Mental Health

8 Ways You Can Improve Your Mental Health

By Eric Hamilton | Update Date: Aug 12, 2020 10:34 AM EDT
8 Ways You Can Improve Your Mental Health

(Photo : 8 Ways You Can Improve Your Mental Health)

Mental health is important for your general well-being. When people speak of mental health, you may think it is only associated with depression or anxiety that needs treatment from professionals. However, mental health can be more than that. It also includes psychological well-being like emotions and how to manage those feelings. 

When you are mentally healthy, you can comfortably make good decisions on taking a vacation, visiting https://www.movoto.com/ to check property listings, or starting a family. Therefore, for you to maintain your mental health, be sure to consider the following tips. 

1. Sleep Well

Quality sleep is important for your mental health. It helps brains to process information and consolidate memories. However, sleep deprivation is associated with various psychological conditions, like stress and anxiety. In addition, insomnia is associated with depression. Thus, treating this condition will basically improve your mental health. 

2. Manage Stress

Chronic stress can increase the risks of getting anxiety and depression. When you have stress, chemicals like adrenaline and serotonin, are produced by nerve cells. This, in turn, can affect some key areas of your brain responsible for regulating emotions and memory. If stress is not controlled, it may result in chronic illnesses like stroke and heart attack. 

3. Eat Healthy Food

The type of food can have a great influence on your mental health. For example, fish has omega-3 fatty acid that improves memory, and may also contribute to having optimal health to your brain. In addition to that, the fatty acid can boost your emotions and reduce anxiety. 

Whole grains are also healthy because they are rich in tryptophan that stimulates the production of serotonin. This hormone can help you calm your mind and maintain sleep cycles. 

Other foodstuffs that you can eat to maintain your mental health, include:

  • Leafy greens

  • Walnuts

  • Beans

  • Berries

4. Exercise Regularly

Physical exercise is not based on muscle size and aerobic capacity alone - it is also associated with mental health. Regular exercise has a profound impact on ADHD and anxiety. It can also help you to improve memory, sleep better, and kill stress. 

Exercise can also help you fight depression. It promotes neural growth and may reduce inflammation. All these are achieved when the brain produces endorphins to energize your spirit by improving emotional feelings.

5. Socialize with Friends and Family

Talking to friends and family is a great way of improving your mental wellness. When socializing, you can improve your memory, kill stress, gain self-control, and increase the ability to limit distractions. 

Stress is associated with illnesses like obesity, asthma, and heart disease. Hence, if you can manage stress through socializing, then you may avoid these illnesses. 

6. Talk to a Specialist

Mental health can be a sensitive topic to some people, so talking about it may be a bit hard because there is stigmatization, which revolves around mental illness and mental health. However, it's important to note that mental condition is a normal issue. Thus, getting help from a doctor or therapist is extremely crucial. If it's left untreated, the condition will worsen and might result in other problems. 

Additionally, mental condition comes with some symptoms, so noting them down early enough can be important. This will ensure that you get help on time, and alleviate symptoms, such as:

  • Appetite loss

  • Irritability

  • Insomnia

  • Hallucination

  • Concentration difficulties

7. Avoid Alcohol

Heavy drinking can tremendously interfere with some chemicals in your brain that boosts mental health. Alcohol serves as a depressant - meaning, it may affect your thoughts, balance, actions, and feelings. This happens when neurotransmitters send messages from one neuron to another. 

For instance, the relaxed feeling that's experienced after drinking can be explained with the chemical changes in the brain. Alcohol may increase your confidence, but it will suppress an important part of your brain. 

In addition, alcohol may also affect your emotions, which will result in mental health problems. People who take alcohol are associated with aggressiveness and anger, so it's important not to take excess alcohol to avoid these emotions. 

9. Consider Busking Under the Sun

Sunlight triggers the production of serotonin that may help to improve your mood, focus, and calmness. However, at dusk, darker lighting stimulates the production of melatonin. This is a chemical in the brain that may help you sleep. 

Moreover, sunlight helps brains through circadian rhythm. Every individual has circadian (internal clock), which determines when you should feel sleepy or alert. When this clock is functioning properly, it affects other processes like:

  • Immune system

  • Cardiovascular system

  • Digestive system

The Final Remarks

Generally, mental health encompasses the production of hormones that trigger stress, depression, and anxiety. If such feelings remain untreated, they may result in serious health problems, such as cancer and obesity. Therefore, it is important to eat healthy foodstuffs like fish and seek help from a professional to have good mental health. 

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* This is a contributed article and this content does not necessarily represent the views of counselheal.com

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