How are you doing? 

Be honest! Sometimes we hear that question from others in a greeting and we reply with a quick “Good, how are you?” But if we’re honest, we aren’t.

Mental health has become somewhat of a hot topic lately. For some, it’s familiar, as loved ones, or they themselves have struggled with mental illness. For others, it’s uncharted territory. Everyone, at some point in their lives, has seasons where their mental health really  isn’t good. Maybe you’re in that season right now. 

One way our mental health can suffer begins with our thoughts. Our thoughts turn into feelings, which turn into actions. If we think things enough, we’ll end up doing them. This accounts for the good things and the bad things. 

If we are meditating on kindness, generosity and gratitude, our brains literally will wire themselves with these positive emotions. Conversely, if our thoughts trend toward inadequacy, worry, comparison, self-hatred, and fear, our brains will be wired by negativity and continue in deeper and deeper detrimental thought patterns. 

Those thought patterns make us believe that we really aren’t enough, that things aren’t going to be ok, and that we are never going to measure up. And then those things come true. It’s essentially like a self-fulfilling prophecy.

This is why it is so important to begin the battle of mental health with your thoughts. The good news is, our brains can be rewired towards healthy thought patterns! 

Here are five tips to help you manage your mental health.

  1. Writing – The process of getting the thoughts out of your head and onto a piece of paper helps your brain process them better. Get out an actual pen and use actual paper and just spend 20 minutes dumping your thoughts. Don’t worry about grammar or spelling! This is a cathartic release. Experts say writing is best done when you first wake up or just before you go to sleep, so you’re not interrupted with texts or emails or alerts during the day.
  2. Walking – Moving your body, even on a mild walk, releases exercise hormones, which actually help you feel better. Not to mention, being outside expands your viewpoint as well. It allows you to zoom out from the problems you ruminate on in your world, see and smile at other people, notice the delicate balances in nature, and breathe fresh air.
  3. Waking up (at a consistent time) – Your body needs sleep. Get your body on a consistent sleep schedule. I know it might be tempting to stay up late to escape the world in that latest series, but your brain and your body will suffer the next morning. It’s important to not let yourself sleep in. If you’re finding it hard to wake up in the morning, set the alarm on your phone and place it in the bathroom or someplace close enough that you hear it, but far enough away that you have to get out of bed to shut it off. Or, you can reward yourself with an early wakeup by swinging by your favorite coffee shop! Mornings are special, when you can see the world painted with golden light and imagine the possibilities of the day.
  4. Wondering – Replace automatic worry with a childlike wonder. When going into any situation that might cause stress, instead of saying to yourself, “This is going to be terrible,” think, “I wonder what this will be like!” This retrains your brain to open up the doors of possibility to something great, rather than automatically assuming the worst.
  5. RE-wiring – Every time a negative thought comes into your head (for example, “I can’t do this”), finish the sentence with a positive, hopeful statement (“I can’t do this, but I know that my friend can help me with it.” Or, “I can’t do this, but I can try!”). Don’t let those thoughts come true in what you believe and how you behave.

Here are some more resources I recommend checking out to dive in deeper into retraining your brain. (Text is linked.)

Jenni Catron Leadership Podcast: How Writing Can Make You A Better Leader. 

Dr. Caroline Leaf: How to Correctly Use Movement and Exercise to Defeat Depression and Loneliness, Reduce Worry, and Eliminate Anxiety with Dr. Kelly Mcgonigal + The Extraordinary Link Between Mindful Movement, Joy, and Human Connection

Amen Clinics: The Importance Of Getting Good Sleep

Dr. Caroline Leaf: The Science of Thought. TEDxOaksChristianSchool