7 Ways to Maintain Mental Health

Develop A Routine:

Everyone needs a routine. And not having a routine adds to your stress as you must make even the most minor decisions repeatedly. Some examples include deciding what to wear and what to eat, procrastinating, thinking you have enough time, etc.

On the other hand, bringing structure and routine to your day helps you manage stress and anxiety (Eilam et al., 2011). It allows you to complete day-to-day tasks on time, giving you ample time to engage in healthy activities. Moreover, it enhances productivity, concentration, and a sense of control that aids in lowering stress levels and improving your mental health.

Limit Newsfeed and Social Media Consumption:

It is understandable if you want to keep yourself updated on current events. However, prolonged exposure to stressful news impact your physical and mental health. Not only news but excessive social media consumption also adversely affects health. Adding insult to injury is that it is a sedentary behavior that further increases the risk of health problems (Martinsen, 2008).

Moreover, the use of social media platforms for long durations can lead to symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression (O’Reilly et al., 2018). Hence, if you are experiencing mood swings, have sleep disturbances, or have lost interest in activities compared to before, take a break from social media and news consumption. One way is to limit your screen time.

You can also check your news and social media consumption by limiting yourself to a few sources that provide valid information. So that uncertainty and misinformation don’t add to your stress.

Meditate Daily:

Our minds are busy processing information, apprehending it, or contemplating it, depending on how we utilize it. And as we try to juggle many tasks, multitasking decreases creativity, productivity, and efficiency, further adding to the stress. One way to maintain mental health is to take a step back from your daily chores and spend some time alone. Declutter your mind by practicing meditation daily.

Daily meditation decreases the chances of depression and other mood-related disorders (Jain et al., 2015). It is a natural stress stabilizer that improves resilience, cognition, and focus (Jha et al., 2007). As you practice meditation, don’t forget to declutter your surroundings. The reason is that physical clutter overwhelms your brain, increases anxiety, and affects sleep and your ability to focus.

Physical Health Matters:

Have you ever heard that a healthy body means a healthier brain? Among the mental health care intervention, exercise is the often-neglected one. If you have a sedentary lifestyle, exercise or physical activity can significantly improve your health and mind. Exercise reduces negative mood, anxiety, and depression and improves cognitive function and self-esteem (Callaghan, 2004). These improvements can help improve your mental health.

And for physical activity and exercise, you don’t have to restrict yourself if you can’t go to the gym. Swimming, gardening, dancing, doing house chores, or playing hide and seek with your kids can serve as exercise. Moreover, don’t underestimate the importance of a good 8-9-hour night’s sleep and a nutritious diet. Both contribute to your brain’s better functioning and mental health maintenance.

Connect with Others:

We are social creatures and need others to have a well-balanced life. Moreover, social connection relieves sadness, anxiety, and stress; when you don’t have enough of it, it poses serious threats to mental health (Mohamad et al., 2017). As we are confined to our homes during the quarantine and encounter stressful news and updates on current economic, educational, and infection-related conditions, we need others more than ever.

Appropriate use of social media at such times can offer support, hope, and friendship to others (Davidson et al., 2006). Keep in touch with your friends and family 0through audio and video calls. And if you are capable of helping others, you can do so by joining an organization or other help centers online. Hope and happiness are contagious; try to spread them as much as possible.

Reduce Smoking, Alcohol, and Drug Use:

Among many factors that contribute to your mental health and well-being are smoking, alcohol, and drug use. Though alcohol works as a depressant and can make you feel relaxed and less anxious. This short-term benefit has long-term hazardous effects.

Alcohol dependency increases the risk of depressive and other mood-related problems, suicide, schizophrenia, and personality disorders (Crawford et al., 2003). In addition to the stress caused by the current state of the pandemic, alcohol can further exacerbate the issue. Similarly, smoking is no exception. Scientific evidence has linked smoking to psychiatric disorders as well.

Hence, try to limit smoking, alcohol, and drug use as much as possible. Learn to identify the triggers and add a healthy behavior alternative to smoking, alcohol, and drug use in the habit loop.

Ask for Help:

If you are practicing different strategies to lower stress during the pandemic and manage things better, keep this in mind ‘don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Give yourself some time and be gentle and compassionate to yourself. Try to practice the ways mentioned above and indulge in self-care. But if you still cannot take care of your mental health, seeking help would be a better option.

Considering the mental health stigma or misconceptions about counseling, people usually avoid seeking help from a professional. However, this may be the right thing to do. Keeping social distancing in mind, you can utilize online counseling. It will not only help you in this time of need, but you will learn coping strategies that will help you deal with future situations much better.

Another option is to opt for group counseling. It will help you connect with more people and learn their perspectives and from their experiences. You will also learn how they deal with a particular situation and provide the social connection you may need.

Conclusion:

In a nutshell, mental health is vitally important to your overall well-being. Learn ways to take care of your mental health by incorporating tactics into your daily lifestyle.   Your mind will thank you for it!

References:

Brooks, S. K., Webster, R. K., Smith, L. E., Woodland, L., Wessely, S., Greenberg, N., & Rubin, G. J. (2020). The psychological impact of quarantine and how to reduce it: Rapid review of the evidence. Lancet (London, England), 395(10227), 912–920. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30460-8

Callaghan, P. (2004). Exercise: A neglected intervention in mental health care? Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, 11(4), 476–483. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2850.2004.00751.x

Crawford, V., Crome, I. B., & Clancy, C. (2003). Co-existing Problems of Mental Health and Substance Misuse (Dual Diagnosis): A literature review. Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy, 10(1), 1–74. https://doi.org/10.1080/0968763031000072990

Davidson, L., Chinman, M., Sells, D., & Rowe, M. (2006). Peer support among adults with serious mental illness: A report from the field. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 32(3), 443–450. https://doi.org/10.1093/schbul/sbj043

Eilam, D., Izhar, R., & Mort, J. (2011). Threat detection: Behavioral practices in animals and humans. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 35(4), 999–1006. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2010.08.002

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Jain, F. A., Walsh, R. N., Eisendrath, S. J., Christensen, S., & Rael Cahn, B. (2015). Critical analysis of the efficacy of meditation therapies for acute and subacute phase treatment of depressive disorders: A systematic review. Psychosomatics,56(2), 140–152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psym.2014.10.007

Jha, A. P., Krompinger, J., & Baime, M. J. (2007). Mindfulness training modifies subsystems of attention. Cognitive, Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience, 7(2), 109–119. https://doi.org/10.3758/cabn.7.2.109

Martinsen, E. W. (2008). Physical activity in the prevention and treatment of anxiety and depression. Nordic Journal of Psychiatry, 62 Suppl 47, 25–29. https://doi.org/10.1080/08039480802315640

Mohamad, M., Juahir, H., Ali, N. a. M., Kamarudin, M. K. A., Karim, F., & Badarilah, N. (2017). Developing health status index using factor analysis. Journal of Fundamental and Applied Sciences, 9(2S), 82–92. https://doi.org/10.4314/jfas.v9i2S

O’Reilly, M., Dogra, N., Whiteman, N., Hughes, J., Eruyar, S., & Reilly, P. (2018). Is social media bad for mental health and well-being? Exploring the perspectives of adolescents. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 23(4), 601–613. https://doi.org/10.1177/1359104518775154