Spring Cleaning your Mental Health
It’s official. Spring is on its way! As the trees begin to blossom and the warm weather begins to melt the snow, we recognize spring as a time for new beginnings. As we recognize these changes around us, we have a tendency to want to make changes in our own lives and create new beginnings for ourselves. This is often a time when people engage in “spring cleaning.” This is a time to cleanse our environment and get rid of all the extra unnecessary clutter.
While most people use spring cleaning to reference physical cleaning, like the cleaning of their house or office, I believe that “spring cleaning” can also refer to cleaning our inner selves and working on improving our mental health. Mental health is such an important aspect of our lives. Having good mental health has so many benefits and evidence has shown that having poor mental health can have negative impacts on our physical health. Despite this evidence, the importance of mental health is often overlooked and underappreciated. That is one of the many reasons that I am taking this season to complete some “spring cleaning” in my own life and work on improving my mental health.
Here is a list of some things you can use to improve your own mental health and do some “spring cleaning” in your own life:
- Talk about your feelings- talking about the problems you are facing is a good way to help cope with the problems and the stress they are causing you
- Exercise regularly- exercise increases the chemicals in your brain that make you feel good and happy. It doesn’t have to be intense exercise. Just get up and move!
- Have a healthy diet- like exercise, having a healthy diet can improve your mental health by impacting your brain. When you eat healthy, your brain gets the necessary nutrients to function properly!
- Socialize- having strong personal relationships and connections has shown to improve mental health!
- Engage in your hobbies– doing something you enjoy or are good at gives you a break from the stress in your life and can improve mental health.
These are just a few of the many ways that you can work to improve your mental health. The cool thing about mental health is that it is your own. You can do whatever works best for you. Take a yoga class, go on a walk, learn a new instrument, or try making some social connections. There are endless ways that you engage in “spring cleaning.” The only requirement is that you are doing what you want to do! Day One invites you to take this spring to examine your mental health and make the improvements that you need to be your best self!