Introduction
If you want to improve your mental health, there are many things that can help. These 10 goals were designed with that in mind—to give you a sense of calm and happiness.
Avoid trying to be perfect.
It can be tempting to try and do everything on your own. To be the best at everything, to always look good and put your best foot forward, to solve any problem that comes your way by yourself. But this is a recipe for disaster: you’ll end up exhausted and overwhelmed. You might even start feeling depressed about all the things you think are “wrong” with you, or start believing that no one else could possibly understand what it’s like in your head.
Instead of trying so hard to get it right all the time, remind yourself that sometimes mistakes are okay—even expected sometimes! Make sure there are plenty of people who can give you help when needed (like friends, family members or therapists). Don’t be afraid of asking someone if they know something better than what you’re doing; they probably don’t want to hurt your feelings either!
Find a work-life balance.
Work-life balance is a key part of mental health and well-being. If you’re struggling with stress, it can make it even more difficult to cope with other issues in your life.
In order to maintain a good work-life balance:
- Set aside time for hobbies or personal interests outside of work. This will help you connect with friends and family, as well as give you something to look forward to when you’re feeling overwhelmed by work tasks that need completing.
- Take breaks from your computer screen throughout the day by going outside for walks or stretching at your desk. Your eyes and brain will thank you!
- Avoid multitasking whenever possible; doing multiple things at once increases stress levels because there’s no downtime between tasks where our brains can relax and recharge (think about how much harder it is to focus when listening music while working on something).
Be kind to yourself.
Be kind to yourself. It’s really easy to be hard on yourself and focus on the negative, especially when you’re struggling with mental health issues. But the more you focus on your flaws, the more you’ll feel like a failure.
To be kind to yourself:
- Don’t compare yourself to others. There will always be someone who seems happier or smarter than you—and this is especially true if they have an illness that makes them feel “less than.” But no matter what they’ve accomplished or how many goals they’ve reached (or not), they are not better than you! In fact, we all go through our own struggles and make mistakes—these are things that make us human! The only person who can judge your worth is…you! That’s what makes each of us unique in our very own way!
- Don’t put yourself down so much either; saying things like “I’m such a mess” or “I’m so stupid” won’t help anyone believe otherwise—especially since these words don’t even come from YOU but rather from an outside source (whether it be media influence or another person). Instead try being confident about who YOU are by reminding yourself of all the great qualities about YOURSELF before speaking out loud about those traits too loudly for everyone else around…but just enough so people get excited about meeting someone new like ME!! 🙂
Practice positive self-talk.
Positive self-talk is a way to talk to yourself that is positive and helpful.
It can help you feel better, be more successful, make better decisions, and feel more confident.
Use stress in a positive way.
- Use stress as a motivator. When you’re feeling stressed, use that energy to push yourself toward your goals. If you have a big project coming up at work, tell yourself that the only way to get through it is by staying focused and working hard. If you want to lose weight, use the anxiety of being overweight as motivation to go on runs or hit the gym more often.
- Set goals that are important to you and make sure they’re achievable but challenging enough so they will motivate you (and push your limits). This means that if someone tells me I have an idea for a book about mental health issues, I’m going to run with it because I know how difficult it is for people with depression etc., but also because I know it will be something interesting–not just another self help book!
Build healthy relationships with friends and family members.
- Build healthy relationships with friends and family members.
- The Power of Friendships: Having a strong support system is one of the most important factors in determining whether you’ll experience mental health issues in your life or not. Even if you have a great therapist, there are certain things that only other people can relate to and understand. Your friends and family can give you moral support, encouragement, comfort when something upsets you, or just provide an ear when other people aren’t available for some reason (such as being too busy with work).
- How To Tell If Your Relationships Are Unhealthy: It’s often hard to identify unhealthy relationships because they don’t look exactly like what we think they should be; instead of being overtly abusive or unhealthy from the outset (like we see in movies), they slowly become toxic over time until eventually something changes them into an unhealthy relationship. Some signs include: feeling drained after spending time with someone; becoming defensive when talking about yourself or your problems; having difficulty finding time alone because of scheduling conflicts with others; feeling like no matter how hard you try…you just can’t win someone’s approval; avoiding certain topics/conversations because they’re uncomfortable; etc…
Take care of your physical health.
Take care of your physical health.
It’s important to take care of your mental health, but if you don’t have a healthy body, neither will be possible. Your physical activity level and diet can greatly affect how you feel mentally, so make sure that they’re in check.
Exercise is one of the most effective natural antidepressants available — even exercise as simple as walking or gardening has been shown to boost mood in people with mild depression. Consider taking up dancing, martial arts classes or hiking on weekends if those things appeal to you; anything that gets your heart rate up and makes you sweat can help improve your mental health!
Eating a balanced diet is also an important part of keeping stress levels down and ensuring optimal brain function over time — give yourself permission to try new foods like fruits and vegetables (but don’t eat too much junk food too often). Getting enough sleep every night helps keep stress hormones under control too; consider setting an alarm for 10 minutes earlier than usual so that by 6 PM each day, you know it’s time for bed!
Do something you enjoy doing every day.
It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day hustle and bustle of life, but it’s important to remember that you should be having fun. The goal here is to make sure that you take time out of your schedule to do something you enjoy doing every day.
This doesn’t mean that your hobby has to be one of those things that takes up hours or days at a time; it can be something as simple as reading for 30 minutes before bed, or writing in a journal for 10 minutes every morning when you wake up. It could also mean taking the time during your lunch break at work or school to sketch or play an instrument (if music is what makes you happy).
There are so many different hobbies and activities out there that everyone can find something they love doing! But don’t just take our word for it. Searching through Pinterest’s “Hobbies” board will show off some great ideas ranging from painting landscapes on canvas boards all the way down through making jewelry with recycled materials like old CDs!
Find ways to relax your mind and body.
Relaxing your mind and body is an important step in maintaining good mental health. It allows you to get away from stressful situations, recharge, and feel refreshed.
To relax your mind:
- Start by taking slow, deep breaths. Focus on breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth. This can help calm down your body and prepare it for relaxation.
- If possible, avoid caffeine and alcohol at least one hour before going to bed because these substances can make it more difficult for you to fall asleep quickly or stay asleep all night long when they’re present in your system (or even after they’ve left). This can cause sleep issues that ultimately lead to insomnia later on down the road (you know what we mean). If this isn’t possible (say if it’s late at night), try having a cup of chamomile tea instead—it should have similar calming effects without making things worse!
Listen to your feeling without acting on them.
When you’re feeling a strong emotion, it can be tempting to act on it—to scream at your roommate, go on an eating binge or try out for a reality show. But if you can learn to listen to your feelings without reacting right away, you’ll have the chance to make better choices.
One way is by writing down what you are feeling in the moment and then taking time to think about why that emotion arose. Another strategy is communicating honestly with others about how they may have hurt or offended you while not repressing the feelings that come up when they do so.
If you need help identifying and expressing yourself more clearly and productively, there are many resources available online; check with a trusted friend or family member for advice as well!
Mental Health Goals
The first step to improving your mental health is making goals. Goals are a great way to get started on your journey, but they’re not just meant for athletes and business professionals. Everyone can benefit from setting goals, even if they’re not an athlete or someone who’s running a company.
Goals should be broad enough that they have multiple steps within them—this way you don’t feel like you’ve accomplished anything when you only do one thing in order to complete the goal, but instead feel like you’re making progress throughout the process of accomplishing it.
For example: “I want to go hiking twice this month.” That’s a good goal because it has multiple steps within it (like finding out which trails are nearby). But if I say “I want to hike every weekend this month,” that would be too much of a challenge for me because I’m not very outdoorsy! So try keeping things broad yet realistic for yourself; that way you’ll stay motivated and can keep track of how far along in your journey towards reaching those big-picture goals (like writing novels!)
Conclusion
I think it’s helpful to have a few goals for your mental health, but don’t stress about it! It’s not an exact science and you don’t need to follow any of these suggestions exactly. Just try some new things as they come up, and remember that all progress is good progress.
