In order to take full advantage of time we have in this life, making an effort to take care of our health is a must. After all, we are only given one body and, as of right now, they are non-refundable!
When most people consider what it means to be healthy, the idea of getting in shape, eating healthy and hitting the gym comes to mind. All of these practices are definitely conducive to being healthy, but physical health is only half of the equation.
Maintaining a healthy mind is just as important as taking care of the physical body. Fortunately, this has become much more acknowledged in today’s healthcare system. The physical body and its associated injuries and diseases have garnered the vast majority of attention in the world of medicine historically.
However, we are now gaining a better understanding of just how vital a person’s mental health can be both in the way it manifests itself in the physical body and the extent in which it affects overall quality of life.
In this article, we are going to be briefly discussing 5 ways to boost your mental health.
Maintain Positive Internal Dialogue
When it comes to the way we interact and communicate with other people, most of us would never speak to others in a way that deliberately tore them down or made them feel bad about themselves. This is an obvious social habit and one that would be disastrous if we didn’t adhere to. Ironically, we are often quick to violate this habit when it comes to the way we speak to ourselves.
Too many of us are very hypercritical and condescending in terms of the way we speak to ourselves, whether this be internal self-talk or even spoken aloud. We will pick apart every single thing we say or do, finding fault wherever possible and then wonder why our mental health seems poor.
In order to nurture and protect your mental environment, make sure you are being just as kind to yourself as you would when speaking to someone that needed an uplifting word.
There is a popular saying that states, “comparison is the thief of joy.” This statement has never been more true than today’s world, where social media is full of people posting only the highlights of their lives. It can be easy to look at other people’s lives from a birds eye view and think that our own situation is far less ideal.
Comparing your life and current situation to the versions of other peoples that they want you to see is entirely detrimental to your mental health.
The truth is, every person alive has their issues and shortcomings, just as they have successes and triumphs. Focus on your life, appreciate the highs, and always strive to improve your own personal situation.
Find Joy In The Small Things
When pondering what it takes to live a happy and fulfilled life, a lot of us are under the impression that it takes grandiose events and big achievements to produce this feeling. Of course, these occurrences are great and should be celebrated, but events of this scale should not be the only thing fueling your mental health.
In order to achieve a consistent state of mental well-being, it is important to appreciate the little moments of joy that happen every day. Think about the smallest moments in your daily schedule, your morning cup of coffee, taking the dog on a walk or sitting outside watching the sunset.
These are everyday sources of happiness that often get overlooked as we constantly search for something more.
Surround Yourself With The Right People
We can all identify a particular feeling or mood that we feel when surrounded by certain individuals. Most of the time, this feeling is for and reason and should be acknowledged.
The people you surround yourself with can have a huge impact on your mental health. If you allow people in your immediate environment that drag you down emotionally and seem to exude nothing but negative energy, they will almost always drag you down with them. Instead, surround yourself with the people you find make you laugh more and feel happy around.
Feed Your Mind Healthy Things
The association between the things we eat and the effects they have on the physical body are pretty straightforward. A diet consisting of nothing but junk food and alcohol binges is going to result in a bad outcome every single time. This is not exactly cutting-edge science.
Given that the above statement is factual, why would allowing a steady flow of negative information into the mind cause anything but ill-effects to mental health as well? Consuming negative mental food in the form of music, television or even listening to people in your surroundings gossip and complain has a direct effect on your internal environment. The same rule that applies to the body applies to the mind, healthy in, healthy out.
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