9 tips to work on your mental health

We are very busy with our physical health and receive a lot of advice about it. Advice on healthy and varied eating, sports and a good night's sleep are usually focused on our physical health. Because we want to feel fit, be tight in our skin and look at energy. But our mental health is just as important! What is the difference between physical and mental health and what can you do yourself to stay mentally fit?

What is physical fitness?

Physical vitality is the degree to which you physically have the energy to function in your work and in private. Not every day your body feels energetic. Sometimes you seem more out of breath, your muscles do not feel comfortable and you just want to stay on the couch. Make sure this is not a habit. For example, continue to exercise and exercise.

What is mental fitness?

Your mental fitness has an influence on daily functioning and mood. Mental fitness plays an important role for memory and concentration, learning ability but also helps you deal with stress better. It is not always easy and a mental fitness helps you to cope with setbacks.

The right balance

When you are physically and mentally in balance, you can cope better with setbacks, enjoy what you experience and get the best out of yourself. So it is about the balance between physical and mental.

9 tips to make you feel mentally fit

There are a number of things you can do yourself to keep your mental health good or even improve it.

1. Think positive

What we think has a lot of influence on how we feel and can contribute to your mental health. For example, keep a month at which fun and positive things you experience one day. Write this down in a booklet before sleeping. By thinking positively before you go to sleep, you are also more positive in the night. Positive things can be small, like a nice cup of coffee, a nice sandwich, a nice walk, the sun shining or a nice conversation with a friend. Try to name at least 5 positive things every night and write down how you feel at the beginning. After 30 days, you look back and also note down how you feel. Do you notice any change?

2. Do something new every week

Your brain needs stimuli to stay young. For example, go by train if you normally go by car. Or visit a museum, a concert or another city. By stepping out of your normal environment, your brain receives new stimuli and is challenged. This ensures that your brain functions better and can process new information faster.

3. Do nice things

It sounds obvious, but sometimes we forget to make time for things we like. This can be anything like reading, going to the cinema, taking a bath, going to the beach, yoga etc. Plan this and make sure you do not make other appointments on the days / times that you have time for yourself planned. Find out for yourself which things you get energy from and which things you just cost energy. Things that cost you energy can then be brought to the minimum as much as possible and that way you get more attention for things that make you happy.

4. Stop worrying

This is easier said than done, but worry does not help anyone. It is negative thinking and not good for your mental health. Moreover, you can not usually do anything about the situation you are worrying about, so let go and try to think of something else. Living more in the now can also help. By being less concerned with things that have been or are coming, you will find that you are actually quite happy at this present moment. So if you are cooking, sitting on the couch or exercising, do you really have something that you have to worry about at the time or can you enjoy the present moment with your full awareness?

5. Go puzzling

Making a puzzle is a good training for the brain. This is because you actively stimulate your brain to make the puzzle. It does not matter whether it is a simple puzzle, a crossword puzzle or a . With all kinds of puzzles you challenge your brain, which has a good influence on memory.

6. Take a walk or exercise

Movement is good for the brain. By walking the activity in the hippo campus (a certain brain area) increases. This area of ​​the brain, among other things, plays an important role in learning and remembering. You can therefore maintain your memory by walking .

7. Eat enough omega 3 fatty acids

The essential omega 3 fatty acid DHA is an important building block of the brain and is good for brain function, with a daily amount of at least 250 mg. By putting at least 1 time oily fish such as salmon or herring on the menu every week, you arrive at this quantity. Will not you be able to eat fish every week? Then you can also opt for a dietary supplement such as Omega-3 Forte as a supplement to the diet.

8. Learn something new

When we are young, we go to school. Then we can choose to study or work, but in the end we often stop learning. Sad, because learning new things works very satisfying and is good for your brain. For example, research shows that learning a new language showed remarkable growth in the brain.

9. Moderate with alcohol

Everyone knows that alcohol is not good for our brains. It has an anesthetic effect and has a negative influence on different parts of our brain, such as the frontal cortex (front part of the brain) and the hippo campus (for learning and remembering). Of course, every now and then a glass is not a problem, but if you are a strong drinker then it is wise to moderate.