5 Things to Do to Improve Your Mental Health

As a society, we have never been as aware of the importance of mental health as we are now. Political discourse, celebrity shout outs and extensive studies all push mental health to the forefront, on our social media, in our news and our TV storylines. But looking after our mental health can be harder than it appears. 27% of Generation Zs report having fair to poor mental health, which is a staggering statistic when compared to the 7% of baby boomers who face mental health issues. Why more people face mental health problems in this day and age can be attributed to issues like online bullying, photoshop culture, social media pressure and social issues like sexism, racism and homophobia.So how can we care for our mental health when everything in the world seems to be against us? Please keep reading for my top tips as a mental health expert on what you can do to ensure you keep the negativity away and face a brighter future.

Practice Optimism

Our genes program only about 25% of optimism, so if we want a more positive outlook and life, we need to ensure we are taking care of our mental health. There are many ways you can practice optimism every day and become an optimistic person for the rest of your life.One great way to do this is to surround yourself with people who are positive and happy. There is no use being around cynical and negative people if you want to be the opposite of this yourself. We can often bounce off other people's energies, so if you are close with people who have a happy outlook on life, you should start to adopt this mindset too.

Laugh More

Asking you to laugh more might seem like a slap in the face if you suffer from mental health problems like depression and anxiety. While it might sound like a stupid suggestion, laughing more is proven to boost your immune system, ease pain, relax your body and reduce stress.There are many ways you can try laughing more, such as surrounding yourself with family and friends. Talking and sharing stories can be a great way to get laughing, boosting your mood and making you feel better for the rest of the day. You can even try something as simple as watching more comedy TV and films like Friends and The Big Bang Theory.

Try Meditation

People often look at meditation as something weird or unnecessary. But in fact, meditation encourages people to train their mind just like you would train the body. It involves concentration and focusing on a single point, to allow you to observe wandering thoughts as they drift through the mind.Research has shown that meditation may help you feel calm and enhance the effects of therapy. So while practising meditation will help quite your negative thoughts, it also helps lengthen the effects of therapy too!

Get Outside and Exercise

People always talk about the physical benefits of exercise, but getting outside and getting fit has some wonderful mental health positives too. Exercise helps the brain and other vital organs stay healthy, and has significant benefits for improving mental wellbeing.With spring soon in full swing and summer on the way, you should try and exercise outside more too. A change of scenery is good for your mental health as it helps pull you out of a rut and motivate you more. Try running in a local park or even just exercising in the garden when the sun is out.

Go To Therapy

Therapy is a great way to take back control of your mental health and start seeing some real positive change. A therapist can help you get to the root of the issue, by understanding why you have negative thoughts or feelings by looking at past and present influences, triggers and traumas.By understanding why you are facing issues like depression and anxiety, it can be easy to overcome and suppress the symptoms by avoiding triggers. A therapist, like myself, is also an expert on mental health and can give you tactics and tricks to help reduce panic attacks and depressive thoughts when you feel them coming on.Therapy is confidential, and you shouldn't be scared of sharing your deepest thoughts and emotions. As a therapist, I am not judgemental at all, and want to see every client I work with overcome their mental health problems and have a happier and brighter future.Check out my website today to learn more about my services as a therapist. No matter how scared or worried you are about sharing with a stranger, I am entirely professional and dedicated to helping all of my clients along their mental health journey. If you need help improving your mental health, then get in contact today to learn more about how I can support and guide you.