There are many things in life that can affect your mental health, both in a positive and negative way. And because everyone is different, there are various coping mechanisms, tactics, and solutions that people will use to help their mental health. There is no right or wrong way to deal with or treat your own mental health, there is only one way that best helps each individual. Before you get into the things that could be hurting your mental health and what you can do to help yourself, it is important to understand what mental health is, and why your mental health is important.
What is mental health?
Mental health includes your psychological, emotional, and social well-being. It is the base cause that affects how you feel, think, and act. Not only this but it will also determine how you relate to others and how they perceive you, as well as your ability to make healthy choices and handle stress. A common confusion is mixing up poor mental health with having a mental illness. Although these terms are interchangeable, they are not the same. For example, someone can have poor mental health while not being diagnosed with a specific mental illness, and someone with a mental illness diagnosis can experience good mental health.
Why your mental health is important
Your mental health is important because it will determine the quality of your how well you make choices in your life, handle stress, and react to situations that you face. Often a large portion of people will focus solely on their physical health and neglect their mental health, leading to a variety of problems. In truth, they are equally as important for you to take care of and will both greatly impact your overall health. As an example, if you neglect your mental health and become depressed you are putting yourself at an increased risk of developing several long-term physical health problems, such as heart disease, strokes, and diabetes. It doesn’t matter how well you take care of your physical body if you don’t treat your mental health with the same love and attention.
Why mistakes impact your mental health?
There are lots of things you can do to help yourself, but there are often things that are overlooked that may be hindering your progress. If you are at a plateau with your mental health and you are actively doing things to help yourself, you might be wondering what is stopping your progress. Sometimes it is not the things you are not doing, but the things that you are doing that are hindering your mental health and counteracting any action you are taking. To help you on your journey, here are some of the top mistakes people make with their mental health, and how you can avoid them.
#1 Too much or too little sleep
Sleep is important because it gives your mind and body time to recover. It is recommended you get between 7 and 9 hours of sleep per night. One mistake people make that hurts their mental health is not getting enough sleep which can leave you tired and with a lack of energy, it can also impair your cognitive function. Many people don’t realize this, but too much sleep can also be damaging because you can become overtired, lethargic, and unproductive when all you want to do is sleep or nap. Avoid this by setting a good routine and getting 7-9 hours of sleep per night.
#2 Too much time on social media
Social media is addictive. It is filled with filters, holidays, success stories, and everyone’s hand-picked memories and is not a true depiction of one’s life. It can be easy to feel like you are not doing as well as everyone else that you see on social media, but in truth, there is always a lot more going on behind the scenes than you probably think. If you spend too much time on social media comparing your life to others then this can be very damaging, and likely isn’t even true. If you find yourself getting depressed or disheartened while scrolling through social media, you should consider deleting or minimizing the time you spend on it.
#3 Dwelling on negative thoughts
Thinking is generally regarded as a positive attribute in someone, however, if used incorrectly it can damage your mental health. For example, if all you are doing is replaying bad memories or mistakes that you made you are not helping yourself. Rather than just not thinking, try flipping it around and thinking about what you can take away from the experience, how you can grow as a person, how to avoid these situations in the future, and the steps you can take to
#4 Trying the same things over and over
If you are feeling stuck in a rut, or the things that you normally do to help your mental health are not working or being as effective then maybe it is time to shake things up and try something different. There are many things you can do that are not commonly implemented in the average person’s life. For example, you could try yoga, mindfulness, journaling, or even using hemp extract in the form of Delta 8 Disposable cartridges. The main thing is to not give up and to find what works for you.
There are many other forms of self-help, as well as professional help that you can look into to support you with your mental and physical health. Not everything has to be a big scary step, it is enough to notice what works and doesn’t work for you as an individual. If something doesn’t work or feel good, it is okay, you can try again with something else. So maybe try changing one or several of these common issues and see how you get on, the chances are that you will see at least some improvement in your life.