Taken from a guest blog from Emily, York Mumbler, March 2020
Looking after your mental health is so important. Stress whilst good in smaller doses (it can be motivating and encourage us to plan and prepare) can be detrimental if it takes over. You can take simple steps to ensure your wellbeing is taken care of!
Here are a few key points:
Exercise
Regular exercise can reduce the risk of developing mental ill health. FACT. It can seem difficult to make the time for regular exercise, but small steps can make a difference. Try out a fitness DVD / Youtube exercise video from the comfort of your living room, go for a power walk, or a mini game of football with the kids, even cleaning / gardening are great exercise and both productive tasks!
Socialising
As a parent it might not seem like a top priority, but seeing your own friends and staying connected with family is invaluable for mental health. With all the modern technology we have these days we can be more sociable than ever, with Facetime/Skype or a quick phone call.
Limit Screen Time
Focus on the here and now, day to day life, your family. Social media and screen time can become ever consuming, tv’s and phones can be hard to escape. Limiting your exposure can be helpful to achieve a balance.
Routine
Having a planned structure can help with feeling more motivated to achieve tasks if they are planned out. Writing it down helps, it makes you feel more committed to stick to a routine. Build in meal times, exercise, relax time, jobs/chores, and family time (with ideas for playtime activities for kids HERE and under 5’s HERE).
Breathing technique
Having a breathing technique in your toolkit can be handy to pull out if you were to ever need it. The NHS explains a nice simple technique on their website here. Practice it at home at times when you are not in need and then you will have it up your sleeve to pull out if you ever felt anxiety creeping in.
Mindfulness
A concept that can be very beneficial for mental health. It takes practice to develop the skill to be mindful. There’s a lot of information online if you wished to dive deeper! HERE is the NHS guidance.
“It can be easy to rush through life without stopping to notice much. Paying more attention to the present moment – to your own thoughts and feelings, and to the world around you – can improve your mental wellbeing.”
In summary mindfulness is about noticing what is actually happening right now. Fully immersing yourself in the moment and noticing all aspects of it. We have busy lives. We walk through the park, checking our email on our phone, thinking about what we need from the shops and what to cook the little ones for tea. Our minds never stop, but they need to! They need a break!
Next time you walk through the park, immerse yourself in the present. Notice the sights, sounds and smells. The birds chirping, the leaves rustling, the squirrel running up the tree. Feel the breeze on your cheeks and smell the fresh air. Children are much better at being mindful. Younger children won’t be worrying about the mortgage or the library book that needs returning. They will be focused on the big puddle in front of them and the fantastic splashing sound it will make when they jump into it!
If you’re new to mindfulness, take small steps. Try a few minutes at a time. Immerse your in an experience, anything! Brushing your teeth, having a shower, playing with the children and absorb every sensory opportunity from that experience. Your mental health will thank you for it and you will create special, longer lasting memories along the way.
Help is there if you need it:
Ask your family or friends for help and support. See the NHS WEBSITE for a list of mental health helplines, help is always there if you need it.
For more information and advice, see:
– Practical self-care tips from parents here
– Children and young people’s mental health here
Thanks so much to our guest blogger Emily. If you have family or friends in York be sure to let them know about the York Mumbler site.
There’s plenty on Gateshead Mumbler to help keep little ones (and big ones!) busy, check here for more ideas and info for playgroups, classes and fun days out from tots to teens!
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