Do you ever feel in a place where life is a real struggle, your emotions are all over the place, or even feel like your emotions are completely non-existent? For many people, symptoms of depression and anxiety can vary quite a bit, but frequently feeling low tends to be the norm. Fortunately, there are some simple things that you can do to help with your anxiety and depression.
Having met so many people who suffer from a variety of mental health conditions, it’s apparent that it should be taken seriously – just like our physical health. I wanted to share some useful things that will help you through those feelings in your times of struggle.
Each of the recommendations below is completely free to do and doesn’t require you to invest a ton of your time.
Watch video below:
“It’s okay to not be okay – Just don’t stay there.”
Matt Chandler
1. Journaling
Journaling is an incredibly effective exercise to help put your thoughts down on paper and get them out of your head. It doesn’t matter what you write or if it even reads well. It’s the process of writing and using different parts of your brain that gives out the benefits. Think of it as a way of expressing yourself in a vulnerable way, but nobody else is there to hear what you’re saying. The process of doing this has been shown to improve your mood, reduce symptoms of depression, and improve your sense of well-being.
How: Grab a pen and notepad and begin writing whatever thoughts you’re having on the paper. You can even use it to organize your thoughts, write down your beliefs, or gain clarity on your purpose and goals. There are ways to go beyond basic journaling once you’ve had a little practice. But for now, just begin writing your thoughts…
2. Gratitude
Thinking of things that you’re grateful for or writing them down on a piece of paper. The action of doing this puts your brain into a gratitude frequency. When you are in a state of gratitude, you cannot also experience negative feelings in that same moment. Not only that, but gratitude can actually help your physical health and even improve the quality of your sleep. Practicing gratitude is a way to put you into a more consistent place of happiness.
How: Ideally, first thing in the morning or last thing at night, but honestly – anytime will do. Close your eyes and really think of 3 separate things that you are grateful for and feel those emotions. You’ll probably start to smile whilst doing it. It doesn’t matter how big or small the thing is. It could be something as simple as “I’m grateful for my bed, which provides me with a comfortable sleep every night”.
3. Deep Breathing
Controlled, deep, slow breathing is one of the best ways to improve your health. It is also one of the most simple and easy things to do so. The majority of people do not breathe properly throughout their day and only take in a small amount of oxygen. We need oxygen to survive and feed our cells, so by learning to breathe properly, you give your body a greater opportunity to thrive from a cellular level.
How: There are many forms of breathing exercises out there which can all work. The one that I do is 10 power breaths following a ratio of 1-4-2, i.e. inhale for 8 seconds, hold for 32 seconds, and exhale for 8 seconds. When you do this at first you may feel a little light-headed, so go with caution. Your brain has likely not been receiving this amount of oxygen previously. The key is to focus on deep diaphragm breathing (the belly expands on the inward breath, and goes in on the outward breath). If you can, try and find time to do these 3 times a day.
4. Exercise
It should be of no surprise by now that exercise is always linked with mental well-being as well as physical health. You’ve heard of ‘runners high’ and probably experienced some form of increased energy and mood when having exercised. Without going into the vast amounts of benefits when exercising, I’ll just note that it does wonders for your mental health. To put it simply – exercise releases endorphins into the body which are basically hormones that make us feel good.
How: There are so many different kinds of exercises that are all beneficial to mental well-being. You can walk, run, cycle, take a gym class, use your stairs at home, and do some bodyweight exercises i.e. squats, push-ups etc… The bottom line is; just move and elevate your heart rate. The higher the intensity, the greater the effects will be. Personally speaking, fitness has transformed my life.
5. Eating Healthy Foods
You may be wondering how food has anything to do with mental health. Food has everything to do with all health on every level of your body. The food you eat can change your genetic makeup. It controls every process in your body. If you eat crap, you feel like crap for a reason. Your body needs essential nutrients in order for it to perform at an optimal level of health. The good news is that if you change your diet, it won’t take long for your body to start responding and appreciating good nutrition. You will feel better in a matter of a day or 2. So imagine how you will feel after several months of this.
How: Put healthy food inside your mouth and chew. Sticking to whole unprocessed foods from a variety of sources is the simplest advice for me to give you here. Limit sugars, processed foods, and over-consumption of animal products. I’m not saying you have to go vegan, but at least closely watch your consumption and aim for local organic options without the use of antibiotics or hormones.
Take Action To See The Benefits
As always, action is the real key to seeing results. I’d love to know if you are currently doing any of these and if they have helped you in some way. If you know any friends or family who would benefit from this then please feel free to share. Developing several healthy habits will transform your life like nothing else.
Please comment below and let me know your thoughts
Key Takeaways
- Journal
- Practice gratitude
- Deep breathing
- Exercise
- Eat healthy foods