I didn’t sleep for 5 nights straight. I was consumed by worry and desperate for some rest. The guy who helps others with anxiety, the experienced mental health professional, was in a bad place. Thank God for my friends and the doctors who helped me. I was neglecting too much on the checklist below.
Use this checklist to monitor your mental health. Chances are you’re unaware of how you’re doing, or not doing, some things that hurt your mental health. Commit NOW to making positive adjustments in each neglected area!
Are you ready? Great! Let’s break down the checklist. Mark whatever items need your attention.
27 Ways to Improve Your Mental Health
1. Keep A Schedule
Decide on, and commit to, a daily schedule. Stick to it regardless of how you feel. Avoid being a slave to your thoughts and feelings.
2. Daily Objective
Select your top 3 priorities for the day. Don’t go to bed without identifying your next three for tomorrow.
3. Gratitude
Schedule some time, reflecting on the blessings in your life. Engage in the daily 5 and 5 and reflect on gratitude questions.
4. Be Balanced
Invest time and energy in 7 life areas, especially those areas you have been neglecting.
5. Sleep
Your body and mind require at least 7.5 hours of sleep each night, and often even more. Block off at least 8 hours each night for rest.
6. Positive Self-Talk
Focus on the intrinsic qualities that you like about yourself for at least 5 minutes each day. Choose to be grateful for these talents.
7. Laugh
Find funny things to enjoy. Hang around light-hearted people. Healthy humor and fun feeds the soul!
If you found this information helpful, SUBSCRIBE TODAY to access my free video & worksheet, Shatterproof Yourself: 7 Small Steps to a Giant Leap in Your Mental Health.
8. Eat Healthy
Minimize eating what you know drains you and maximize your intake of healthy nutritious foods. Drink 24 ounces of water when you wake up at least 64 ounces of water total each day.
9. Friends
Plan to spend time with positive and encouraging people consistently. Make new friends and reconnect with old ones.
10. Read
Read something positive and inspiring to rest and stretch your mind for a minimum of 20 minutes each day (e.g., blogs, articles, or books).
11. Have Fun
Engage in activities that energize you. If you don’t know what energizes you, connect with a friend to come up with ideas.
12. Breathe
Take 5 minutes each day to focus on your breathing. Identify and let go of consuming thoughts and emotions when distracted.
13. Resolve Issues
Address lingering issues with those you love in a calm, intentional, and assertive manner. Share how you feel, why you feel that way, and what you hope for.
14. Resist Perfectionism
Strive for being satisfaction with a 7, on a scale of 1 to 10. Let yourself be the imperfect special person you are.
15. Focus on Long Term Goals
Have 3 – 4 one-year goals posted where you see them each day. Create quarterly month or monthly objectives moving towards each goal.
16. Move Towards Goals
Invest 70% of your time and energy into activities that move you towards your short and long-term goals.
17. Express Strong Emotions
Write down how you are feeling (positive & negative), why you feel that way, and what information that feeling gives you. Share these emotions with someone you trust. “You must feel it to heal it.”
18. Organize Your Finances
Living within your means gives you a foundation for to long-term success. Follow a written budget, minimize debt, cut expenses and increase income potential.
19. Avoid Procrastination
Focus on your priorities. Resist binging on social media & streaming. Take action instead of staying stuck in anxiety. Procrastination tends to contribute to perfectionism.
20. Minimize Alcohol
Only drink socially or on special occasions. It is important to avoid regular drinking or using it as a way to deal with stress or numb emotions.
21. Apologize
Own your mistakes! Let yourself be human. When you mess up, say “I was wrong, no excuses”. Amazingly, owning your mistakes is energizing.
22. Take Risks
Stop playing it safe. Do things each day that are uncomfortable (i.e. trigger anxiety). Prove to yourself that you can face your fears, and potentially fail (i.e., get rejected, no results, etc.), and still move forward.
23. Move
Engage in 30 minutes of physical activity each day (e.g., walk, run, swim, cycle, sports, weights, yoga, etc.). Mix it up and make it fun.
24. Live Out Your Values
Live your life aligned with your moral compass and avoid temptations. Be honest, live the golden rule, do what you say you’re going to do & don’t live with secrets.
25. Connect Spiritually
Give yourself 30 minutes each day of solitude for prayer, meditation, scripture reading or self-reflection.
26. Forgive
Choose to forgive yourself and others. You may not trust those that hurt you, but you can move towards letting go of your resentment, so you’re free of them.
27: Journal
Consistently write down your thoughts and insights. It’s clearer on paper than in your head. Use. these 100 journaling prompts to get started, or use your thoughts on items 1 – 26 above.
Resources
If you found this information helpful, SUBSCRIBE TODAY to access my free video & worksheet, Shatterproof Yourself: 7 Small Steps to a Giant Leap in Your Mental Health.
Coping with Anxiety (post) by Adam Gragg
How to Be Grateful When Life Is Hard (post) by Adam Gragg
What to Do When Emotionally Overwhelmed (post) by Adam Gragg
A Simple and Powerful Stress Coping Tool (post) by Adam Gragg
Overcome Worry & Get Out of Your Head (post) by Adam Gragg
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