Recently I went on what I described as a mini mental vacay primarily because I felt my energy draining and needed to boost back my mental wellness to avoid getting burnt out. I did a number of things to help replenish my energy, some of which I'm about to share in the hopes that it will help someone who needs to also take a step back but doesn't exactly know how or where to start.
The importance of mental wellness can not be over-emphasized especially today. It seems like every other day we read or hear something in the news about a shooting or suicide which we know more often than not stems from mental illness at its root. Factors like anxiety, stress and work are all contributory to mental illness when allowed to thrive in counter productive environments. So to boost my own mental wellness, here are some of the things I did while on that mini mental vacay I took myself on:
1. I learned to manage my stress levels. I found that I had started running on empty when it came to writing my blog posts and was feeling very uninspired. I had to step away for a moment because I could feel myself slowly crumbling from the pressure I put on myself to deliver 3 posts every week. I logged out of my blog and closed my excel spreadsheet where I had topics scheduled for each day I wrote a post.
2. I devoted time to my new relationship and friendships. Face timing with my friends, chatting it up on WhatsApp and spending quality bonding time with my boyfriend and his family. This allowed me interact with my real world relationships as opposed to my virtual interactions.
3. I tried to stay active. The bae and I were spending a lot of time together and so that allowed us do tons of walking around at parks and in air-conditioned malls. We attended a Chaka Khan concert where I danced to my heart's content and had the opportunity to go swimming at the lake. All of this naturally made a difference to my physical health but also boosted my mental health, wellness and energy.
4. I slept in more because the need to wake up early and upload a post or write a new article had been suspended. I was not endlessly brainstorming ideas for the blog or my social media so this took away that unwanted stress and pressure.
5. I engaged in one of my favorite pastimes - shopping! Shopping for me is fun, the hunt for something cute and new excites me and I definitely allowed myself over indulge just a little on my mini mental vacay. It gave me something more enjoyable to look forward to.
I knew it was crucial for me to take that break, moreso these days in particular that I'm tempted more often to feel frustrated with the current situation of things in my life. Also because I have had history with depression and it was severe enough once that I was nursing thoughts of suicide but thank God for His grace. As I've grown and matured, I've become more aware of my triggers with the most significant ones being when I feel out of control and suffocated by my immediate surroundings. So when I start to feel overwhelmed, my immediate reaction is to unplug and take a break.
Taking mental breaks or vacays like I say is necessary and I recommend doing it as often as one needs to.
How do you boost your own mental wellness? Are there any specific things you do? Share in the comments below..
Always Love 💕
ibogirl
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