Looking after your mental health is vital in challenging times.
Our sports psychology lead, Dr Phil Clarke, has put together his top five tips for looking after your mental health.
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY - Exercise releases endorphins, known as 'happy chemicals', which help us to cope with stress and feel happier. Just increasing your levels of activity and moving about more will improve how you feel, It's even better if you can take exercise outdoors in nature - walking, running or cycling. That's even better for your overall mental health.
SLEEP - It's important to get between seven and nine hours of sleep consistently. If you don't get enough sleep and allow your body and brain to rest and recover you will are likely to feel more emotional and less positive. It's impossible to 'catch up' on sleep at the weekend. If you're consistently having less than seven hours sleep then you need to take action.
SCREEN TIME - Spending too long online each day is likely to mean that you are spending too much time sitting down and not moving around. Another downside is that some social media accounts and posts can trigger negative, unhelpful emotions. Be mindful about using social media to connect with people and organisations that lift you up and leave you feeling energised and motivated.
GRATITUDE - There is always something to be grateful for, however difficult things are. Try this exercise for one week: write down three different things at the end of each day, for which you are grateful. This means that by the end of seven days you'll have 21 things and that is really powerful for your mental health.
SOCIAL CONNECTION - It's important to keep connecting with friends and family. If you cannot be together in person, try and connect online using apps such as Zoom to have fun, share news and stay connected.
To hear more, watch the full video below.
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