Taking care of your mental health is a challenging task!
So when Reddit user Dependent bit 8333 posed the question, What greatly improved your mental health?“I immediately read all the answers. Here are some of the most voted answers:
1.“Leaving a toxic work environment”
2.“People vastly underestimate the enormous impact sleep has on daily life, productivity and mood. I wish I had realized this when I was a teenager.”
3.“I’m taking every single thought for granted. Most human thoughts are nonsense. I question every negative thought and so far they’ve all turned out to be nonsense. No kidding. It’s a radical change.”
“I came to this practice by reading primarily Eckhart Tolle and Byron Katie. Both reference great spiritual leaders throughout human history (Jesus, Lao Tzu, Buddha, Ramana Maharshi) who point to this notion as a path to ending suffering. There are many contemporary writers who also point to the same truths (some mentioned here).”
4.“Never trust how you feel about your life after 9pm”
5.“Have a routine. No matter what my daily schedule is, as long as I follow a routine of getting up, getting dressed, and showering, I’m in a good place.”
6.“Learning to love myself. A few years ago, my self-esteem was really low and I wanted to improve. My therapist and I talked a lot about treating myself like I would treat a friend. It sounds cheesy, but I started writing compliments on sticky notes in the morning and putting them on a mirror. It didn’t take long for me to start believing them. It’s amazing how being kind to yourself and being self-indulgent can really improve your mental health.”
7.“When I stopped rushing. Urgency is a trauma response, and with today’s American culture focused on everything happening immediately, it’s easy to get lost in the rush.”
8.“Reducing clutter and the overall volume of possessions helps a lot.”
9.“’Staying in the present’ instead of letting the mind dwell on the past and the future.”
10.“Being the ‘bad guy’ aka putting yourself first. Because I was always a people pleaser I was constantly feeling drained and taken advantage of. There’s no way to stop some people from being disappointed in you, the question is will you be disappointed in yourself? The right people in your life will be happy when you are happy, it’s simple but it took me too long to figure that out.”
eleven.“Removing toxic people from my life. It’s amazing how much your mental health can improve by simply removing someone who only brings negativity into your life.”
12.“The ‘what ifs’ were consuming me. I was losing my mind thinking about problems that haven’t happened and may never happen. This little quote from Bill Burr helped me put a lot of things into perspective: ‘You’re going to be okay; and even if you’re not going to be okay, isn’t it better to just exist thinking that you’re going to be okay? And when it’s not okay, then you can handle it. No sense in ruining the moment, right?'”
13.“Walk. That shit is legit.”
14.“Taking care of plants and watching them grow gave me a sense of responsibility and they also purify the air.”
fifteen.“To create. Especially to make something with my hands.”
sixteen.“Writing! You don’t realize how much is brewing until you pick up pen and paper. I’ve been writing almost daily for almost a decade, a medium that is very near and dear to my heart.”
17.“I’m leaving. Fuck you. Get out.”
Do you have any other tips for improving mental health? Share them in the comments below!
Some of the proposals have been edited for length and/or clarity.
