​Tips for looking after your mental and emotional health

I’ve worked in health and well-being for decades and have collated a few tips that are based in strong evidence and also my experiences. They won’t all work for everyone so it’s important to pick the ones that appeal to you. As with all kinds of this online ‘advice’, if you need more support, please contact the relevant services (GP, mental health services, charities, etc.).  

  • Do the basics first. These are things like: making sure your body and mind have enough rest, quality sleep and downtime; eating a balanced diet that makes you feel good in the long-term; spending time outside, noticing the natural world around you; and making meaningful connections with others, whether that is with friends, family members or colleagues. 

  • Consider what works best for you. If you don’t feel at ease in a big group of people, socialising loudly, don’t do it. It’s not worth forcing yourself to try to enjoy such experiences, just because others like that sort of thing. Find something else that works for you, whether that is meeting a friend one-to-one or talking to people only on the phone. 

  • Focus on what is going well. When things feel bleak or difficult, it can be easy to focus on everything that feels wrong. And it can be an enormous struggle to get out of that habit. But consider that it could be just a habit and that habit can be changed. Start by noticing something really small – something that made you smile, something that made you think, or something that tasted or smelt good. Just one thing in a week can be enough to get started. And there’s no need to pressure yourself into trying to find something every day if it is too difficult. I don’t see any value in forcing positivity as it can be counterproductive. 

  • Seek out support and share the load. Often, when we spend lots of time mulling things over by ourselves, these things can become bigger and heavier than they are. Sharing the load with someone else can help things feel lighter and a bit easier. I’d suggest it’s important to find someone who knows how to listen and doesn’t just relate everything back to them. 

  • Write it down or draw it. I’m definitely not saying that some mental illnesses will be cured by writing in a journal or drawing a picture of your feelings. Instead, when you want to look after your mental and emotional health, it can be helpful to allow your feelings out onto paper or a screen. The act of getting your feelings out can lighten the load. 
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  • Remember what has worked well in the past. When things go well, we often gloss over them; when things don’t go well, they can feel like that is your constant state. For many people, feelings ebb and flow over time and so it can be useful to remember when things go well and what that feels like. If nothing else, it offers hope for when things feel hopeless.

Maintaining mental and emotional health is an on-going process and might sometimes feel more difficult and equally easier than other times. For many people, this is part of being a human and is to be expected.