Wellness and Self-care Practices -
Monopoly as an anti-stress strategy? A survey by game developer RealNetworks found that 64 percent of respondents cited game playing as a way to relax, while 53 percent play for stress relief. Although part of the appeal is playing with friends and family in person, there are also tons of virtual options, like Words With Friends , or get your friends together and choose a game from Houseparty you can play in real time.
Rather than self-impose strict rules on what foods are off-limits, try intuitive eating. Is it time for a meal or a snack? You eat when you feel hungry, and you stop eating when you feel full. For inspiration, look no further than Instagram. Caffeine is one of the most researched substances, with more than 10, studies to date, according to a review published in November in Food and Chemical Toxicology.
They note that getting more than milligrams of caffeine daily can affect your central nervous system, gastrointestinal system, and sleep quality. Too much caffeine can even increase anxiety and stress. So enjoy your buzz, but try limiting your daily amount. That can give you a sweet burst of social time that ends with a delicious result.
What should you be noshing on when you feel hungry? Keep high-protein bites on hand to help you get to the end of your to-do list for the day. Think hard-boiled eggs , nuts , Greek yogurt, and nut butters and veggies. Yes, you read that correctly. Certain foods can actually have a stress-lowering effect.
Warm foods like soup or tea are soothing, and the omega-3s in fatty fish may improve mood. Avocados are packed with vitamins C and B6, which are known to help reduce stress. Other foods that can help include whole-grain carbohydrates, bananas , oranges, water, and leafy greens.
Though you may be inclined to indulge in treats or your favorite cocktail, know that this may be counterproductive. Foods that exacerbate or mess with stress in a less-than-savory way include caffeine, alcohol, and refined sugars.
RELATED: How to Manage Anxiety During the Coronavirus Pandemic. Incorporating more fresh fruits and vegetables into your daily diet is a long-term strategy that supports your mental health, according to a cross-sectional survey published in April in the journal Frontiers in Psychology.
A produce-packed diet supplies antioxidants that guard against oxidative stress and prevent our gut bacteria from becoming unhealthy, both of which have been linked to conditions like depression.
Some more great options to nosh on include bananas, apples, dark leafy greens, citrus fruits, and fresh berries , according to the research. RELATED: High-Antioxidant Foods That Prove Food Is Medicine. Give your liver a break and try mixing a healthy mocktail. Steer clear of sugary juices and syrups and opt for healthier choices like hibiscus tea, kombucha, sparkling water, and fresh fruits.
You can also combine fun flavors like grapefruit and mint, or green tea and oranges. RELATED: 10 Mocktail Recipes So Good You Won't Believe They're Booze-Free. We need food to survive, and taking time to prepare a meal that satisfies your taste buds and is good for you is definitely one way to practice self-care.
Past research has found that cooking can be therapeutic, meeting some of our fundamental needs, like giving us a sense of agency, belongingness, and connectedness — and it allows us to express our creativity.
Savor the experience, and then savor the food you made. However, for some people, self-weighing is a source of stress and something that drives down their self-esteem, as noted in a meta-analysis published in April in the journal Health Psychology Review.
If stepping on the scale puts you in a negative frame of mind, consider skipping the weigh-in today. You might just feel really free. It can be about freeing up space for the things that matter in your life and removing those that steal your energy.
After an especially draining day, take a few minutes to reflect: What dragged you down? How can you do less of that? Celebrate your daily successes with positive self-talk. It might feel weird at first, but your brain will soak up that self-care goodness, and research suggests it can help begin to turn your thoughts and feelings in a happier direction according to a paper on the topic published in in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
RELATED: 9 Tips to Help You Start Working Out and Stick With It. One of the things she does is set a smart home device to play music at a certain time every day. This one is good for your mental health and your digital security. Repetition is a powerful trigger for your brain, according to Breuning.
We create powerful connections with objects — just think of your favorite toy as a kid or a memento from a special trip. Try out your new magic pen by writing a love note to yourself first.
Calm and measured breathing can have immediate effects on your mental and physical state, whether the tension comes from the relentless news cycle or your ever-present housemates.
Do your breathing practice regularly to start or finish your day in a positive way, or try it in a moment when you need a little more zen.
Need guidance? Certain meditation apps, such as Calm, have free web-based resources that will help you along.
Deep breathing is very useful for slowing down the nervous system, says Henry Emmons, MD , a psychiatrist in Minneapolis and the author of The Chemistry of Calm. If anxious thoughts keep pinging around, try this alternative strategy, he suggests.
First, exhale completely, then inhale deeply. On your next exhale, gently place an index finger against your right nostril to close it off. Inhale using just your left nostril. Then move your index finger to the left nostril to close that one off and exhale through only the open right nostril.
Continue alternating sides and repeat for 15 rounds. RELATED: 5 Ways to Practice Breath-Focused Meditation. Simply put, meditation is thinking deeply or focusing your mind for a set period of time. The benefit: Meditation can help reduce stress , ease symptoms of depression and anxiety, and regulate negative thinking.
RELATED: A Guide to 7 Different Types of Meditation. Turn off the TV with the talking head in favor of some mood-boosting tunes. Music therapy employs music to help people cope with physical or emotional needs, according to a definition from the University of Minnesota.
Audiobooks can transport you somewhere else just like paper books can — and they may have additional benefits, too. Carmichael suggests turning on an audiobook, then laying down and closing your eyes to listen. Mindful listening is another way to soak in the present moment and let go of lingering worry and stress, says Dr.
Try to integrate this into your day as tiny, second breaks. The more you do it, the more habitual it will become, Emmons says. Nowhere to go? No problem. Although embarking on a full-on workout is helpful for taking care of yourself, sometimes all you need is just to change your body position for about 15 to 30 seconds to give yourself a restart, Emmons says.
When you make a conscious and physical shift, like standing up and stretching , your mind recognizes the change and responds in a beneficial way. Consider it a mini break for mind and body alike.
Try standing up and stretching your arms high overhead, bending over to touch your toes, or sitting on the floor in a cross-legged position for a hip-opening stretch.
RELATED: 5 Quick Stress-Reducing Yoga Poses. A study published in September in the journal American Psychologist noted that high-quality, close relationships and feelings of social connection are so much associated with a range of benefits that it should be considered a public health priority.
Make it a priority for yourself, and perhaps even create a schedule for catching up regularly. Hugs were off the table for a long time, as the pandemic made it potentially unsafe to embrace even your closest loved ones.
If you and the person you are hugging are both vaccinated or live in the same household , bring that hug back. Just 10 minutes of shoulder massage may be enough to increase relaxation, decrease stress, and improve heart rate variability, suggests a study published in September in the journal Scientific Reports.
Heart rate variability HRV is the measure of the variation in time between heartbeats, according to Harvard Health Publishing ; better HRV signals that your nervous system is in a calming rest-and-digest mode, rather than a stressed-out fight-or-flight mode. Treat yourself to a professional massage, pick up a massage gun , or ask your partner or a loved one for a quick shoulder rub.
But they can also have unintended consequences if and when using them becomes excessive or too consuming. The more personal your social media interactions , the better, experts say think direct-messaging people rather than mindless scrolling.
Use it intentionally. And take time to disconnect. But no one needs to listen to the same alerts and see the same headlines repeatedly, especially during times when the news can be upsetting. Experts recommend limiting news consumption to two or three sources a day to help cope with the anxiety it may bring, and checking in at regular times not continuously throughout the day for updates.
Consider making one of your sources a local news source. And if you can, avoid checking the headlines just before bed. RELATED: How to Avoid Headline Anxiety During a Global Pandemic. If you find your motivation dips in the middle of the day, take a break and lay down.
Be sure to set an alarm if you feel like you might doze off! These mini rest periods — or microbreaks — can help lessen fatigue and reenergize you to stay on target for the rest of the day at work, according to a study published in March in the Journal of Applied Psychology.
Schedule a one-on-one with yourself at the beginning of the week or the end of the week, looking at the following one. Check your schedule and decide if there are areas where you can be proactive now that will allow you to care for yourself in moments when you otherwise might be too crazed to do so.
Throw healthy, nourishing snacks, like a protein bar or nuts, in your bag ahead of time. When it comes to stress relief, laughter may seem like a whimsical fix, but it really works, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Spending some quiet time with yourself might be all you need. I am enough. I have enough. Creative writing offers unique benefits, says Phil Jamieson , founder of copyediting service ProofreadNow in Mount Vernon, New Hampshire.
He says it can foster self-expression, build confidence, clarify thoughts, and bolster empathy and communication skills. Research published in in the journal Advances in Psychiatric Treatment linked this type of writing to improved emotional and mental health.
Get out a notebook or open up a Word document and channel your inner Shakespeare, Dickens, or Beyoncé. You can even make it a social endeavor by joining an online writing class.
Remember, mindset really is everything. Dwelling on stress or dreading how long you might have to put up with it can actually make the stress worse. RELATED: 20 Tips for Building and Cultivating Your Resilience. Everyone deals with stress in different ways, and the stress-buster that works for you may not work for your best friend.
RELATED: Is Stress Making You Sicker? That involves the perception that you have enough money to do what you want, so you don't have to worry about falling short.
According to a survey by PwC , financial matters are the top source of stress for many people — so stressful, in fact, that it was worse than all other stressors combined. Getting control can help. Start with a free personal-finance app that can boost your budget skills, such as Mint or PocketGuard.
Take the Everyday Health Resilience Assessment to learn what skills you can work on to become more resilient. This tool was developed with Everyday Health Advisory Board member Amit Sood, MD , executive director of the Global Center for Resiliency and Well-Being and a former professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
You learn by example, and the examples in these books about resilience are some of the most inspiring ones out there. The list includes some straightforward self-help options, like F reedom From Anxious Thoughts and Feelings , and memoir-style stories like Unbroken , the story of World War II prisoner of war Louis Zamperini.
Pick one that resonates with you and put your extra downtime to productive use. Not in the mood for reading? Immerse yourself in these inspiring TV shows and movies about strength in harrowing circumstances. The stories about how others have faced adversity and persevered in spite of it are ones we can all learn from.
Can tidying up really change your mood? According to the Mayo Clinic, clutter can lead to more stress and anxiety , and when people describe their spaces as "disorganized," they're more likely to have higher levels of cortisol , the hormone related to the stress response.
It can make you feel more distracted, and it may even affect your sleep. Take 15 minutes a day to tackle the messiest part of your home — even if it's just a junk drawer that's always full. RELATED: Why Decluttering Is an Important Part of Self-Care and When It Isn't.
Swap opinions and discover great reading by joining a virtual book club. Some are run by small local bookshops, while others are much larger and national — for example, Quarantine Book Club , where you're joined by the author.
Or why not recruit a group of friends and start your own? Learning some phrases in a new language can put you in a vacation-prep frame of mind. Or spend some time practicing a language you already have some knowledge of. It's another way to challenge your brain and hone a practical skill.
A review article published in December in Frontiers in Psychology suggests that language learning may promote healthy cognitive aging, and it could even have a role in delaying the onset of dementia. Staying a lifelong student is a great way to boost your brain power and practice self-care, according to Scott Kaiser, MD , director of geriatric cognitive health for Pacific Neuroscience Institute at Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California.
Best of all, plenty of colleges and universities across the globe have put free courses online, so you can audit classes from Stanford, MIT, Harvard University, Sorbonne University, and many more, via platforms like Coursera and edX.
Try starting with Yale's incredibly popular free class about happiness, The Science of Well-Being. Kaiser says that the brain responds favorably to cognitive challenges like learning new materials , and in turn, that can increase your levels of hormones like serotonin and dopamine.
Coloring and other creative and artistic endeavors like drawing, painting, or knitting can be relaxing for a lot of people. Self-care can mean doing something nice for the ones you love. There's plenty of difficult and challenging news in the world today, and it can be tough to take a break from it.
But it's worth making the effort. One good way? Listen to a podcast that not only gives you good advice on self-care but also makes you feel lighter and brighter.
Here are some picks to get you started: Feel Better, Live More , Where There's Smoke , Inspire Nation , and Good Life Project.
Feeling generous? It's not just the recipients who will thank you — your brain will appreciate it, too. A study published in October in Psychosomatic Medicine found that all types of generosity have feel-good effects, but when the cause is especially meaningful to you or you know the recipient personally, it has an additional effect of decreasing stress and anxiety.
Other research has found that spending money on others, rather than yourself, can have a significant impact on your happiness level. Looking for some extra motivation to stick to a new hobby or workout?
You can even make it a way to pick up new hobbies — check out Adults and Crafts , for example, which sends DIY crafts every month, or The Plant Club , a way to expand your indoor plant collection monthly.
In much the same way that donating to a cause that feels personal to you will give you a greater sense of meaning, so will supporting a local restaurant that's part of your community.
Plus, you get tasty food without the effort. If your weekends are lost to a sea of chores, housework, or repairs — and if your budget allows — consider hiring help, Carmichael says. Or consider other options that can help you outsource some of your everyday tasks, like meal delivery kits, takeout, or gardening help.
Whether you have a magnificent and expansive yard or you're nestled into an urban jungle, you can tailor a home garden to your needs. Multiple studies have shown that gardening has mental health benefits, according to a review article published in March in the journal Preventive Medicine Reports.
Indoors, you can start a shelf of succulents or try an herb garden with your culinary favorites. Check out optimal lighting conditions and what type of maintenance is required for seeds and plants before you buy that information can usually be found on package labels or online descriptions.
Several online therapy tools and mental wellness apps can help you learn coping skills and stress management. Clay, R. Self-care has never been more important. Monitor on Psychology 51 5. Davis, T. Self-care: 12 ways to take better care of yourself.
Psychology Today. Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance. Glowiak, M. What is self-care and why is it important for you? Southern New Hampshire University. Lawler, M. What is self-care and why is it so important for your health? Medalie, L. UChicago Medicine. Mental Health America. The State of Mental Health in America.
Mental Health First Aid USA. Mental Health First Aid for Adults Assisting Adults. Washington, DC: National Council for Mental Wellbeing. teen Mental Health First Aid USA: A manual for young people in 10thth grade helping their friends. Naidoo, U. Eating during COVID Improve your mood and lower stress.
Harvard Health Blog. Pilkington, K. Self-care for anxiety and depression: a comparison of evidence from Cochrane reviews and practice to inform decision-making and priority-setting. BMC Complement Med Ther 20, Stieg, C.
Depression rates have tripled during the pandemic — how to recognize the signs and respond to them. CNBC Make It. University of Michigan Medicine. Importance of physical activity and exercise during the COVID pandemic.
It is true Wrllness we need Cold pressed olive take time Cold pressed olive CLA and nutrient absorption our regular routines to avoid Cellulite reduction treatments at home and Practics, but Practiices is so much more than just Practice in annd. In this article, we'll Practtices 8 different areas of self-care so you can start implementing these into your everyday life. Self-care is the act of engaging in different activities to gain or maintain an optimal level of overall health that can add to your well-being. These are intentional actions you take every day to fulfill an area of need in your life. Self-care is done deliberately and is not a luxury but a way of life. If you often feel physically, emotionally, and mentally drained, the chances are it is because you are neglecting an area of self-care that is trying to grab your attention. Without self-care, prolonged and chronic stress and physical, mental, and emotional fatigue are imminent. Elizabeth Scott, PhD is an Wellnees, workshop leader, educator, and award-winning blogger on stress management, positive psychology, relationships, and emotional Prwctices. Rachel Self-dare, PhD FTOS, amd a licensed psychologist, Wellness and Self-care Practices assistant professor, Non-invasive ulcer treatments, wellness expert Practlces Cold pressed olive eating behaviors, Practics management, and health behavior change. Self-care, as the name suggests, is all about caring for yourself to ensure that both your physical and emotional needs are met. All the stress relief activities in the world won't help if you aren't taking care of yourself. Meditation won't do you any good if you aren't getting adequate sleep. In fact, when you try to meditate, you might doze off because you aren't taking care of your body's need for sleep.
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