How to Take An Effective Mental Health Day
Taking some “me-time” is so important!
Your mental wellbeing is the way you handle emotions, respond to stress, and also your general outlook on life. It affects how you feel about yourself and others. Fostering a healthy mental wellbeing lifts your mood, promotes resilience in difficult situations and helps you get the most out of life.
It doesn’t matter who you are, where you live or how you’re feeling – taking a few moments for yourself each day will start to lay strong foundations for a happier and more resilient you. This does take a consciousness and intentionality, but before long, your changes will become new habits that feel natural and easeful.
It's important to note that a mental health day isn't a day to hide from your problems. An effective mental health day can help you destress, relax, reset your perspective, give space to your emotions, or take a step back to evaluate.
Here are some initial thoughts on how to maximise your mental health day:
Decide what you need most. Sometimes this one is a no-brainer—if you're exhausted, your body is likely to be demanding big rest or low stimulus. Or, if you feel you your focus has all been on work and serious things of late, you may just need to have some fun. However, when we’re overwhelmed, it can be harder to be as aware of our needs. Ask yourself: Would you benefit the most from tension relief? Or from making a few changes that will relieve stress in the future? Some time with a loved one? Or just a change of scenery? Different stressors require different responses, so there might be a variety of mental health days you enjoy experiencing.
Stay in the present.
Being active for 30 minutes each day improves your physical and mental health and stamina. This could be aerobic exertion to get the energy up and blood flowing, or something gentler like a walk, cycle or swim.
Create something new. Use your creative brain if you’ve been using the rational side for too long. Find a community art class. Try that pottery class you’ve been thinking about.
If you are called to relax, this could mean a massage, facial, yoga or more sleep. This could also mean staying in your PJ’s all day and watching TV shows or movies.
Engage your senses. Put on some music and dance. Light a candle or put some flowers in the house. Go to an infrared sauna, sweat it out - the body with actually feel more relaxed and sleepy after this.
Unplug. Reduce or remove tech and screen time. Go back to basics. See how it feels. Turn it on do not disturb or off completely.
Honor the need to do nothing.
Volunteer or smile at a stranger. You might be surprised at how nice this makes you feel.
Spend time in nature. Plant therapy is real. Research shows that when we spend time looking at, touching or surrounded by nature, it reduces our cortisol stress levels and relaxes our parasympathetic nervous system.
Go to bed early. Nourish your entire system with the healing power of sleep! We live in a world where we think everything must be on/awake/open/ready at all times. False. The body needs rest as a crucial element for living. To deny the body this will only perpetuate imbalance.
Notice if you genuinely need to review the stressors in your life and make some longer term changes or restructures. Notice what drains you, what is duplicated, reflect on your values and priorities, and be honest about job satisfaction. Notice if you need a longer break. That’s ok, try to take a few days off, have a staycation or holiday. Seek professional support if you feel too overwhelmed, avoidant or numb about any of this.
One of the key tricks to making the most of your mental health day, is permission. Whatever you choose to do on your day, give yourself full and unconditional permission to do it, without self-judgement. If you’re being courageous enough to prioritise your mental health, the least you can do is honour that choice and embrace it wholeheartedly. Try not to let thoughts or feelings of negativity, guilt, shame or pressure creep back in. Remind yourself that you deserve this time, your body and mind need this time, and that you will return to the ‘doing’ tasks tomorrow.
Taking some “me-time” is best done regularly and preventatively, rather than wait until you reach peak stress levels and risk fatigue or burnout. It can be a whole day off work or a few moments each day, but preferably both! You might like to schedule them in advance or wake up and listen to how you truly feel on any given day. Either way, it requires a checking-in process of sorts and honesty.
As great as mental health days are, remember that they’re not going to work miracles. We have to make a practice out of it on multiple levels. Remember to build in mini mental health activities on the days you’re not taking off. The more you infuse your life with moments of wellness, the more effective your mental health days will be when you take them.
You’ll start to see and feel improvements before you know it!
