Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act as we cope with life. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood and aging.

How can I improve my mental health?

Staying positive:  It’s important to try to have a positive outlook; some ways to do that include:

1. Finding balance between positive and negative emotions. Staying positive does not mean that you never feel negative emotions, such as sadness or anger. You need to feel them so that you can move through difficult situations. They can help you to respond to a problem. But you do not want those emotions to take over. For example, it is not helpful to keep thinking about bad things that happened in the past or worry too much about the future.

• Trying to hold on to the positive emotions when you have them.

• Taking a break from negative information. Know when to stop watching or reading the news. Use social media to reach out for support and feel connected to others but be careful. Do not fall for rumors, get into arguments, or negatively compare your life to others.

Practicing gratitude:  Which means being thankful for the good things in your life. It’s helpful to do this every day, either by thinking about what you are grateful for or writing it down in a journal. These can be big things, such as the support you have from loved ones, or little things, such as enjoying a nice meal. It’s important to allow yourself a moment to enjoy that you had a positive experience. Practicing gratitude can help you to see your life differently. For example, when you are stressed, you may not notice that there are also moments when you have some positive emotions. Gratitude can help you to recognize them.

Taking care of your physical health: since your physical and mental health are connected. Some ways to take care of your physical health include.

1. Being physically active. Exercise can reduce feelings of stress and depression and improve your mood.
2. Getting enough sleep. Sleep affects your mood. If you don’t get a good sleep, you may become more easily annoyed and angry. Over the long term, a lack of quality sleep can make you more likely to become depressed. So it’s important to make sure that you have a regular sleep schedule and get enough quality sleep every night.
3. Healthy eating. Good nutrition will help you feel better physically but could also improve your mood and decrease anxiety and stress. Also, not having enough of certain nutrients may contribute to some mental illnesses. For example, there may be a link between low levels of vitamin B12 and depression. Eating

a well-balanced diet can help you to get enough of the nutrients you need.

Connecting with others: Humans are social creatures, and it’s important to have strong, healthy relationships with others. Having good social support may help protect you against the harms of stress. It is also good to have different types of connections. Besides connecting with family and friends, you could find ways to get involved with your community or neighborhood. For example, you could volunteer for a local organization or join a group that is focused on a hobby you enjoy.

• Developing a sense of meaning and purpose in life. This could be through your job, volunteering, learning new skills, or exploring your spirituality.

• Developing coping skills, which are methods you use to deal with stressful situations. They may help you face a problem, take action, be flexible, and not easily give up in solving it.

• Meditation, which is a mind and body practice where you learn to focus your attention and awareness. There are many types, including mindfulness meditation and transcendental meditation. Meditation usually involves

A quiet location with as few distractions as possible.

A specific, comfortable posture. This could be sitting, lying down, walking, or another position.

A focus of attention, such as a specially chosen word or set of words, an object, or your breathing.

An open attitude, where you try to let distractions come and go naturally without judging them.

It is also important to recognize when you need to get help. Talk therapy and/or medicines can treat mental disorders. If you do not know where to get treatment, start by contacting your primary care provider.