Get your mind fit
BOOK A GYM CLASS AND SCHEDULE A WALK OR SWIM BUT IT’S VITAL YOU HEED THE EXPERTS’ ADVICE — DON’T FORGET TO MAKE TIME FOR A DAILY BRAIN WORKOUT
We know how important 10,000 steps in a day are to our physical health but health experts are urging us not to forget the importance of mental workouts.
Training your brain and scheduling time for mindfulness and positive thinking is as important as booking that gym class, experts say.
Headspace senior clinical adviser Rupert Saunders says there are a wide range of small things people can do to build a sense of positive mental health and to “safeguard against future challenges”.
“Taking time to practise strategies or engage in activities that boost your mental health can make you more resilient to take on the day and tackle life challenges,” Saunders says.
“Exploring things like strategies that can help us feel less stressed, building connections with friends and family, setting a small goal for the day, or exploring new hobbies are all things you can do to train your brain.”
Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists president Associate Professor John Allan says taking a moment to step away and clear your mind is also important.
“Just as you would respond to a physical illness, get a headache or something, you’d stop and try to take some action on that, you need to stop and think about your feelings. And what’s actually going through your mind,” he says.
“There are lots of things you can do to stop and take time for yourself to think of reasons you might be feeling a certain way — like relaxation by doing breathing or mindfulness exercises … even puzzles or reading.”
Although the pandemic means socialising has to happen in “creative” ways, connecting with friends is something else that helps to keep you mentally fit.
“Having some social contact with others is important because we’re social creatures and with COVID-19, we’ve got to be a little bit creative about it, but we’re wired to have interaction with other people,” says Australian Association of Psychologists vice-president Amanda Curran. “If you’re in lockdown and you’re only allowed out for an hour, go out for that hour, make sure you’re seeing something outside of your four walls.”
She says people who don’t regularly look after their mental health will find themselves fatigued.
“If we’re not aware of stress, over time it builds up and if we’re not actively looking after ourselves and paying attention to what’s going on for us, then we can often get quite fatigued and worn down by what’s going on,” Curran says.
Saunders says the effects of poor mental health can be even broader than that. “If you don’t exercise your mental health, you might become more irritable, have trouble sleeping, start to feel a bit flat, have much less confidence and poor concentration and getting these things can be a contribution to people developing mental health issues,” he says.