How to improve your mental health little by little (Part 1)

24 small actions you can take in 2024 to improve your mental health and achieve emotional well-being, without your goals becoming overwhelming and unattainable.
Posted on
23/9/24

The end of another year is coming to an end, and ——as is usually the case when we finish a cycle—— it's natural to start creating expectations for what's to come in the next. It's common for us to see the new number on the calendar as an opportunity to improve, reinvent ourselves and grow. However, in many cases our goals are so great that, as the months go by, we tend to leave them behind. If your New Year's resolutions include taking care of your health, we have 24 more concrete proposals for small things you can do to help your emotional well-being in this new cycle.

  1. Search for the light:

A lack of exposure to daylight can damage everything from our biological sleep clock to our emotional stability. If you barely leave your house, make it a goal to go out for at least ten minutes a day to get your good dose of vitamin D and boost your serotonin.

  1. Remember to take a deep breath:

Taking a moment to take a deep breath five times a day will help calm your nervous system and reduce stress. Don't you ever remember? Set a reminder on your phone at a time when you know you can take a break.

  1. Drink water:

Maintaining a good level of hydration is essential for physical health, yes, but also for mental health. Drinking water can be very useful to feel calm and help us manage our emotions. Have you seen those water bottles that tell you how long you have been in the day?

  1. Connect with my friends:

We are social beings and, even if we sometimes feel that we prefer to be alone, we have to remind ourselves that it is important to connect with others. Tip: Put on your calendar “call Fulanito” or “go out with Sultanito” and try to fulfill the commitment.

  1. Start saying thank you:

Focusing once a day on the things that went well is very useful to get out of the negative perspective that sometimes clouds our vision. In Mindsurf, you'll find an Emotional Diary where you can capture the best moments of the day to look at good things. It even has a reminder!

  1. Create my own rituals:

What activities make you happy? How often do you do them? Could you incorporate them into your week until you turn them into rituals? This can range from going for a massage to staying home and looking out the window. The thing is that it becomes a moment just yours that you can look forward to with emotion.

  1. Start a routine of Skin Care:

If you haven't already done so, you can start in 2024. You don't need 500 expensive products, you just need a neutral soap and a cream suitable for the face. This habit will help you take care of yourself and your body, which is undoubtedly very useful when you are trying to rekindle your self-love. Give yourself a few minutes at night to soften the skin you live on.

  1. Ask for help:

If you're not used to asking for a helping hand when you feel overwhelmed, maybe this cycle can start doing it. Remember that asking for help is not synonymous with weakness, quite the contrary. In addition, you can start with small things, such as asking to be woken up in the morning.

  1. Make better to-do lists:

If your to-do lists only have things from work or to-do, a good idea would be to add activities that you enjoy doing to them. This will help you have moments in your schedule that you look forward to with joy.

  1. Give a name to what I feel:

Some research has shown that labeling our emotions can help us reduce stress by up to 50%. Give yourself time to think about what you're feeling and record it in the Mindsurf Emotional Diary. You don't even have to carry a notebook with you everywhere!

  1. Getting back to nature:

When you live in a big city, it can sometimes be extremely difficult to reconnect with nature. However, nature can bring us joy, creativity, calm and help us focus. Try to make plans to visit natural areas once a month.

  1. Stretch out:

Perhaps the most common New Year's resolution is to “exercise.” However, this goal requires far more discipline than we expect. But you can start with something smaller, such as stretching next to your workplace for a few minutes a day to stimulate circulation and increase your serotonin levels.

You already have several New Year's resolutions for 2024 that are as small as they are important. Surely some of these will fit your routine and lifestyle, but if you want to see more, don't miss the second part! The path to wellness is just around the corner.

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