When we become overly worried or stressed, certain physical reactions can happen in our body. For many one of the first things to change is the rate of your breathing, leaving you feeling agitated, keyed up and unable to relax.

Although this response is necessary in a fight or flight situation when you have something physical to fight or run from, it isn’t generally very helpful when you can’t outrun worries and thoughts.

Take a moment right now and allow yourself to be guided into deep, even and soothing breath work or if you have a few more minutes and a safe space free of distraction, try meditating.

How does this make you feel? 

Resilience

There's no way of knowing what tomorrow will bring. When life throws you a curve ball, resilience ensures you can handle it and empowers you to grow from your experience.

But without a good night’s sleep, the foundations of your resilience can start to crumble. Getting a good night’s sleep helps you to regenerate – both physically and mentally. Rebuilding those foundations each night gives you a shield against the twists and turns of everyday life.

Movement

We all know that exercise is great for our physical health. But did you know it can improve your mental health and wellbeing too?

Exercise boosts your mood and concentration, reduces your stress and improves your sleep. Anything that gets your muscles moving and your blood pumping is going to have benefits for your body and mind!

Emotions

We often think about emotions as something that just happens to us. We feel sad when something bad happens, and happy when things go our way.

But science tells us that we can harness the power of positive emotions to improve our wellbeing. Feeling positive emotions, like happiness, satisfaction and gratitude, can help make you happier, healthier and more open to the world around you!

When we feel more positive emotions than negative ones, challenging situations are easier to navigate.

Meaning

What gets you out of bed each morning?

Having a sense of purpose in life can help you to feel positive, motivated and generally more satisfied day-to-day.

The drive to achieve something meaningful keeps us moving forward. Whether it’s raising your family, succeeding in your career or volunteering to help others, a sense of purpose can empower you to take control of your life and your wellbeing.

Engagement

Have you ever felt truly ‘in the zone’ when participating in an activity you enjoy?

When you’re ‘in the zone’ you feel great about yourself, you love the challenge, and your mind works in new and creative ways! This feeling of total engagement and enjoyment is sometimes called ‘flow’ by psychologists – and it’s a state we can all strive for.

Accomplishment

Setting goals, making progress towards them and feeling a sense of achievement is an essential element of wellbeing.

Working hard towards a meaningful goal, and overcoming the challenges that you face along the way, boosts your self-esteem and makes you more confident in your own skill and abilities.

When you feel accomplished, you’re more ready to tackle what life throws your way!

Relationships

Our connections with other people are a vital source of support, comfort and
meaning in our lives.

Strong, healthy relationships benefit your mental health, and help you to be more empathetic, trusting and cooperative. They may even extend your life – by boosting your immune system and helping you bounce back better from disease.

Although these resources are a fantastic tool to help maintain your general wellbeing, if you feel that you need some help implementing them or additional general or acute mental health support, please reach out.