Taking care of your mental health

THINKING and talking positively is the first essential step to feeling positive. No one could have foreseen just a few weeks ago that our lives would change the way they have and that social interaction would be curtailed to the extent that it has.

This is a reason why we should not only redouble our efforts to sustain positive mental health, but also work on improving it. Coping strategies are now the order of the day as we look to navigate our way through COVID-19 as best we can. This is why talking is important. By talking about how we feel it lessens one of the worst causes of poor mental health – anxiety. By not ‘verbally’ sharing our innermost thoughts it increases the risk of elevating these anxieties. Unchecked anxiety produces so much needless stress and worry.

Conversational interaction (albeit in a virtual world!) is essential at this time but we must also make an effort to enforce the kind of change that produces a sense of self-empowerment. Even by talking and listening to someone else’s problems it can help to rationalise and contextualise our own feelings. By exercising empathy towards others we help ourselves.

These are testing times and in many ways there has never been a better time to talk about how we feel as the whole of society is experiencing the same concerns. Even if you feel you can’t talk with those in your immediate circle of family and friends, there are great organisations and individuals out there willing to listen. By talking and sharing your feelings you instantly minimise the severity of how you feel. You’ll soon discover that once thoughts are shared and are out in the open, they considerably reduce in terms of how they impact your mental health. That’s why it’s good to talk.