What is mental hygiene and how to follow it correctly

What does mental hygiene consist of?

Many of those who are familiar with sudden attacks of anxiety or sadness surging out of nowhere often cannot find the source of these negative emotions. In fact, feelings of anxiety, depression, and fatigue are just signals that it's time to check how well we are doing mental hygiene. This term refers to behavioral habits that help us maintain psychological health. To implement them in your life, to stay in a good mood more often and to effectively deal with daily stress, it is worth following a few basic rules.

How to maintain mental hygiene

Get enough sleep

Lack of sleep affects both physical and psychological well-being. With a lack of sleep, it becomes difficult to concentrate and memorize new information, and emotional instability and irritation only intensify. Pulmonologist and Sleep Disorder Specialist Dr. Samuel Gurevich notesDoes a Bad Night’s Sleep Affect Your Helth? / Cleveland Clinicthat lack of sleep leads to increased levels of stress hormones.

These reactions of the body make us perceive everything in a negative light, and this affects the way we make decisions.

However, keeping healthy sleep patterns Is one of the most difficult mental hygiene habits, especially at the modern pace of life. The scientific organization National Sleep Foundation recallsHow Much Sleep Do We Really Need? / Sleep Foundationthat you need to sleep from 7 to 9 hours.

Exercise

Exercise reducesExercise and stress: Get moving to manage stress / Mayo Clinic and even overcome stress. In addition, playing sports gives us a sense of pleasure, which we usually experience in achieving a goal. And this strengthens our self-confidence.

It is best to do sports on the street - this way the body will receiveHow to get vitamin D from sunlight / NHS the necessary dose of vitamin D, which also has a positive effectWhat to Know About Vitamin D and Mental Health / WebMD on mental health.

Walk more often

The coronavirus has markedly affected our lives. Many have to work and study from home all week, and we are much less likely to go out for walks. This is not good for mental health. The body needs sunlight to make vitamin D, which we've already found improves mood and reduces stress.

In the fresh air, it is also very convenient to carry out useful breathing practiceswhich relax and calm the nerves.

Communicate

Man is a social being, so we all need the company of other people from time to time. Research confirmsR. Mushtaq, S. Shoib, et al. Relationship Between Loneliness, Psychiatric Disorders and Physical Health? A Review on the Psychological Aspects of Loneliness / Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research that single people are much more likely to suffer from psychological problems and disorders, including depression and Alzheimer's disease.

At the same time, we are strongly influenced by modern technologies. We talk less and less live and more and more often send messages and memes to our loved ones. Sherrill Turkle, professor of science and technology at MIT, believes that despite the fact that we we use phones and social networks to satisfy the need for communication, they only distance us from each other friend. You are unlikely to be ready for a long tea conversation when you can just like on Instagram.

The situation is aggravated by the same covid, due to which there are significantly fewer events where you can meet and communicate with new people.

Nevertheless, it is possible and necessary to expand the circle of communication. It's worth getting out of your comfort zone and making new connections. You may have to put in a lot of effort at first to stay positive, but it will quickly become a part of your life.

Limit your time on social media

In a reasonable amount, everyone's favorite sites are quite harmless. Their negative effects only show up when we start relying on social media to relax and feel better. They are especially dangerous for impressionable natures: the same Instagram is replete with unrealistic beauty standards that can cause dissatisfaction with yourself and your life.

We usually spend time on social media passively. Unlike watching a movie or reading a book, updating the tape does not require us to analyze or connect emotions. This is the appeal of Facebook, TikTok or Instagram - they allow you not to think about anything.

Instead of sitting aimlessly on websites, use the other mental hygiene techniques we've covered above. They will help you truly relax, unlike social networks, which give the illusion of relaxation.

Of course, these five habits are not the only things that help balance mental health during difficult times. But this is a good place to start. Later, you can add your own practices to the list and monitor your mental hygiene even more thoroughly.