When you think of the word "hygiene", you are inclined to associate it, for example, with the care of your teeth or physical appearance. This is body hygiene. Mental hygiene, on the other hand, concerns all application methods that promote psychological health and well-being. In fact, scientists very often argue that, by virtue of the mind-body relationship, it is necessary to be mentally well to have excellent physical health. So, if you want to take care of your health and well-being, you need to adopt some strategies that allow you to improve your mental hygiene.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Developing a More Positive Attitude
Step 1. Challenge negative mental patterns
Your perception of what you are experiencing is able to greatly affect your mood and vision of reality. If you constantly think about your problems without, however, coming to a solution, it means that you are brooding. This behavior can fuel a sense of depression and even promote the onset of cardiovascular disease.
- Fight your negative mental patterns by questioning the validity or certainty of what you think. For example, you turned in an assignment late and you think, "Now, the professor hates me."
- Ask yourself if the situation is as bad as you are imagining it. Could the fact of having delivered the assignment late really justify the emergence of such a strong feeling as hatred? Your teacher may be disappointed, but it is very unlikely that he will come to hate you for it.
Step 2. Stop comparing with others
Comparisons belittle the talents and abilities of one or the other party in an attempt to highlight successes or personal characteristics. It is a reasoning in which everyone is bound to lose, regardless of how you look at the situation.
- If you get excited by comparing it to someone whose performance has been worse than yours, your sense of satisfaction rests on arbitrary grounds. On the other hand, when you compare your abilities to those of a person who has proven superior to you, you are simply devaluing your strengths.
- Each makes its own path. Moreover, it is normal that each individual is more talented in some sectors and less in others. Comparisons devalue one's subjectivity. The only one you should compare yourself with is the person you have been until yesterday.
Step 3. Develop a grateful attitude
One of the most important factors in protecting yourself against negative life events is the ability to transform self-pity into gratitude. In almost all difficulties there are positive sides, if we are willing to realize it. According to some studies, gratitude counteracts the most harmful emotions, increases empathy, promotes sleep, allows for fruitful relationships and improves physical health.
Gratitude can be cultivated in a variety of ways. Let the people you care about know how important their presence is in your life. At the end of each day, think about 2 or 3 things you are grateful for or start a gratitude journal
Step 4. Build your self-esteem by using encouraging phrases
People don't always know how to fuel their self-esteem. So, especially after a failure or setback, you need to try to encourage yourself by saying something positive. However, in addition to changing the way you think about yourself, you also need to change what you say about yourself when you look in the mirror and at other times of the day. Use these phrases on a daily basis.
- I love who I am.
- I believe in myself.
- I am a person who is worth and deserves respect.
- The more affectionate and loving I am with myself, the more successful I will be.
- I have to thank fate for the fortunes it has given me.
- I am a person in constant evolution.
- My opinions reflect my personality.
- I recognize my strengths.
Part 2 of 3: Learning to Manage Emotions
Step 1. Recognize moments of despair
Emotional awareness is a path that allows you to understand and admit what you feel. It gives you the ability to manage yourself properly and improve your mental hygiene. When a person experiences a certain emotion, it usually manifests it through a certain physical or mental reaction. So, by paying attention to the physical and mental signals, you will come to identify the moments in which certain emotions emerge.
- For example, you are sitting at a restaurant table waiting for a friend for lunch. You've been waiting for 10 minutes and thinking: "Damn, he's always late". In the meantime, you notice that you hit the bottom of the glass repeatedly with the straw. Both the thought and your gesture make you realize that you are impatient.
- Choose a time period to observe your thoughts and behaviors. Do they indicate what your state of mind is? Record these observations in a journal to begin gaining greater emotional awareness.
Step 2. Express your emotions in a healthy way
Once you have learned to recognize the physical and mental cues associated with your emotions, find a positive way to express them. You have to express your mood because, if you hold back or repress what you feel, you risk developing ailments such as anxiety or depression. There are many ways to express your feelings in an adaptive way.
- Talking to others is one of the best ways to bring out what you are feeling. Just be sure that the people you confide in support you without judging you. You could choose a close friend, sibling, or psychologist.
- Writing down what you feel is also a useful exercise. Write down your thoughts in a journal. Over time, you will be able to reread them to see if any mental patterns emerge. Keeping a journal is a great mental health habit, especially if it is used not only to let off steam, but also to find solutions to problems.
- Cry if necessary. Sometimes people, when they feel sad, tend to dismiss this feeling because they feel a sense of guilt or shame. Other times they feel it, but they can't cry. Watch a movie, read a novel or listen to some music to get in tune with your mood and start shedding a few tears.
- Release the tension. Anger can be one of the hardest emotions to express, because the behaviors we take when we lose our temper are not always socially acceptable. For example, it is not appropriate to shout at the people we love, to break objects or to punch the wall. Rather, you can use some stress management techniques to overcome anger. Try getting tired by exercising or screaming with your face on a pillow.
Step 3. Keep in mind that emotions, whether negative or positive, are fundamental
People have no problem expressing joy, enthusiasm and love. However, they think it is just as right to reject the most unpleasant emotions. Maybe you were raised with the idea that it is terrible to show anger, shame or frustration, so you dismiss these feelings. By repressing what you feel, you actually risk worsening your mood when you are in the throes of anxiety, depression or a phobia.
Remember to always resist the temptation to hide or hold back negative emotions, such as sadness or anger. They are just as important to mental health as positive ones
Part 3 of 3: Combating Stress
Step 1. Train regularly to manage stress
One of the best weapons against stress is physical movement. By staying active, you will reap numerous benefits, for example you will develop greater resistance to disease, lose weight and improve your immune system. Plus, if you exercise regularly, you can also relieve tension, lift your mood, boost your self-esteem and sleep better.
Find an enjoyable sport that increases your heart rate and presents you with tempting challenges. For example, you might be swimming, hiking, weight lifting, yoga, and even walking your dog
Step 2. Eat a balanced diet
What you eat can also help you reduce stress. Certain foods and drinks can actually cause or aggravate everyday stress, such as fast food, some cheeses, some nuts, caffeine, sugar, and alcohol. However, other foods can help the body fight them, such as fresh fruit and vegetables, fish, yogurt, and water.
Step 3. Get enough sleep
When you think about stress and sleep, you can easily get confused as to which of the two depends on the other: Do sleep problems fuel stress? Or is it stress that disturbs sleep? According to experts, both hypotheses are probable. You can get much less sleep than recommended (7-9 hours each night), and when you close your eyes, your sleep quality is poor due to stress. To improve your sleep habits, try:
- Always go to bed at the same time every night and always get up at the same time every morning.
- Establish a "cool-down" time each evening, during which to turn off all electronic devices, stop working and dedicate yourself to something more relaxing, like a book or a hot bath.
- Make sure your sleeping environment is dark and comfortable enough. Make the bedroom a place exclusively for its purposes. Avoid watching TV or working when in bed.
- Stop taking caffeine 4-6 hours before bedtime. Avoid smoking or drinking too much alcohol just before bed.
Step 4. Prepare to perform a variety of anti-stress activities
You can be so diligent and careful that you prevent any kind of tension, but there will always be times when you will be forced to deal with them. In the most stressful times of life, use your anti-stress activities to relieve anxiety and improve your mood. There are various things you can do to do this.
- Practice deep breathing. Deep breathing exercises can relieve tension and promote calm. Try the 4-7-8 method. Inhale through your mouth for a count of 4, hold your breath for a count of 7, then exhale for a count of 8. Repeat the exercise as necessary.
- Try meditation. This practice allows you to focus your attention on the present and gain greater awareness of the element you are focused on (for example, you may focus on your breath, body, environment, and so on). There are various types of meditation that are useful for various problems. Try a few and find the one that best suits your needs.
- Take care of yourself. Give yourself time to do whatever pleases you, whether it's a manicure, a long walk or pampering with your partner while watching TV.
Step 5. Develop a strong support network
The people you spend most of your time with are as important to your health and well-being as other factors such as nutrition and exercise. Psychologists often advise patients to build strong social support to overcome certain mood disorders, such as depression or post-traumatic stress disorder. Even if you don't have a severe mental disorder, you can still receive numerous benefits by surrounding yourself with the support of people.
- According to research, a social network of friends, family and colleagues can help improve a sense of security, self-esteem and a sense of belonging.
- Go out more often to improve relationships and social support. Get to know new people by joining a gym, joining an association, volunteering, interacting with your peers at school or at work, or starting to leverage the internet to build virtual relationships. Also, don't forget to show some interest in the people you've built strong, positive relationships with.
