Assessing your mental health and some top tips to help improve your wellbeing – By Nina Kundi

When struggling with mental health we can experience it sneaking up on us and quite often, without realising until it’s too late, it can take over our lives leaving us suffering and feeling helpless. Some people learn to recognise the symptoms and in turn will reach out for help and support, whilst others can quite easily slip through the net and go unnoticed, and when this happens the problem becomes much worse.

During these uncertain times, stress and depression can overpower us to a point where we don’t feel we are able to carry on with our daily tasks, our work, and even our family life. Even the strongest of people can suffer with issues such as stress, anxiety, panic attacks, low mood, lack of energy… the list goes on. If you are currently feeling the symptoms of anxiety or depression please do remember that it’s a normal part of being human, you are not alone and there is help available. 

The first and most important thing is to spot the signs of depression or anxiety right away, and whether you see it in yourself, or in someone you love, these signs can be useful to look out for: 

Do you feel tired constantly? Drained of energy? No motivation? Maybe you feel that you can focus on work because you need to but everything else seems to fall by the wayside? Have you lost touch with your personal hygiene? Are you suffering with mood swings? Do you have low interest in things that you once enjoyed? 

If you answered yes to any of these, here are some top tips to help you push these symptoms away when you start to feel them come on:

• Develop a good morning routine, this sets you in a better frame of mind for the day ahead.
• Write down 3 things you like about yourself and speak them out loud each morning, for example: I like that I am organised, I like that I am a good parent, etc.
• Try a small amount of exercise, even a walk around the block, breathing in the fresh air as you do.
• When you feel stressed or overwhelmed try to turn your negative thoughts into positive thoughts. Think of what feels OK in your life and focus on that, for example: the children were well behaved last night, I’m glad I was able to pay that bill last week, etc. Even small things count.
• Gratitude overcomes a negative mind! Even thinking of the smallest of things to be grateful for changes your mindset in the moment, for example: I am grateful that I have a job!! I am grateful that I have good friends, I am grateful that I have a home, etc.
• Write down your thoughts onto paper or in a journal. It works by helping you to get the thoughts out of your head. Often, we can make better sense of our thoughts and feelings if we write them down.
• Write down a list of your support network of the people you trust, maybe ask them to check in with you so many times per week.
• When you feel anxious close your eyes and take a few deep breaths – listen to yourself breathing in and breathing back out, and try to focus on your breathing for at least 2 minutes. This helps calm down the body and allows you take control of your thoughts.
• Ask yourself “what would actually happen in a worst-case scenario”, this helps put things into perspective.
• Tell yourself, “Its ok. You are ok. You have got this”. Repeat several times.

It’s a positive move forward when you realise that you need help and take the steps to source some support; don’t feel ashamed to reach out. If you need further advice or support you can contact me. However, if you are feeling extremely low and you are worried, there are numbers you can call: Anxiety UK 03444 775 774. Mind 0300 123 3393