5 simple tips to improve your mental health 

Improve your mental health – 5 simple tips

There are some really simple things you can do to improve your mental health with very minimal level of effort. I’m sure you’re going to read these tips and say, ‘well yes this is obvious’ but if you are being honest with yourself note just how many you do on a daily basis. Now just take a moment to reflect on how your mood changes when you have started to exercise or connect with those around you, the different you feel when you eat well as opposed to eating junk foods. 

The amount of people I work with at my Sheffield Psychotherapy practice who over look the basics or feel that they don’t need to do them is significant. It’s really important that we allow ourselves to build a solid foundation both physically, mentally and emotionally. The tips below are just a few things you can do to help build that solid foundation and help you move forward. 

Living in Sheffield makes it easier for us to engage with the suggestions below we have both urban living and the most amazing countryside. We have a wide variety of places to eat and buy food from, lots of varied activities and interest groups not to mention being surround by some of the most beautiful and scenic countryside in the UK.

I feel it’s vital when we embark upon real changes in our lives to ensure we build that change based upon a solid foundation. Below are just some of the areas that are important to get right from the start.  

  1. Sleep

We’ve all heard about the person who is seemly able to function day to day on just one or two hours of sleep a night and if this is you keep reading! While we can get by without enough sleep it does not mean this this is healthy or optimal for us (1,4,5). Studies show that although we have previously thought of sleep issues as being symptomatic of mental health difficulties, there is growing evidence that there may be a more causal relationship, so a lack of sleep can reduce our mental health and wellbeing. 

Studies have suggested that problems sleeping can contribute to the formation of new mental heath problems (2) and the maintenance of existing ones (3) and increase in overall mortality rates (5). In a review article (6) it was found that sleep deprivation impairs decision making involving the unexpected, innovation, revising plans, competing distraction, and effective communication. 

If you have nights were you struggle to fall asleep or even stay asleep then it would be worth considering adjusting you bedtime routine. Now I want to invite you to just take a moment to think about what you do leading up to go to bed. Are you starting to wind down well before or do you engage in stimulating actives (watching TV, using the mobile phone). 

Here are some tips to help get a better nights sleep, 

  1. Keep to a sleep routine as much as possible. This will help to train your brain into knowing when it’s time to sleep. 
  2. Keep the bedroom for sleeping and sex. Not working or watching TV. 
  3. Make sure your bedroom is nice and quiet and as dark as possible (try using thicker curtains). 
  4. Keep the temperature of your room between 18c and 24c. 
  5. Taking a warm bath before bed.
  6. Making a to do list to help plan for the next day. This will help your brain to stop processing what you have to do the next day as you have already made a plan. 
  1. Nutrition 

There’s so much information out there on the web telling us what we should or shouldn’t be eating. I’m certainly not going to add to the confusion as I’m not an expert on nutrition. What I do want to highlight is that we are impacted by how we fuel our bodies. 

Research has highlighted links between nutrition and mental health (9). For example how a Mediterranean diet enriched with nuts could have a beneficial effect on the risk of depression (7) and that a healthy diet could help to reduce the developmental of depression (8).

Just imagine how you would feel both physically and mentally if you was to only eat every meal from one of the main fast for chains for a month. If your struggling to imagine this check out the documentary Supersize Me! If you need a more direct link between what we consume and our mental health think about a time when you’ve had too much alcohol. How did you feel about yourself the morning after?

It’s easy for us to think that we are eating a well balanced diet without taking a step back and looking at what we eat objectively. The food and drink we consume can be very effective at distracting us from what we really need. For example, you may secretly go for the large bar of chocolate when you feel angry or sad. Instead of understanding your emotional state and resolving it. 

What I see in my psychotherapy practice is people placing an emotional narrative on foods which can lead to unhealthy food choices. I’ve found helping people to better understand the relationship (i’ve had a bad day at work and eating chocolate with make me feel better) they have with food helps to take to compulsion out of eating (the thought that Chocolate is the answer to feeling better or not feeling bad). 

There’s lots I can talk about with regards to food and mental health, but I really just want to invite you to think about what relationship you have with food, what thoughts and beliefs do you have about eating, what was your family’s attitude towards food when you were growing up and have you inherit any of these?

For a more objective look at the foods we eat check out this website by Dr McGregor (nutritionfacts.org). This is an evidence based website which puts the research of nutrition into easy to understand videos and articles.

Here are some tips to help better understand and improve your nutrition?

  1. Psychotherapy can help you to better understand yourself, your relationship with food and how to process your experiences in a more authentic and healthy way. 
  2. Visit your GP before making any significant changes to what you eat. Get a general health check to find out where you are starting from. Functional medicine GP’s are a fantastic place to start as they will take a more holistic look at your health without being stuck in the ‘symptom/cure’ dynamic.
  3. Book a consultation with a nutritionist that can help you to really understand what foods you need to best fuel your body. There’s a lot of misinformation on the internet make sure you get your knowledge from a reputable source. 
  1. Water

Our bodies are mainly made up of water so it should be of no surprise to say that we need to keep hydrated. There is some research to suggest a link between being hydrated and our mental health (10) where plan water intake correlated with instances of depression. There was also some association between anxiety and water consumption. 

Further studies have seen a correlation between mood and hydration in both men and women. In a study of young women, fluid loss of 1.36% after exercise impaired both mood and concentration, and increased the frequency of headaches (11). Another study, using men, showed that fluid loss of 1.59% was detrimental to working memory and increased feelings of anxiety and fatigue (12). 

Here are some signs to look out for that could indicate you are dehydrated, 

  • having a headache
  • feeling tired and weak
  • confusion
  • mood swings
  • dry lips

So how can you ensure you’re drinking enough? 

  1. Always have a drink of water to hand, have a bottle next to you when you work and take regular sips from it. 
  2. Drink before during and after a work out. 
  3. If you start to feel hungry, have a glass of water. We can sometimes confuse the feeling of hunger for thirst. 
  4. As a basic guide, most people need about 1.5 to 2 litres of fluid a day, which is about eight to 10 glasses.
  1. Exercise

I can’t stress just how important exercise is for both improving and maintaining our mental health. We may not always want to exercise or view it as being tough, hard work but research shows that many different activities can count. Research has shown that activities such as running, jogging, cycling, swimming, walking, dancing and gardening help to reduce anxiety and depression (15). Also, exercise is linked with how people feel about their own mental health, exercising improves how they feel about themselves (16).

Being more active doesn’t have to be scary or feel like it’s a punishment. Just getting out for long walks in the countryside or exploring your urban area can greatly help. The NHS has issued some guidance (see here) on just how much exercise we need, but remember that any is better than none!

Tips to help start increasing your activity levels,

  1. Start slowly. If you’re not used to exercising I would recommend seeking the support of a professional such as a GP who will be able to give advice how to start and avoid injuries. Also to assess if you have any preexisting medical issues. 
  2. Book in with a qualified and experienced personal trainer who will be able to provide you with an individualised exercise plan.
  3. Set some goals and make yourself accountable to them. Remember these goals don’t necessarily need to be task oriented, they can be linked to how you feel. So for example use a journal or mood chart to see how your mood has improved. 
  4. Make it simple and easy. By reducing the barriers to exercising we are more likely to stick to it. For example you are more likely to sabotage going to the gym if it’s ten miles drive away from where you live. Just put your running shoes on and go out the front door!
  5. Any level of activity is better than none. 
  6. Find something you enjoy. You can also make it a social time to catch up with friends (finding walks to go out on together). 
  1. Connecting with others.

Generally, human beings are social creatures and we need to connect with others. What this looks like and the amount will be different for everyone. However when we feel low we may not always want to or feel that he have the energy to talk or be around those closest to us. So we may withdraw and try to deal with our experiences on our own, I often work with people in psychotherapy who feel that they need to work it out themselves before speaking to others about how they are. 

We have all developed our own story around how to deal with experiences that are difficult, we learn how to overcome adversity in childhood and it forms part of our narrative (the story we tell about ourselves, others and the world around us). 

Research finds that social connectedness was found to be a stronger and more consistent predictor of mental health, than mental health was of social connectedness (13). Which highlights the importance of us using our social resources to help improve and maintain our mental health. People with limited social connectedness have poorer mental and physical health, including increased depression (14).

So what can help you to connect with others,

  1. Speak to someone close to you and with whom you trust about what you are experiencing. Just the simple act of talking and being heard can go a long way. 
  2. Just be yourself. We can often feel disconnected in groups by putting on a mask (smiling and saying you’re ok when you’re not). Be brave, embrace vulnerability and be who you are. 
  3. Listen to others. If you find talking about yourself a challenge try starting to connect first by asking the other person about themselves and how they are. When we feel alone we can often feel that no one else has experienced what we have and no one could possibly understand. 
  4. Put yourself in situations that will give you an opportunity to connect. Say yes to going out with friends even if you may not feel like it.  

If you want to use psychotherapy to better understand yourself to you or maybe you need to better understand how you sabotage your success contact me to discuss your individual needs.

Warmly,

Dan (Psychotherapist & Director)

 

References

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  2. Baglioni C , Battagliese G , Feige B , et al . Insomnia as a predictor of depression: a meta-analytic evaluation of longitudinal epidemiological studies. J Affect Disord 2011;135:10–19
  3. Harvey AG . Insomnia: symptom or diagnosis? Clin Psychol Rev 2001;21:1037–59
  4. The effects of improving sleep on mental health (OASIS): a randomised controlled trial with mediation analysis. Lancet 2017;10:749-758
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  7. Sanches-Villegas et al, Mediterranean dietary pattern and depression: the PREDIMED randomised trial. BMC Med. 2013; 11: 208.
  8. Reynolds et al. Early intervention to preempt major depression in older black and white adults. Psychiatr Serv. 2014 Jun 1; 65(6): 765–773.
  9. O’Neil et al. Relationship between diet and mental health in children and adolescents: A systemic review. Am J Public Health. 2014 October; 104(10): e31–e42.
  10. Haghighatdoost F, et al. Drinking plan water is associated with decreased risk of depression and anxiety in adutls: Results from a large cross-sectional study. World J Psychiatry. 2018 Sep 20; 8(3): 88–96.
  11. Armstrong LE. Et al. Mild dehydration affects mood in healthy young women. J Nutr. 2012 Feb;142(2):382-8.
  12. Ganio MS. Et al. Mild dehydration impairs cognitive performance and mood of men. Br J Nutr. 2011 Nov;106(10):1535-43. 
  13. Saeri et al. Social connectedness improves public mental health: Investigating bidirectional relationships in the New Zealand attitudes and values survey. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 2018, Vol. 52(4) 365–374.
  14. Cruwys, T, Haslam, SA, Dingle, GA. (2014a) Depression and social identity: An integrative review. Personality and Social Psychology Review 18: 215–238. 
  15. Guszkowska M.. Effects of exercise on anxiety, depression and mood [in Polish] Psychiatr Pol. 2004;38:611–620.
  16. Chekound, S.R. Association between physical exercise and mental health in 1.2 million individuals in the USA between 2011 and 2015: a cross-sectional study. The Lancet. 5; 9; 739-746 2018.