Here's how to take care of your mental health this year

The foremost goal for 2023 should be mind, body and soul wellness. Here's how to take care of your mental health this year

A New Year brings mixed emotions stressful and joyful with the stress for the last year's unachieved goals and the pressure of accomplishing them in the New Year and the joy of new beginnings and new opportunities but the foremost goal for the new year should be mind, body and soul wellness. Mental health does not have one set meaning as we might use it to talk about how we feel, how well we are coping with daily life or what feels possible at the moment where good mental health does not mean you are always happy or unaffected by your experiences but poor mental health can make it more difficult to cope with daily life.

The term mental health refers to an individual’s emotional, physiological and social well being. The WHO further defines it as “a state of well being in which the individual realises his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productivity and fruitfully and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.”

In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Vaneeta Batra, Transformational Life Coach, recommended the following tips to take care of your mental health in 2023 -

1. Practice healthy thinking: Be careful of the so called “Thinking Traps". Sometimes we think that something is bad, even when it is not, is a thinking trap or jumping to conclusions before you know what really happened, “my friend did not call me back, he/she must not like me very much" and so on are thinking traps.

2. Slow down: We all need to take time to slow down and relax. It is a big part of managing stress and enjoying our lives. When we relax it is easier to see problems and solutions clearly. Relaxation can be through Yoga , meditation, tai chi and simple as breathing exercises.

3. Enjoy yourself, have fun and laugh: Having fun helps us feel refreshed and helps us feel good about ourselves.

4. Work your strengths: Do something you’re good at to build self confidence.

5. Feeling Stressed? SMILE: It may not be the easiest thing to do but smiling can help to lower your heart rate and calm you down.

6. Practice gratitude: Acknowledge the bright side by keeping a journal where you can write down something you’re grateful for every day.

7. Get a good night sleep: Adequate sleep can help alleviate symptoms of anxiety and depression. Set a consistent sleep schedule.

8. Do a digital detox: It may look difficult to do but it is not impossible. Dedicate some time to be screen-free. If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed after being on social media, consider testing a period of time where you avoid it. Constantly consuming information about other people’s lives may cause someone to compare themselves and promote feeling of low self worth therefore, control social media screen time to take care of mental health.

Adding to the list, Shama Soni, Founder of Ashhwika Foundation, suggested:

1. Physical activity is not about just losing weight or being in shape it enhances your mood and mental resilience too, which will help in achieving your set goal.

2. Qualitative sleep is more important than quantitative sleep ,it will help your mind and body more active and fit.

3. Keep your goals realistic, feasible and achievable. Make 2 to 3 goals at a time and reward yourself at every milestone achieved. Focus on your strengths and improvise ,instead of looking onto your limitations.

4. Be mindful of your stress triggers and avoid being into those circumstances.

5. Keep connect with your emotional and social network, your family, cousin's friends or colleagues. Work is important but to combat stress people who motivate and love you should be around you. Take time to keep that connect alive.

6. Doing what you are passionate about will eventually make your stress in control and improve your mental wellness.

7. Take digital detox and enjoy the moment fully at times.

8. Forgive and forget old grievances.

9. Count your blessings and adopt the attitude of gratitude. We have the power to change our brains by changing our attitudes.