5 Tips to Staying Mentally Healthy

I read the most beautiful article the other day. Someone had brought kittens to a nursing facility that needed to be bottle fed. “Ohhh how sweet and cute,” is usually the initial reaction when you see tiny kittens being bottle fed by an elderly man and woman. Surprisingly, it’s not something I thought into more deeply. It wasn’t until someone pointed out how much it was helping the PEOPLE’S mental health while doing the bottle feeding that I thought about it that way.

Here are some things we can all benefit from and will help keep your mental health on key, which can sometimes be unfairly overlooked.

  1. Apply yourself to something that makes you feel needed and independent.

Having previous experience in geriatrics, I know residents get frustrated because their hands shake, they don’t understand, something is unfamiliar, anxiety, depression, fear, and many people feel like they are such a burden. It is important for EVERYONE’S mental health (not just elderly) to find something that you can contribute to remind yourself that you ARE a useful human being. We all have struggles, and we all like to feel loved, useful, and important.

Have you ever done an activity like sewing, painting, exercising, gardening, or crocheting where you actually go on “auto-pilot” and look up to realize you got lost in what you were doing? These are what I call “freeing activities”.

  1. Find activities you get lost in that do not involve electronics.

There is a difference between being fixated on something like the TV and being lost in a hobby. Try to make a habit of doing these activities at least once a week to help free your mind!

I don’t know about anyone else, but when I eat junk- I feel like JUNK.

  1. Fuel your body with proper nutrients.

Know your necessary caloric intake and percentages of complex carbs (greens), and protein. With each milestone in our life or medication changes, our nutrient needs can vary.

Do you ever feel like you don’t have many people you can talk to? Maybe you feel you will be judged, or maybe you don’t really want to bother with explaining the situation so you just keep it to yourself? Keep all your worries, concerns, frustrations to yourself with no “freeing activities” or other release in between and all I can picture is a brewing problem inside.

  1. Talk.

It’s so important to be able to talk about things whether it be to a friend, family member, significant other, or therapist. This gives you a chance to release any mental toxins you may have so you can feel good as new.

Have you ever been around people who are negative. ALL.THE.TIME. Okay, enough said. It’s okay to be realistic and vent like #4. It’s also even more important to do THIS.

  1. Find the POSITIVE.

I can honestly still hear my mom saying this. “Look at the silver lining”. Oh, this is so true. There is also a phrase something like “whether you are looking for a positive or a negative- you will find what you seek” If that’s actually not out there then I call dibs on being credited!  If you sit and focus on the negative over and over- that is going to be what you find in situations, and that’s going to be what you spend the most time on.

Quick Question: Which statement gives you a better feeling?

Example:

  1. I don’t need anyone or their help in life.
  2. I have the utmost strength and ability to tackle life independently.

If I portrayed my point as anticipated, chances are that option B gave off a more positive vibe than option A. It’s because positivity was used over negativity. It’s important to look at a bad situation, acknowledge it, and then step back and look at the silver lining. (Or sometimes make your own silver lining.) You may have incontinence, but Men’s Liberty can be the positive in an undesirable situation.

 

Best wishes and until next time,

     ~Nurse Nicole

mental health

 

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