By Jennifer Bellini, Moving Forward Founder and Rhapsody Brain Trust Member
With a constant barrage of current news in our inboxes and social media streams, it’s no wonder we’re on edge.
Even during times of great stress and uncertainty, it’s important to remember that you still have choices. You can choose self-care to help manage your anxiety. You can choose to maintain a positive mindset. You can choose to prioritize your mental and physical health.
And make no mistake, friends, that mental and physical health go hand in hand.
Here are 7 simple choices you can make to find calm, come back to center and set yourself up for success when it comes to mental health and positive mindset.
Breathe
When we slow down our breath, we calm the physical responses that stress us out and can weaken the immune system.
Try 5 rounds of this exercise, and you will notice the effects immediately – inhale to the count 4 and exhale to the count of 6. Woosah.
Meditate
Meditation clears the mind while bringing more awareness to our surroundings, which grounds the mind-body system. By incorporating a daily practice, you may reduce your stress and increase the expression of genes that boost your immune system.
Catch those Zzz’s
Be sure to get at least 7-9 hours of quality sleep and do your best to stay consistent with your bedtime/wake time. If you’re struggling to calm your mind before bed, put your phone down, read a few pages of a good book and listen to a story on the Calm app. Sweet dreams…
Limit Your Media
Stay informed with a check in to reputable news sources once or twice a day, but stop scrolling and switch off those push notifications. Give your mind a minute to come out of it’s fight or flight mode.
Connect
Social distancing does not mean disconnecting. We can practically smell each other through a screen these days, so schedule a virtual happy hour date with friends. Our relationships can renew and revive us on even the darkest days.
Stay Active
it will do wonders for both your body and soul. Even something as simple as grabbing your furfriend and doing a lap around the block does wonders. Many gyms and fitness groups have gone online to provide abundant options for workouts you can do with little to know equipment, such as Rhapsody CrossFit’s Home WOD.
Find The Silver Lining
You are entitled to your feelings, the good, bad and ugly, but there is more for you in a positive mindset moving forward.
I have started focusing on my gratitude practice – every day, I write out a list of at least three things, great or small, that I am grateful for. If my list includes a person, I reach out to tell them why they are on the list. Now is the time to remind yourself of what’s good and brings you joy.
We may have been handed a bag of lemons, friends, but we can choose to make some lemonade.
If you have questions about staying mentaly healthy and practices to help promote a positive mindset, I am here for you.
