Being proactive about mental health
Have you ever heard that saying that “If you don’t have your health, you don’t have anything?”
Well, while I never subscribe to the idea that a single quote is an absolute, this one always does resonate. However, most people hear this quote and think about their physical health, but making sure your mental health is also maintained is super important to being able to live a full life.
It’s pretty common that as a counsellor my first point of contact with clients is when they’ve hit breaking point or when a crisis has loomed so large it’s impossible to ignore. And that’s totally normal and ok.
But what if we started changing the narrative that looking after your mental health is just as important as looking after your physical health, in the same way that we regularly go to the doctor for a check-up? It’s my dream that one day the stigma around mental health will be completely broken and talking about needing some assistance or a mental health check-up is as common as saying “I’ve got a GP appointment today”.
Coming to see a counsellor or anyone else who works in the mental health sector can happen long before there’s a big issue happening in your life, or long before there’s the stereotyped “breakdown”.
And in fact, taking proactive steps towards your mental health can help significantly reduce additional distress should anything go a bit pear-shaped. Hey, life occasionally throws you lemons but if you’ve already got some amazing coping techniques and a good support network to rely on, you’re less likely to have those lemony events ruin or diminish your emotional balance completely.
So what can do you? Well, sometimes I feel like I’m a broken record saying this but the following is true, tried and tested.
Get adequate sleep
Eat a decent diet filled with whole grains, fruit, vegetables and plenty of water. Good nutrition is being linked more and more with good mental wellbeing!
Exercise or move your body regularly.
Practice mindfulness or meditation on a regular basis to help reduce stress.
Check in with yourself weekly (amazing) or daily (even better!) to reflect on how you feel like you’re coping or what you might need to do to adjust habits or behaviours that you know are helpful for you to cope with the stresses of daily life (not just the big lemon events).
Keep a gratitude journal. Research has shown that gratitude journals or another gratitude practice is strongly associated with greater happiness, greater life satisfaction and resilience.
And of course, coming to see a counsellor can help as well if you don’t quite know where to start, if you need your experience heard or if you need more personalised tools, techniques or suggestions to keep you living to your fullest.
If you so feel called, I look forward to helping guide you through the seasons of your life. Appointments are currently available and can be booked via this website. Just click any of the links that say “Book a Session!”.
