When was the last time you did a mental health check-in with yourself? Probably a while ago! Most of the time we don’t check in often enough to really know how we are feeling or why we are feeling that way.
A Mental Health Check In
We are surrounded by mental health advocacy and sometimes it can feel like it just doesn’t meet what we need. Often, though, this can be because we aren’t sure what we need. We most likely aren’t doing our very best to check in with others either.
So it’s time to ask yourself or your loved one a few questions - you never know what it might lead to.
Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash
Sleep
Have you been sleeping lately? When was the last time that you got a long, deep, and restful sleep? Most of the time we try to keep going on the bare minimum, even though we would benefit from some real rest.
If your sleep isn’t working for you, you might need to consider if there is a reason for that. Many people have high levels of stress and busy lives. These things mean that people are more likely to drink coffee all day and be overstimulated by technology until the moment they try to sleep.
Take a look at your pre-sleep routine, are there changes that you could make?
Alone
There is a difference between being lonely and being alone. Are you isolating yourself from friends and family, or regularly canceling engagements that you usually go to?
If you are introverted or enjoy your own company, that can be great for giving us space - but is it time to spend some time with someone who doesn’t drain your social battery?
Are you isolating yourself, or are you just taking the time you need?
Creativity
Have you been finding time to do the things you love outside of work and other responsibilities? Sometimes, when we are swamped or have a lot going on mentally, we don’t want to make the time.
Or we feel like we are lacking inspiration. It can be difficult to push past that and dip back into our creative pursuits.
Something that many people find helpful is watching tutorials about the creative hobby that we enjoy. It can bring us a lot of joy and give us that much-needed perk up to get started.
Self-medicating
There are many ways that people self-medicate when they aren’t feeling great. Some are relatively harmless, like taking CBD or melatonin for a good rest. Others get more difficult to deal with.
Suppose you or someone you love is self-medicating. In that case, you might need to have a conversation about sustainability and perhaps look for alternative ways to help yourself (or your loved one) via Sunshine Behavioural Health.
Self-medicating usually only provides short-term and long-term results; there need to be alternatives in place.
Self-care
If you used to get up, get dressed, and be ready to face the day, but you have let it slide for a while, then maybe you need some more self-care.
Self-care is more than just looking good though, everything that you do should be something that makes you feel good. Often a long hot bath is on the cards, but you might benefit more from taking a walk, getting extra rest - or even tackling your main point of stress.
If your self-care has fallen by the wayside, that can usually be an indicator of something going on that you might need to talk about.
Focus
In a world that is focused on focus and productivity, it can be hard to tell if you are being unproductive or that you are having trouble concentrating.
When we are going through something, mentally, physically, emotionally, or spiritually it might be hard to concentrate on what we need to achieve.
If you notice that not only is your concentration suffering, but you are also isolating yourself, or you don’t feel the love for what you are doing, then it is time to ask yourself - what can I change? Or decide to talk to someone about it.
Therapy can be a great option if you need someone to help sort through your thoughts and feelings.
Journal
A journal can be one of the most important ways to help you look at things a bit more objectively. If you give yourself the permission to ask questions and explore feelings, you might unlock something.
Writing is therapeutic, and often when we write, we eventually tap into how we are doing.
Fun
What has been fun for you lately? Have you found yourself taking part in something with friends, a partner or with the children and it should’ve been fun, but you couldn’t enjoy it?
If that feels familiar, it can be helpful to think about if that happens often or if it is a new development.
Sometimes we don’t feel like we are having fun because we have things going on in the moment, and other times we aren’t having fun because we are struggling with mental health.
Food
Our appetite can be an excellent indicator of how we are doing at the moment. If there are mental and emotional things we are dealing with, that can often present as an increased appetite or a decreased one.
When was the last time you had a great meal that was nutritionally sound but also made you feel the joy of preparing and eating?
If it has been a while, then it might be time to search for a delicious recipe and make some time to prepare it and eat it.
It is essential to know that we won’t feel happy every day; there are things in life that will give us stress and worry. And it is okay to take a beat to deal with them.
But every once in a while, give yourself a mental health check in and ask yourself - is this okay, am I alright?
If you are on a mission to give yourself a full workup, don’t forget a spiritual check-in; read more: How Can You Improve Your Spiritual Health.
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