Jeopardized mental health or mind feeding and the lack of awareness of this issue has been a prime narrative in the recent past and it is going on still as more and more of the population begins to get affected by these illnesses. Given the recent condition of our world, both in political and social senses, the lack of awareness regarding mental illnesses acts as a prime factor in inducing chaos among the public on grass root levels.
We have all, at some point in our lives, heard about the phrase ‘Food for Thought’ which, in its literal sense, means some activity or study that warrants serious consideration of another issue. Sabotaged mental health can not only result in mental illnesses but it can also affect one’s physical health causing various symptoms like headaches, indigestion, weight and hair loss, and muscle pain to appear. In these difficult times, it is only obvious to work on promoting awareness about the issue of mental illnesses.
Despite a lot of efforts regarding spreading awareness, there are still a lot of things that can be done to promote a healthy mind. Mind feeding, again in its lateral sense, simply means practicing certain activities in our lives that can help make our minds healthier, more focused, and disease-free. There are a lot of things that can be done to promote a healthy mind. We can maintain a certain lifestyle, which includes a healthy and limited diet, exercise of both the body and the mind, psychotherapy; talking about your feelings and emotions contributes greatly to an improved mental condition and a lot more activities that can help us stay relaxed.
The role of diet on mental well-being
A good and well-balanced diet plays an essential role in improving and maintaining one’s mental health. When we stick to a certain diet that is healthy and balanced, we allow our mind to be exposed to fewer mood swings, thus enabling us to maintain a singular and peaceful state of mind. Foods containing high amounts of sugar and salt, mostly junk foods, can reverse this process and set out minds up for more mood fluctuations, thus inducing effects like anger, frustration, anxiety, and restlessness in our minds.
Another factor that may affect our mood is not staying hydrated. Most of the time we take our water intake for granted thus causing our bodies to get dehydrated without letting our minds know about it. Skipping meals also plays a big role in worsening our mental health. Hunger can cause some people to become angry and frustrated comparatively easily. You can find the important foods that are necessary for good health and mental well-being.
Importance of self-care
Although there are many pre-prescribed and widely appreciated ways out there that one can opt for in order to improve their mental conditions but despite all those, it is essential that we do not forget that it is the mind that heals and not the body. Only our inviting and encouraging attitude can help us improve our mental health. Thus, it is important to enact certain activities that promote self-care.
There are different ways to take care of ourselves. Some of the most common ways that can help us get up to speed in a difficult time are:
- Journaling: Writing about our feelings can help us untangle many puzzles in our minds.
- Meditating: It can help us relax and stay focused.
- Practicing gratitude: Make sure that you appreciate the efforts that others put around you in order to make you feel good. Not only is that going to make them happy, but it is also going to help you stay motivated to keep pushing.
- Taking care of your body: Activities like taking a long shower/bath, going for walks in the woods, taking naps, and maintaining a consistent sleep schedule can help our minds a lot.
- Doing something that you love: One great way to distract our minds from the problem at hand is to do something that you enjoy doing and that you are good at.
- Calling or video-chatting with friends: This is a great way to keep your spirits up. Sometimes isolation can affect you a lot and it is important to remember the people in your life that keep you going.
- Sun exposure: Our bodies need sunlight and just 15 minutes of sun exposure can lift up our mood a lot.
- Volunteering: Donate items that you no longer need and help others by spreading happiness.
Benefits of psychotherapy
Most people consider it an embarrassment to have to talk to a psychotherapist thinking that whatever is in the mind is manageable and they can deal with it by either ignoring and constricting it or continuing to be affected by it and deciding not to do anything. What we have to realize is that this behavior can only result in worsening the current situation leaving them in a tangle of mental diseases. On the other hand, professional help has proved to be widely successful. 75 percent of the people who opt for professional help end up saying that they benefited from it.
Psychoanalysts can help identify our problems by asking questions about them that we normally choose not to answer at all. They help us face our problems in a helping and caring way and can teach us strategies on how to avoid thinking about the things that trouble us. Most people suffering from problems like self-harm and suicidal thoughts can greatly benefit from it.
Conclusion
Despite the detailed address of the issue at hand above, there is still a lot that can be done regarding the issue. It is crucial to promote awareness about this issue on a global level. There are a lot of organizations working on it at the moment and a lot a turning their attention to it too. It is important to keep in mind that nothing comes before our mental health. We should take some time to let that thought sink in and then work to attain peace of mind rather than that of body.
