Anyone feeling worried, down, confused, out of sorts? It’s perfectly natural to feel those things right now. Lockdown can be great for some but mentally draining for others. So here are my tips on how to keep your mental health on point.
1. Be Grateful
“When you are grateful, fear disappears and abundance appears.”
Tony Robbins.
Every single person has something to be grateful for… you’re alive, you have the internet and a device as you are reading this, a home to live in, etc, etc. Start every day by mentally listing at least 5 things you’re grateful for each morning before you become a slave to social media. If you do this every morning for a week your brain naturally wakes up ready to do it.
2. Stay Active
Before you roll your eyes, being active can mean anything that makes you feel better. For me, blasting out music and having a dance in the front living room helps me stay active and makes me feel great.
Do some stretches when you get out of bed and more importantly before you fall into bed at night. If you’re a parent, that in itself is enough to keep you active and there are lots of videos on YouTube offering to take the kids off your hands for half an hour… perfect ?.
Check out Joe Wicks on YouTube he is live every morning at 9am offering just this! Although parents be warned; I found myself being the only one giving it some whilst the kids very quickly adopted the roll of sergeant major coach and I swear they enjoyed watching me suffer. ?
3. Limit the news
It’s important to keep informed on the sitch but that does not mean we should watch, listen to and read the news all day long.
Our very own Boris updates us each evening. Any more news than this will just cultivate fear, anger, frustration and annoyance. Focus on the positives the rest of the day.
4. Keep Your Routine
Those who are off work and school, you might be tempted to veg out on the couch and binge on Netflix… well GO AHEAD! There’s nothing wrong with doing this now and again.
Other days though I would recommend you get up, get showered and dressed at roughly the same time each day.
MAKE YOUR BED so you accomplish at least one thing a day… chances are the day will continue with this as your brain is in that frame of mind.
5. Mindfulness
The main point to be aware of about mindfulness is to be aware… That’s it! Literally be aware. Be aware of your thoughts, your feelings, your surroundings. The more you are aware of yourself the more you will be in tune with what you need.
As an anxiety disorder survivor (yes it is possible!) I often ask myself “what do I need right now?”
That can be “I need to chill in front of the telly”, “I need 10 mins away from the kids to have a breather”, “I need to blast out some tunes” (It’s mostly chocolate what I need ?) whatever it is, pause for a moment, be aware and find out what you need.
BONUS TIP
DO WHATEVER MAKES YOU HAPPY… AND THEN DO MORE OF IT.
