{"id":57,"date":"2019-08-17T12:54:06","date_gmt":"2019-08-17T12:54:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/?p=57"},"modified":"2019-09-28T17:27:10","modified_gmt":"2019-09-28T17:27:10","slug":"how-to-maintain-good-mental-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/how-to-maintain-good-mental-health\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Maintain Good Mental Health"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Mental health is a state of psychological, social and emotional wellbeing. It determines the way we relate with people, make decisions and the host of other things we do as humans. It affects our feelings, actions, behaviour and thinking. Maintaining sound mental health is important for people of all ages and status.<\/p>\n<p>Mental illness is the opposite of mental health. Sometimes, it\u00a0could be an indication that something is going wrong emotionally or psychologically. At the same time, it could also be a pointer to underlying health issues and\u00a0disease.\u00a0Mental health issues can be subtle.<\/p>\n<p>Maintaining sound\u00a0mental health is just as important as the basic needs of life. It is the bedrock to a good life\u00a0and physical wellbeing. The following are some tips to help you maintain good mental health.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Healthy diet<\/strong>: A healthy diet is important for both physical and mental health. Let your diet be filled with more protein than calorie-rich giving food items with exceptions to those on diets fixed by medical practitioners. Feast more on fruits than fatty foods. Unhealthy eating may lead to obesity and all its accompanying medical issues. All of these can cause\u00a0mental stress\u00a0too. While unhealthy eating can be very pleasurable it poses some stress in the long run. So, to stay healthy, eat healthily!<\/li>\n<li><strong>High self-esteem<\/strong>: Some people wrongly equate high self-esteem with pride.\u00a0This is very wrong. High self-esteem means you accepting yourself\u00a0the way you are. You think\u00a0highly of yourself\u00a0and giving have a high level of self-worth. The opposite of high self-esteem is low self-esteem. Low self-esteem\u00a0which has been identified by experts as a form of\u00a0mental illness and as the\u00a0root cause of other mental issues such as\u00a0depression as an example.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Say the right words to yourself<\/strong>:\u00a0negative thoughts lead to negative confessions and this can have a tremendous effect on your self-image and affect your actions. Being overly pessimistic can cast a dark shadow over your entire life. The results are hordes of negative feelings such as anxiety, depression, sadness, anger and so on all of which will affect your frame your mind. You need to surround yourself with people who say the right words to you. But more importantly, you also need to say it to yourself. Positive Confession has been proven to help re-frame the state of the mind and once the mind is positive, it rubs off on\u00a0your\u00a0entire body.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Confide in someone\/therapy:<\/strong> sometimes trying to fight your battle all by yourself can plunge you deeper into problems and affect your mental health. If you are struggling with anything or depressed it is best to open up to someone about it. Of course, this is easier said than done as the fear of judgment and stigmatization makes people keep things to themselves. Alternatively, rather than just tell anyone, you can also talk to a therapist who is a professional in dealing with mental health\u00a0issues and will be better positioned to assist you.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Reduce alcohol and other stimulants<\/strong>: Nothing remains good when done in excess. A lot has been said about the effects of alcohol, weed and other types of stimulants on the body, especially on your mental health. Alcohol can worsen symptoms of depression. Caffeinated drinks, when taking excessively can disrupt your sleep pattern causing insomnia and other related issues. Excessive intake of any drugs can also lead to anxiety disorders, addiction, and other issues. If you must take any of these at all, keep them to a minimum.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ol start=\"6\">\n<li><strong>Improve your social life<\/strong>: Although being alone is not the same as loneliness, isolation is one of the leading causes of mental issues. While some people find peace and tranquillity in solitude, most people feel lonely and rejected when they are left by themselves. This can have a detrimental effect on their feeling of self-worth and confidence. If you feel alone and lonely, then you should take steps to transform your social life. Join a new group or participate actively on the ones you are on already. Be more outgoing and less of a muse and you will see your life and mental wellbeing transformed drastically.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Exercise: <\/strong>This can\u00a0be physical or psychological. Exercises like jogging, swimming, and other aerobic exercises have been known to help improve\u00a0both physical and mental fitness. Another useful exercise is yoga. Yoga helps improve concentration. It reduces stress and anxiety\u00a0and can also\u00a0boost normal brain functioning.\u00a0Generally, physical activities that improve blood circulation in the body and most especially the brain are quite beneficial for your mental health. Also, you should engage in mental exercises like picture puzzles, crosswords, riddles, and other brain tasking games\u00a0as they help improve mental health.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sleep: <\/strong>Doctors recommend that an\u00a0average person should sleep between six to nine hours every day. Good and adequate sleep\u00a0is very important as it helps\u00a0relax the muscles, repair broken down tissues and more importantly it\u00a0refreshes the brain.\u00a0Lack of sleep can cause fatigue, stress and a host of other issues. No matter how busy your schedule is, try to get as much sleep as you can manage daily.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Arts:<\/strong> Art in its various forms have been proven to help improve and maintain mental health. Art\u00a0involves creativity, it can also help in boosting brain capacity. Music, drawing, painting, dancing, writing\u00a0and other forms of help\u00a0can help increase happy feelings and maintain good mental health. \u00a0Since doing what you love helps to maintain good mental health, always engage in what you love, especially things relating to art.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3>Conclusion<\/h3>\n<p>Good mental health does not happen by magic. You must be deliberate about how you live since everything you do daily affects your mind. Similarly, the state of your mind also affects the quality of your mind. Hence, you should tend to your life to maintain good mental health and pay attention to your mental health if you want to enjoy a good life.<\/p>\n<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mental health is a state of psychological, social and emotional wellbeing. It determines the way we relate with people, make decisions and the host of other things we do as humans. It affects our feelings, actions, behaviour and thinking. Maintaining sound mental health is important for people of all ages and status. Mental illness is &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/how-to-maintain-good-mental-health\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;How to Maintain Good Mental Health&#8221;<\/span><\/a><!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":58,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":59,"href":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57\/revisions\/59"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xostudentdiscounts.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}