6 ways to achieve work-life balance for better sleep and mental health

A balanced lifestyle is not just a luxury; it's essential for your mental health and well-being. Check out some helpful ways to maintain work-life balance for better mental health and sleep.

It's essential to recognize the importance of work-life balance, not just for our physical health, but also for our mental well-being. Finding the right balance between work and personal life is crucial for maintaining a healthy lifestyle, managing stress levels, and promoting better sleep quality. It's essential to recognize the importance of work-life balance, not just for our physical health, but also for our mental well-being. Finding the right balance between work and personal life is crucial for maintaining a healthy lifestyle, managing stress levels, and promoting better sleep quality.

"Work-life balance is a state and a space where a person is able to prioritize work, take care of health, manage social engagements and personal life equally and simultaneously also enjoy the process of running the day. Some of the reasons that lead to poor work-life balance could be because of more responsibilities at work, back home which requires a lot of management," says, Meghna Karia, Senior Psychologist and Outreach Associate at Mpower. She further shared with HT Lifestyle, different ways to have a work-life balance for better mental health and sleep.

Work-life balance for mental health and sleep:

1. Prioritize your health:

● No matter how the day has been, be it a good day or a bad day, schedule an hour to work out or go for a brisk walk. The release of endorphins plays a significant role in elevating mood and contributes to good mental health.

● Apart from physical health, addressing mental health concerns, the ability to resolve daily challenges and coping up with daily stressors also helps in achieving a sense of accomplishment.

2. Short intervals:

● Taking short intervals at work throughout the day in between tasks also helps in better productivity. Taking short breaks helps to taper your stress levels and allows you to re-focus when you get back to the task.

● Learn the art of saying no to additional commitments if you feel you are not able to manage them and complete them on time.

● Ask and request flexibility if you feel you can not match up with the deadlines and you feel you want some extensions with the timeline.

3. Sleep:

● Adequate sleep is playing a vital role in helping you to have a stable mood and mind.

● Practice night rituals like warm or cold showers, staying away from the screen and reading up something inspirational and going off to bed at a fixed time every day will allow you to sleep well.

● Reflect on how you feel when you wake up the next day. Reflect on whether you wake fresh, anxious, or happy which would help you to understand your mental health better.

4. Include social engagements:

● Being socially active helps you to feel refreshed and at the same time social interactions regarding work, travel and health would allow you to gain insights about you not being alone on a roller coaster ride. Everyone has a journey to walk through and learn from it.

● Socializing to make memories and create happy moments also adds a lot of meaning and purpose to our life. Hence having a healthy bunch of friends, be it individual friends or a group is a necessity.

5. Nutrition:

● Having a healthy relationship with food helps in staying satisfied and at the same time, it helps us prevent abusing our bodies by indulgence with junk food and binge eating.

● Make sure to do your blood work periodically and do vitamin checks. Vitamin deficiency does have an impact on our mood and energy levels. Hence taking supplements and good nutrition would help in having a healthy metabolic rate and thus keep you fit.

6. Hobbies:

● Have a hobby!

● Try learning new skills in the areas that interest you the most. Take out time to go once a week and practice your hobby. It could be anything that’s creative like learning a new dance form, journaling, gardening, painting, cooking or baking.