As a therapist, I have had many discussions with others around their mental health.
To honour mental health awareness week which runs from May 9 to 15, here are some of the best pieces of advice I have heard and shared over the years.
These will help you nurture and maintain positive mental health.
Read more: NI counsellor's top tips on managing and reducing stress
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You cannot control your emotions; however you can control your responses. Therefore rather than being harsh on yourself when you are having a low mental health day, use your energy to be respond kindly to yourself and treat yourself with compassion. Validate your emotions instead of fighting them, focus on how you could soothe the emotion rather than get rid of it.
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When you have a dip in your mental health or feel particularly unwell, treat yourself as you would if you had a dip in your physical health. Treat yourself with care, lean on others, rest, hydrate and eat well. If you had a physical ailment the likelihood is you would give your body what it needed... Mental health issues should be treated similar.
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Do not spend your time fixating on the cause, sometimes it is best to look at the solution - therefore rather than ask yourself why do I feel this way, ask yourself what you need. What would make you feel a little bit better today?
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Take the rest you need. Rest comes in many forms, learn to identify the form of rest that you need, and meet your body where that need lies. Here are some examples of rest for mental health along with methods to implement rest:
- Physical – allow the body to relax, rest, take a day off from general chores or things that can wait.
- Emotional – Take a break from deep conversations or getting into anything that may cause emotional distress.
- Social – step back from social engagements or social media, just a break for a few days can have an impact on your mental wellbeing.
- Sensory – Take some quiet time to recharge.
I encourage you to take care of your mental health not only this week, but always.
It is ok to slow down, it is ok to move softly.
Some days are harder than others - on those hard days, go a little easier on yourself.
Read more: NI counsellor on how support your mental health this spring
Read more: Tips on opening up on mental health and reducing the stigma
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