Your mental wellness is as important to your overall health as your physical wellness. It influences how you feel, think, connect, and function. Like physical wellness, your mental wellness is something you need to actively work on in order to grow.
At Weston Medical Health & Wellness, our medical director, Dr. Andrea Bretal, takes a holistic and integrative approach to health. Whether you’re coming in for help with weight loss or primary care services, we focus on all the factors that influence your overall wellness.
Your mental wellness has a significant influence on how you think and feel and handle daily life. Creating habits to improve your mental wellness enhances your quality of life and puts you on a path that helps you achieve your goals and aspirations.
Here, we want to share some habits you can implement into your daily routine to optimize mental wellness.
Your mind is powerful. How you think affects how you feel and behave. Taking a step back to look at the good in your life can positively change how you think and feel.
So, for mental wellness, practice gratitude. Keep a gratitude journal and write down three things you’re grateful for each day. This helps build a more positive outlook on life, improving how you feel about yourself and the world around you.
When it comes to personal health, YOU matter. Taking time out to appreciate the here and now can improve your mental wellness. We call this the practice of mindfulness.
Start by setting aside a few minutes each day for yourself to meditate. Sit in a quiet room and focus on your breathing. When thoughts enter your mind and disrupt your meditation, take note of these thoughts without judgment and then refocus on your breathing.
Meditation and mindfulness reduces stress and helps you live in the present.
Having strong social connections positively affects your emotional and physical well-being. Work on relationships with your family and friends.
Or, start an activity that gives you an opportunity to meet people with similar interests, such as joining a book club, taking an art class, or trying out that new yoga studio.
There’s a strong connection between sleep and mental wellness. Not getting enough quality sleep makes you tired and irritable, and affects your concentration.
Your body and brain depend on you getting an adequate amount of sleep each night to repair, regenerate, and rejuvenate for the next day. Sleep also helps you process the emotions of the day, improving your mood and emotional reactions for the following day.
You should aim for 7-9 hours of sleep a night to optimize mental wellness.
Making better food choices affects your physical health and influences your energy levels and mood. If you’re not sure what makes up a balanced diet, we can help. We offer nutritional counseling through our functional medicine service.
We can work with you to design a balanced meal plan that fits your lifestyle and health needs.
Exercise is good for your body and mind. Physical activity reduces stress and feelings of depression and anxiety. We recommend aiming for 30 minutes of exercise five days a week. You can start slow with 10 minutes a day and work your way up to 30.
Once you start to feel the positive effects of your daily workout routine, you’ll want to continue.
Creating a few simple habits can have a significant effect on your mental wellness. If you feel your mental health is holding you back, let us help. Call our office in Weston, Florida, or click the button to request an appointment today.
