Today is World Mental Health Day, and this year’s theme is workplace mental health. To celebrate, I want to talk about how I take care of my mental health in the workplace. Now that I train privately, I work for myself, so fortunately, I have more flexibility and time for self-care. Prior to running my own business, I worked at Equinox and other fitness centers so I’ll include how I took care of my mental health while working for a company too. Here are some ways I take care of my mental health:
- Therapy – When I was younger I saw a therapist regularly, and he taught me about mindfulness and helped me express and understand my emotions. Therapy can be a great way to help with anxiety, depression, stress, or even if you’re going through a hard time. I don’t currently see a therapist now, but I do work with a life coach, which has been a form of therapy for me! During our sessions, we’ve worked on my self-limiting beliefs, trauma, and business building.
- Meditation – I attend a weekly meditation class on Zoom that my life coach teaches. It’s been an amazing day to de-stress and be in the present moment. My goal is to meditate at least 10 minutes every day because I know I’ll benefit from it even more if I do it daily.
- Working out – Whether it’s walking, stretching, taking a fitness class, or lifting, working out has always helped clear my head and keep me grounded.
- Get outside – Sometimes I’d be inside the gym all day. Getting sunshine and fresh air always boosted my mood!
- Nourish your body – Remember to eat healthy and drink water. I know sometimes we get so busy we forget to eat and hydrate, but if you’re hungry and dehydrated, you definitely won’t be in a good mood.
- Taking breaks – I get caught up with my work, especially now that I work for myself, so I regularly take breaks and remind myself to take breaks. You can use a Pomodoro timer and have a set time for work and breaks. I promise you’ll get more done and feel better too!
- Talking to others/Spending time with others – Working for myself, I’m usually by myself and sometimes get stuck in my head or in work, so talking to others or spending time with others has helped my mental health too. Looking back, when I was stressed at work, I’ve confided with my managers about what I was going through which helped ease some of the stress at work. After my sister’s accident and grandpa’s passing in 2022, I felt emotionally drained. Confiding in my boss and letting him know what I was going through made me feel better, and he took some of the work pressure off too.
- Make time for vacations – I can definitely be better at this, but having vacations or time away can be a nice break! It can’t be all work and no play. Life is meant to be enjoyed, not to be burnt out by work.
- Make time for self-care – It doesn’t always have to be a big activity! It can be a bath, face mask, or a trip to the nail salon. Do whatever makes you feel good!
- Pick up a hobby – Again, we don’t just live to work. We need some fun too. Pick up a new hobby or continue with a hobby you stopped doing because things were getting “too busy.”
- Show compassion for yourself – Remember to love yourself, and be patient with yourself! You are the most important person in your life!
As for additional mental health resources, I’ve included a link from the CDC on their mental health resources: https://www.cdc.gov/mentalhealth/tools-resources/index.htm If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org
I hope you found these tips helpful! Mental health is just as important as physical health so remember to take care of it too.
