potent antidepressant. Some sunshine, a big grassy field, and blue skies can do wonders for a bleak mood. According to the Huffington Post, being outside can facilitate feelings of positivity and can help reduce stress levels. Because of this, you should try and schedule some time to go outside and enjoy the weather. If rain or snow keep you indoors, you can try sitting by a window to get some vitamin D. If going outdoors is really not an option for one reason or another, you can still benefit from 15–30 minutes of using a sun lamp, which produces harmless UV rays to mimic natural light.
3. Unplug from technology
Leave your phone at home or attempt to quit social media for the day, week, or month. Comparison, envy, and jealousy can wreak havoc on fragile mental health, causing anxiety, depression, and mood swings. Battle your fear of missing out by planning to hang out with your friends in real life. Having something to look forward to will certainly take the sting out of disconnecting from your favorite sites.
4. Make home an oasis of calm
Make like Marie Kondo and declutter your home or living space. Get rid of anything that’s stressing you out unnecessarily—old bills and magazines, too much kitchen equipment, anything you have to repeatedly keep putting away but hardly ever use. Surround yourself only with what you regularly use and love. According to House Method, you should designate one area in your house to relax and rejuvenate. Make sure the space is free of distractions and has enough natural light to stimulate energy and creativity.
5. Indulge in some real self-care
Self-care doesn’t always have to be about avocado face masks and expensive spinning classes—it can be as simple as taking a rest day instead of pushing yourself through a workout when you don’t feel like it, cooking some comfort food for dinner from an old family recipe, or even vegging out on the couch and binging a favorite show for a couple of hours. Yes, we have to take care of our bodies, but we also need to also take care of our souls.
About the Author: Kay Elizabeth Pascale is a writer from Durham, NC. When she isn’t writing about wellness trends or new lifestyle changes, she loves to read, travel, and play with her pup, Soren.
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