Train Your Brain for Joy: Our Best Mental Health Tips
Achieving consistent happiness and simplicity in life stems first and foremost from solid mental health. By intentionally implementing small, daily goals for emotional wellbeing, you’ll notice your overall lifestyle becoming more peaceful and fulfilling.
Penciling in just a little routine self-care yields huge dividends towards feeling healthier and more resilient on all fronts. When your state of mind improves, external clutter diminishes too. Read on for 13 bliss promoting mental health goals to incorporate.
Reduce Stress Through Relaxation Techniques
Left unchecked, stress rapidly sabotages both physical and mental functioning. Counter demanding days proactively with calming activities that hit your personal refresh button.
5-Minute Meditations
Carving out mini meditation sessions gives frazzled nerves an instant time out. Whether following deep breathing YouTube videos or simply focusing inward, a few moments of restored stillness stretches patience.
Daily Yoga Flows
Gently stretching tense areas while staying attentive on holding poses relaxes tense mindsets remarkably well. I swear just 8-10 flowing vinyasas release oodles of knotted worry I hold in my shoulders and lower back.
Laughing Out Loud
When crazy serious moods strike, I force myself to chuckle out loud at silly cat memes or comedy clips even if I don’t genuinely feel amused. Somehow faking laughter for a couple minutes effortlessly morphs into real giggles, lightening any bad mood.
Aromatherapy
Inhaling calming essential oils like lavender, bergamot, rose or eucalyptus through both diffusers and personal inhalers helps ground chaotic thoughts instantly. I stash little aroma inhalers in my office, car, purse, and bathroom for quick serenity fixes.
Improve Sleep Patterns
Sticking to consistent sleeping and waking times regulates mood and energy levels long-term by respecting natural circadian rhythms. But enacting healthy sleep hygiene takes diligence and lifestyle tweaks like:
No Screens for 1 Hour Pre-Bed
I charge all devices outside my room to avoid their tempting screens’ stimulating blue light and bazillion notifications vying for my attention when I should be powering down.
Soothing Sleep Rituals
My nightly routine helps signal drowsiness: comfy pajamas, brushing teeth, skincare regimen, decluttering tomorrow’s to-do list by journaling, and reading fiction till I nod off with the book on my face!
Slumber-Perfecting Bedroom
I’ve optimized a pitch black, cool sleeping cave for passing out quickly: blackout curtains, gray background-noise fan, heavy quilt, and lavender mist sprayed on my pillow.
Adequate Shut-Eye
Prioritizing at least 7 hours nightly not only stabilizes my mood, it restores mental sharpness for checking off the next day’s goals. Maintaining an earlier bedtime prevents shortchanging my sleep needs. I track sleep data with my fitness watch to ensure enough rest.
Eat Nutritious Foods
You’ve heard it a zillion times because it works – good moods start with good foods in your stomach. Skip quickie empty carb fixes for more wholesome, protein-rich snacks. The following habits keep me feeling (and thinking) my best all day.
Meal Prep Healthy Recipes
Instead of hitting up the vending machine when mid-afternoon mood crashes strike, I always pack enough homemade grab and go snacks like pumpkin oatmeal protein bites using a handy meal planning template.
Mood Lifting Nutrients
Salmon, avocados, leafy greens, eggs, and yogurt get incorporated into meals for moving the mental health need for omega-3s, B vitamins, zinc and magnesium. Bananas and dark chocolate handle mid-morning cravings too.
Hydration Helps
Chugging water, herbal tea, or low-sugar juices all day prevents later dehydration-driven crankiness. Sticking an effervescent tablet in my giant water bottle makes plain water more enticing to actually finish. Adequate fluids also minimize mind fog.
Minimize Sugar and Junk Foods
When irritability strikes, I take inventory if I’ve overdone empty sugar calories that day. Inflammatory foods definitely correlate to worse mood thereafter for me. I follow an 80/20 rule – healthy eating 80% of the time, with just 20% wiggle room for treats.
Exercise Each Day
Sweat sessions provide scientifically proven mood boosts by releasing those feel good endorphins. I strategically schedule fitness into each day which motivates showing up.
Morning Walks or Jogs
Waking up 30 minutes earlier to jumpstart systems with brisk walking or slow trail jogging makes me ridiculously alert and optimistic about my whole day ahead. Natural sunlight and vitamin D also energize.
Quick Bodyweight Workouts
If life happens and I miss that early activity window, then dropping for a fast 10-15 minute living room workout with stretch bands keeps stress and restlessness at bay. Squats, lunges, push-ups and ab moves get it done quick.
Nature Trails
Combining cardio hiking through verdant surroundings with friends multiples mental health gains through social bonding, refreshing sights, smells and bird song. My worry levels literally stay at zero for hours afterward!
Consistent Movement
I know myself well – if I skip regular workouts for multiple days, irritation and anxiety gradually heighten. So whether it’s vigorous or gentle, I prioritize at least 20-30 minutes of heart-pumping movement no matter how crammed life gets. Just knowing I checked the box lifts my outlook.
Cultivate an Attitude of Gratitude
Pausing to consciously count all the positives already surrounding me brightens any gloomy perspectives lingering from the day’s stresses. Tiny thankfulness rituals remind me of how lucky I already am.
Gratitude Journaling
As part of my evening wind-down, I handwrite quick notes about 3-5 things I felt grateful for that day – a tasty latte, my dog’s silly antics, scoring a bargain on groceries, a bright pink sunset. This trains my brain over time to spot silver linings more instinctively.
Give Thanks Out Loud
Actually voicing genuine appreciation towards others multiplies good vibes instantly. Whether telling my partner “thanks for handling dinner” or a friend “I so appreciate you listening”, verbalizing gratitude warms hearts. People actually beam hearing it.
Thank Yourself Too!
I also make sure to acknowledge my own hard-won milestones like sticking to an important goal that week or learning a new skill. Giving myself credit resurges motivation faster than criticizing ever could.
Stay Socially Connected
Humans are hardwired for community, yet crammed schedules mean quality friend time gets shortchanged. Tempting as it is to have uninterrupted alone time, I know I feel my cheeriest staying linked into tribe togetherness.
Regular Video Calls
Chit-chatting heart to heart, giggling helplessly mid-story just like old times always replenishes me for days afterward, even if through a screen. Gabfests with long distance besties make the separation dissolve instantly.
Local Community Events
I love poking through weekend farmer’s markets, outdoor concerts, craft fairs, food festivals, and such with friends because unexpected interactions with friendly strangers (and cute dogs!) restores faith in humanity, sparking conversational joy all around.
Volunteer Work Together
Giving back as a group at animal shelters, food banks, museums and environmental cleanups deepens bonds enormously through working side by side towards something meaningful. The mood elevating benefits linger for weeks.
Engage in Fulfilling Leisure Activities
Scarfing down meals in front of TV or doomscrolling through social media doesn’t actually fulfill downtime cravings for fun. Instead, engaging in enriching pastimes that feed one’s soul regularly prevents restlessness and anxiety from creeping in.
I remind myself happiness resides more in consistently enjoying smaller daily pleasures versus one big expensive extravagant trip or purchase. Sprinkling my schedule with rewarding hobbies guarantees my cup stays filled no matter how chaotic the week.
Learning New Instrument
Strumming rusty guitar chords I first learned in middle school surprises me by how mastering simple melodies again shoots little tingles of pride throughout me even decades later!
DIY Crafting Projects
Watching Pinterest tutorials to repurpose thrifted goods into cheeky wall art makes me feel wildly inventive, plus I get unique eye-catching decor out of it. For instance, I mod-podged vintage airline tags onto a suitcase then hung it holding favorite photos.
Jigsaw Puzzles
Slowly piecing together 1000+ piece nature scenes with my mom each Sunday fills hours immersed in effortless laughter-filled chatter about nothing in particular without once glancing at our phones. It’s old fashioned togetherness at its best.
Nostalgic Childhood Activities
Teaching my baby niece silly hand clapping songs and nursery rhymes I loved at her age unexpectedly floods me with ridiculous bliss reliving kindergarten innocence. Freeze tag, hopscotch, fort-making and hide and seek also remind me how uncomplicated bonding joyfully with other humans can be.
Adult Coloring Books
Something about losing myself in intricate abstract designs with markers, colored pencils, gel pens or crayons resets any static brain circuits. The mediative process untangles worries effortlessly. I display favorites on my office wall for an ongoing confidence lift.
Absorb the Healing Powers of Nature
Escaping regularly into leafy parks, salty beaches, wooded trails or just my own backyard oasis instantly unwinds tense thoughts by redirecting focus onto nature’s steadfast serenity.
Local Hiking Hotspots
Crunching along dirt paths under towering evergreens with my trusty dog unleashes inner peace almost hypnotically every time. Allowing sun-dappled ferns, birdsong trills high in maples, and peekaboo lake views work their magic never fails as soul medicine.
Backyard Picnics
Tossing down fuzzy blankets for impromtu snacks overlooking my patio container garden’s blooms lets me mentally check out similar to actual remote nature escapes. And I don’t even need pants!
Camping Getaways
Waking before sunrise wrapped in a sleeping bag beside crackling flames instantly transports me to a simpler, screen-free headspace. Star-gazing into endless Milky Way galaxies makes all problems back home feel blissfully tiny.
People Also Ask
What are 5 key tips for better mental health?
Reduce stress through relaxation techniques, improve sleep consistency, eat nutritious whole foods, exercise daily, practice gratitude journaling.
What simple habits lead to happiness?
Strong social connections, pursuing fulfilling hobbies, volunteering/helping others, engaging in nostalgic childhood activities, spending time outdoors in nature.
How can I simplify my life?
Declutter/organize your home, create cleaning/meal prep routines, limit possessions to essentials only, unsubscribe from email lists, curate minimalist wardrobe of versatile staples, schedule extensive buffer time between tasks.
What foods boost mood?
Salmon, leafy greens, eggs, yogurt, bananas, avocado, dark chocolate, herbal tea, nuts, whole grains, beans, blueberries.
What activities reduce stress best?
Yoga, meditation, deep breathing exercises, brisk walking, jogging or hiking, leisurely gardening or backyard birdwatching, crafting projects, listening to soothing music, enjoying bubble baths.