Our mental well-being deserves as much of our attention as our physical health. It deserves the most attention today as our busy and chaotic lifestyle exposes us to a lot of anxiety and stress. If left unchecked, the build-up of anxiety and stress can over time take up the form of physical health troubles like high blood pressure, digestive disorders, and migraines. This implies that if you are a busy professional, having a tightly packed schedule that leaves you with no time to look after your mental health, it is time to make some amendments in your lifestyle now. After all, success is nothing if your health is at stake. It doesn’t mean that we should stop chasing success, definitely not! Instead, it means that we should try to take a balanced path where success and health go hand in hand.
Now, here are five practical ways to help you support your mental health as a busy professional. These have been chosen such that they don’t consume much of your time but still reap excellent benefits. So, let’s proceed to discuss them one by one:
Five practical ways to support your mental health as a busy professional:
1. Exercise:
Exercise is generally considered essential for physical well-being, but it is equally vital for our mental well-being. According to the National Center for Biotechnological Information, exercise is proven to cause a significant decrease in stress, anxiety, and depression. Not only this, but it is also known for enhancing the quality of sleep, which too supports our mental well-being. Further, the good news is that just 30 minutes of exercise three days a week are sufficient for us to reap these benefits. We don’t even have to exercise for 30 minutes in one go. Three ten-minute brisk walking sessions are believed to be as useful as a 30- minute continuous brisk walk.
So, your first step towards ensuring your mental fitness should be to try to take a brisk walk for 30 minutes at least three days a week. You can do so easily in your office too. After working for some time, you can go out of your cabin and take a brisk walk for 10 minutes, three times a day.
2. Meditate:
Meditation is considered as one of the most effective ways for stress management. It helps you dive into waves of immense inner peace, which induce deep relaxation and significantly benefit your mental well-being. Further, the beauty of meditation is that you don’t need anything special to practice it. All you have to do is, wherever you are, just close your eyes, keep your hands in your lap, palms facing upwards (if it isn’t possible, you can keep your hands in any natural position), and just be the silent watcher of your thoughts without any interference. You don’t have to put any effort into doing something.
Your thoughts will naturally come, and you don’t have to do anything to notice them as they come to your notice naturally. But, yes, at times, you’ll get drifted into thinking, then, as soon as you become aware of it, start noticing your thoughts again. This is the simple art of meditation.
You can benefit your mental health immensely by just meditating for 15 to 20 minutes a day. The second step to enhance your mental well-being is to meditate for some time every day.
3. Get bathed in sunlight:
Exposures to sunlight are associated with an increase in our bodies’ levels. Serotonin is a happy hormone that plays a vital role in decreasing stress, anxiety, depression, and riggers positivity feelings. So, one of the simplest ways to take care of your mental well-being is to get bathed in sunlight for around 10 to 15 minutes every day.
4. Deep Breathing:
When things become too stressful, and you need immediate relaxation from stress or the ongoing chatter in your mind, deep breathing can be of great help. Even when you don’t feel the need, you should practice deep breathing for around 5 minutes, two to three times a day. This will help you feel calmer and more at ease. Now, here is a simple count to help you practice deep breathing.
Take a deep breath on the count of 4.
Hold your breath and again count 4 in your mind, then exhale while counting 6 in your mind. Afterward, hold your breath, count till two and inhale a deep breath again on the count of 4 and repeat the same process. This will help you feel immediately relaxed.
5. Practice gratitude:
Expressing gratitude is immensely beneficial for our mental health. It helps us focus on the positive, which improves our mood and makes us feel happier. Both these things further bring a reduction in our stress levels. Practicing gratitude is also an effective way to improve your mental health. You can express gratitude whenever you feel comfortable. But, to reap the best benefits, you’ll have to do it sincerely. Moreover, you can also try to maintain a gratitude journal and write at least three things you are grateful for daily. This daily practice of positivity will be immensely beneficial for you.
As discussed, our mental well-being should be one of our top priorities in life. Even if you are a busy professional, you can take care of your mental health with the five practical ways mentioned above. As they don’t require much time to be practiced, you can try to make them a part of your life. Now, wishing you all the best, and may you be blessed with a peaceful life.
About the Author:
Jessica Robinson loves to write interesting and knowledgeable blogs regarding business management, education and life to satiate the curiosity of her lovely readers. Currently, she is serving as a content manager at the ‘Speaking Polymath’. Every piece of content that she writes demonstrates her immense love and passion for her profession.
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-robinson10/
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Email: jessica@thespeakingpolymath.com
