Our mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It is incredibly important to maintain a positive mental attitude as it can have many effects on us, such as how we act towards others, how we make decisions and how we handle stress. There are also links between our physical and mental health, as having a negative mental health can increase your likelihood of having physical health problems.

Benefits of having a good mental health:

• Makes life feel easier.
• Prepares you mentally for unforeseen circumstances (e.g. unexpected changes, loses, fears and other uncertainties).
• Encourages you to have and maintain good relationships with others.
• Promotes good physical health and personal care.

The theme for this years Mental Health Awareness Week is “Movement: Moving more for Mental Health.” Exercise is important for our mental health because it lowers your risk of anxiety, depression, and dementia, boosts your mood, lowers stress levels, improves sleep quality, and helps improve your self-esteem. For more information about the benefits of exercise and how to fit more into your routine, read our blog: https://www.dalecare.co.uk/news/benefits-of-exercise/

Aside from exercise, here are some alternative ways to help improve your mental health:

Get high-quality sleep

Getting enough high-quality sleep is important for both your physical and mental well-being. Difficulty sleeping can lead to trouble focussing, difficulty making decisions or problem solving, coping with change, acting without thinking and control of your emotions. Overall, these factors could lead to severe mental health issues.

To improve sleep quality, try to develop a routine that work best for you and ensures that you are getting enough sleep, try to reduce your screen time before bed to ensure you’re not too stimulated to sleep, exercise is said to promote better sleep, make sure you’re sleeping in a relaxed environment and avoid stressful activities later in the day, so they’re not on your mind as you try to sleep.

Time for yourself

You may be feeling overwhelmed due to your work or other factors, to reduce this feeling, make sure that you set enough time for yourself each week, whether this just be time to relax or do something you enjoy. Ensuring you have your own time set aside can not only make you feel happier and more relax but can help to distract you from whatever problems you are experiencing.

Focus on the present

It may be difficult, but you can vastly improve your mental well-being by paying attention to the present instead of constantly worrying about the stresses ahead. It has also been shown that focusing on the p-resent can help you to become more aware of your thoughts and feelings, which in turn makes them easier to manage.

Speak to your loved ones

If you feel like you are having any worries or problems, sharing these feelings with someone who you care for is the best way to make you feel more at ease about these problems or worries, it may feel difficult to express but it’s always better than bottling your emotions up inside. If you can have this conversation face to face would be more beneficial as it ensures that you feel most comforted.

If you find it extremely difficult to express your problems or worries, don’t force yourself to. Even just a friendly conversation with someone you haven’t spoken to in a while could still be beneficial as it can help you feel listened to and appreciated as well as helping to distract you from those worries for the time being.

Contact Dale Care for extra support

As a carer, don’t forget that we have our own emotional support and well-being service, if you would like someone to talk to or advice regarding your mental health please contact Carol Jackson, our Mental Health Lead. To contact Carol, you can ring 07751 828989 or email carol.jackson@dalecare.co.uk.

As well as this, you have the option to sign up to our employee assistance programme, TELUS Health, where you can access well-being support and information. If you haven’t already signed up to TELUS Health, please email danielle.rippon@dalecare.co.uk to receive your invitation email.

Information taken from:

https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/our-work/public-engagement/mental-health-awareness-week

http://www.bcmhsus.ca/about/news-stories/stories/10-tips-to-boost-your-mental-health