Why mental wellness?
Well, obviously the COVID-19 pandemic has caused big changes to our lives however, putting the pandemic aside our world is currently changing more rapidly than it ever has in history. Leveraging technology has enabled many jobs to become remote therefore creating a shift resulting in many people spending a lot more time at home. Whether the change has been elected or forced, it creates a unique challenge to maintain physical and mental wellness.
Self-care is especially more essential now than ever to help build and maintain a healthy immune system, which plays a vital role in helping the body to identify and respond effectively to viruses and other pathogens. Studies show how Mental Wellness directly influences how the body develops and sustains its immune guard.
It’s important to have lifestyle patterns that promote balanced nutrition, physical health, mental health, and overall mental wellness. There are a number of foundational lifestyle patterns that contribute to optimal wellness and it’s helpful to focus on progressively adding these healthy habits into your life.
1. Eating and cooking for mental wellness
Most of us know that what we eat is important however many don’t understand how critical this is to our overall performance and our ever-important mental wellness. Not only consuming healthy food but also the process of making it while spending time with family and friends can nourish the soul. Even amidst the hustle and bustle of life, it’s important to ensure you take the time required to fuel your body adequately. While you’re at it, enjoy it and be thankful!
2. Exercise For Mental Wellness
Exercise provides massive wellness benefits to both our bodies and minds. Even 10 to 15 minutes of movement can burn some calories and reduce stress, directly improving your mental wellness.
While exercising at home may have its limitations there are so many things we can do in very confined spaces (push ups, sit ups, jump squats, lunges, burpees, yoga, resistance bands etc.
You can also do squats and lunges while you’re on conference calls (make sure you’re not on video). There are also tons of online resources for training and working out. If you’re able to breathe in some fresh air in your yard or on a deck this also does wellness wonders for your body.
3. Sleep for mental wellness
Many people are getting inadequate sleep and don’t even know it. It is vitally important especially in our hyper-connected culture to “sign off” and allow our brains to rest before sleeping. At least an hour prior to going to bed you should eliminate screens. In addition, minimizing light in your room and electronics will also help contribute to higher quality sleep. Studies have shown that cooler temperatures during sleep are also good for improving your sleep and overall wellness.
Additional sleep tips for maximizing your sleep quality include consistent sleep schedules, exercising earlier in the day, avoiding caffeine and alcoholic drinks in the evening.
4. Connection for mental wellness
Humans are wired to connect – even introverts need some level of human contact! Especially when confined to our homes or working remotely, we need one another right more than ever. In the event, you’re restricted from physically seeing people, try to connect and share the details of your life with friends and family via video conferencing services.
It’s crazy that in our hyper-connected world that we all too often don’t engage in real meaningful connections. We need to be intentional and take time to reach out to the important people in our lives. Let people know you appreciate them and stay connected. Staying engaged improves your mental health and wellness.
5. Gratitude for mental wellness
Whether things may look bleak, there is always still much to be thankful for. Practicing specific gratitude habits can help improve your mental wellness and put you in a more thankful posture. Try taking a few minutes in the morning to think of as many things as possible and verbally call them out as things you are thankful for. This can be as simple as being thankful for air to breathe or living in a free country. The more you can voice these things and truly believe and appreciate them, the happier you will be.
It is virtually impossible for thankfulness and depression to co-exist. When you’re focused on maintaining thankfulness in your life, it causes feelings of appreciation and gratefulness enabling you to enjoy the life you have.
6. Control for Mental Wellness and Stability
While controlling your stress levels sounds intuitive, it can sneak up quickly and cause a lot of discomforts. Chronic stress raises our cortisol levels, which in turn suppresses immune function affecting our overall wellness. Being able to recognize when we feel stress allows us to take steps to reduce it. There are techniques to learn and practice such as meditation, deep breathing, and journaling, which can be powerful tools to lower stress.
Simple things that you can do anywhere such as meditation and breathing are amazing ways to reduce your stress and improve your mental and physical wellness. There are many apps for guided meditation and breathing, however, you can also do it on your own. Simply sitting in a chair with your eyes closed and taking deep breaths has been shown to lower your heart rate and blood pressure. Pay attention to things that increase anxiety levels such as watching the news all day. Look at reducing or eliminating things that trigger these feelings.
Self-reflection is an incredibly important practice for your overall mental wellness. Remember to be patient with yourself. If you don’t get something done today, forgive yourself and try again tomorrow. Your mind and body will thank you.
7. Microdosing and Impact on Your Mental Wellness
Lastly, we decided to add this additional habit that we feel is amazing! Microdosing isn’t for everybody however we certainly see the benefits from it and feel it can be a useful tool for many people to improve their physical and mental wellness.
Microdosing allows users to change established and intrinsic thought patterns that are linked to anxiety, depression and addiction. As a result, many people have been able to break compulsive behaviours and thought patterns, allowing them to lead happier, healthier and more productive lives.
Psilocybin microdosing is reaching the masses, which is evidenced by many of today’s top-performing athletes, celebrities, entrepreneurs and doctors speaking openly about the exciting potential of psilocybin mushrooms. Many recent microdosing studies reveal psilocybin’s ability to heal the body while also improving mood, cognition and creativity. Life is comprised of many facets and when optimized effectively the improvement in how we function can be astounding. Hopefully, these suggestions are helpful to you and provide insight into how you can improve your overall mental and physical health and mental wellness.
