The benefits of a mental health routine can never be dismissed. If you take time each week to service your brain and the way you’re thinking and feeling, you’re going to get into the habit of checking in with yourself and practicing a bit of self care. That’s essential in a modern world that asks you to take so much on!
However, the mental health routine itself doesn’t have that many adherents. We all know just how good a physical fitness regime can be for you, but when it comes to your mental wellness, most people just take some time here and there to care for it. And that’s usually after they’ve already been crushed by the stress of what’s going on around them!
But if you tackle mental health in a proactive and preventative manner, you can do ten times the amount for yourself. Not only will you feel better now, but you’ll have so many more tools and coping mechanisms for those moments when things feel overwhelming and you can barely breathe.
Mind-Body Connection Starts with Your Feet
Believe it or not, your physical foundation plays a key role in supporting your mental health. If your fitness routine involves a lot of standing, walking, or running, it’s worth investing in proper footwear with gel insoles to keep your body aligned and reduce discomfort. Physical pain or discomfort can take a toll on your mental well-being, making it harder to stay consistent with your fitness and mindfulness practices. By prioritizing foot health and investing in orthotics, you can reduce distractions, stay focused on your workouts, and enhance that all-important mind-body connection.
Let’s turn your mental awareness into a daily habit; here’s how to fashion yourself a mental health routine that’ll really work.
Start Journaling Your Feelings
Your mental health worries shouldn’t stay just in your head. While it’s all working away up there and turning you into a ball of anxiety that feels like it’s going to go off at any moment, your entire body is going to be reacting and working double time too. It’s why it’s always been recommended to never bottle anything up!
But if you don’t feel like talking about your feelings – and it’s very rare that a person will always want to – you can write them down instead. That’s where a mental health journal comes in and sets up the rest of your mental health routine.
Journaling your feelings at the end of each day gets the bulk of them out of your head via an outlet that feels both productive and safe. No one has to see what you’re saying, you can say whatever you like, and you don’t have to keep the same stuff revolving around your thoughts day after day. That’s one of the simplest yet most healing things anyone could ever do.
Improve Your Sleep Hygiene
Sleep is where your brain pushes out most of the things it doesn’t need, reinforces good memories and feelings, and heals from the stresses of the day. Really, sleep is one of the core components of a mental health routine simply because it’s the only time your mind actually gets a break. You might have a funny or wacky dream to wake up from, but once you’re in deep sleep, you’re spending all that time healing and recharging.
Which is why your sleep hygiene could do with a bit of focus. If you’re not heading to bed at the same time every night and settling down without any blue light sources around, you might be doing yourself a real disservice. Bedtime routines aren’t just for kids! Adults benefit from them too, especially those who are worried about their mental state.
Regularly Eat Brain Fog Busting Meals
Brain fog isn’t a condition in itself, but it does cover a wide variety of symptoms that make you feel like you’re swimming through mush whenever you try to think about something. Brain fog can be a sign something else is going on, and if you’ve been living with it for a while it may be worth a trip to the doctor, but in truth we all have a bit of brain fog from time to time.
If that’s something you want to bust through the use of a mental health routine, you’ll want to start with a few dietary changes. A few more brain boosting meals per week could be the most crucial element of your mental health routine, as the nutrients we take in have everything to do with the chemicals we then generate.
But what should you change? Well, you may want to pack a few more antioxidants into your meals, as they’re good for the brain and help to clear the way for healthy cell growth. Leafy greens like Kale and Broccoli are good for this. If you can’t eat them fresh, get a high quality greens powder!
All in all, however, simply make sure your meals and snacks taste good and bring a lot of vitamins and minerals into your body – sometimes they’re the missing piece of the jigsaw!
Understand Your Triggers
Triggers refer to quite a severe mental health occurrence where we usually hear, see, or feel something that may remind us of a traumatic event. They’re not a light thing to address and they can be very hard to understand.
However, if you’re someone who knows that certain daily events may cause a spike in anxiety and/or reduce your mood to an irritable or panicky state, it’s important to find out where those triggers really lie.
This can be hard work to do by yourself, and seeing a therapist to talk them over will always be beneficial. But if you’re already somewhat aware of what things cause you to feel the kind of things we described above, that’s the place to start.
You don’t have to tell anyone about them, but being aware of how they can make you feel will give you the tools to minimize the risk they present in day to day life. In the same way you would aim to avoid low nutrient foods or anything that makes you feel bloated as part of a diet and exercise routine, understanding the things that cause this reaction can make your mental health routine all the more powerful.
Take Time Outside
Being outside is very good for you. It’s not just a place where you can soak up all the Vitamin D you need and get some fresh air in the lungs; your brain is going to enjoy all that nature as well. If you can get out and about with the sole goal of nourishing your mind with the experience twice a week, go ahead and do so!
The more time you take outside, the more free your life is really going to feel. You won’t be confined inside buildings all the time, whether you’re working, doing a grocery shop, traveling in the car, or spending time at home. The wide open sky is above you and you can feel everything it has to offer on your face.
That simple realization can be very healing, and the more you head out to feel it, the more normal it’s going to become.
If You Feel Isolated, Reach Out
Isolation isn’t good for the brain. If you feel like you’re cut off from the rest of the world, it’s time to reach out and prove to yourself that that’s not the case.
Everyone has at least one or two people they can rely on and when the tough gets going, it’s best to call on them and let them know what’s going on.
You’ll feel involved in their life and they’ll feel involved in yours, and that’s always a warming feeling that pushes isolation away.
If You Don’t Have a Routine, Get One
Not a mental health routine – a normal, run of the mill, day to day routine that keeps you on an even keel. Paradoxically, that’s part of every day mental health care! And by this kind of routine we mean getting up at the same time, making sure you have breakfast, carving out a period for exercise if you so wish, making time for hobbies, and then going to bed at the same time, etc.
That’s the kind of routine people thrive off, and even if you’re more of a spontaneous person who loves to go with the flow, a routine like this can make you feel so much more in control of your life. When we know what to expect, we can keep our anxiety levels low and give ourselves a much clearer mind to think with. Even if your routine isn’t extensive and you can only manage one or two things each and every day, it’ll still help you feel like you’re in charge!
A Mental Health Routine is Always Good for You
A fitness routine is good for your body, and it has all kinds of benefits for your brain as well. But that shouldn’t mean you otherwise leave your mental wellness to its own devices. That’s why you should get yourself a mental health routine that’ll champion your inner self and everything it needs.
The more you go the extra mile for yourself, the easier life will feel to bounce back from. And when your mental and physical health are in tandem with one another, you’re going to feel more complete than ever before.