Positive Mental Health Practices

Silence is Golden Life is noisy, busy, and sometimes out of control. Taking time to quiet ourselves, and focus on silence and clear thinking will allow us to refocus. Our brain must be cared for just like any other body part, and giving our brain a chance to be still and calm is incredibly beneficial

Learning to be silent We are going to sit comfortably in our chairs (as comfortably as you can) Let your shoulders melt down, and release the tension in your neck muscles. Plant your feet on the floor, but don’t force them down, just allow them to rest on the floor.

Silence For the next 5 minutes we will be silent. It will seem like a long time but it will allow you to refocus and realign yourself. If thoughts come in to your mind as your sitting in silence, try to gently push them away to allow your mind to rest and be clear. You can close your eyes, stare straight ahead, stare down, or stare up, but allow your eyes to rest (not move) is important so as to not overly stimulate yourself.

Were you able to do it? What was your experience like? Was it difficult to maintain clarity? Was it difficult to stay awake? Was it enjoyable to clear your mind? Would you have liked to do it for longer? How can this benefit you? When could you see yourself doing this in the future?

Get outside

Nature/Outdoors Just the act of getting outside has been proven to bring people back to a state of calm. Inside everything is close, and at times, almost claustrophobic, but when we go outside, because of the elevation of the sky and the openness that we feel, it allows us to feel that we have room to move, and consequently allows our brain to feel that it has time/space to process.

A walk outside We’re going to go outside for about 15 minutes. When we go out, I want you to allow your brain to notice that it is outside…I know, that sounds silly.. If you talk to people the whole time, or look at the ground the whole time, you don’t really take in the openness that your mind and body need to feel. So, when we go outside, keep your head up (as much as you can) and notice as many things as you can. Also, just feel the happiness of being outside. That alone will help your mental health.

Just Breathe

Ever hear anyone say, “Just take a breath?” Taking a deep breath may seem simple, but focusing on something other than the stress or worry that you feel allows you to refocus (and maybe let you take a second to calm down). Breathing is also great for your brain – your brain needs oxygen, and sometimes when we are in a state of stress we hold our breath, or take shallow breaths, which can increase our worry or panic.

Let’s Breathe It doesn’t have to be fancy, it just has to be deep and purposeful. Take a deep breath in through the nose and breath out through the mouth. Now, I want you to do it again, but I want you to think about the breath itself. Don’t think about anything else (looking funny, what the person next to you is doing, etc) Just focus on breathing in, and breathing out.

When to do this? Any time you start to feel panic or anxiety creep in. I do it when I’m in a rush, or feeling late. When I get in a state of frenzy, I keep making mistakes and start to get overwhelmed. Taking a few breaths may not fix my problems, but at least I don’t get to a state where I’m creating more problems for myself.

Stretch Let’s try these desk stretches together I will stop the video as we go so that we can practice these stretches together.