Practicing journaling is a simple way to begin practicing self-care to improve your mental health. The main goal with this is to press pause and reflect on your life. You can track your moods, write out what you did during the day, or even write moments when you were grateful. This is also a great practice to incorporate prayer into. Don't get caught up in the how; just focus on jumping in whether that be through a physical journal or through an app on your device.
Another great way to begin practicing self-care or to work through anxiety is to pause and control your breathing. The most common way is to focus on slowing your breathing to take deeper breaths. With this, you shoot for inhaling and exhaling as slowly as you can. Another way is to do 4-7-8 breathing. For this, you breathe in for 4 seconds, hold your breath for 7 seconds, exhale for 8 seconds, and repeat as needed.
Self-care and bettering yourself do not come easy. Don't go at this alone! Make a list of friends in your life that you can trust and reach out to when you need advice or to know you are not alone. Reach out to them and invite them into your circle and keep their names close when you need to know that you aren't alone.
Another great step to better your mental health comes from taking control of your device instead of letting it take control of you. Limiting your screen time or social media consumption allows you to experience the world around you. Time on a screen isn't bad, but when left unchecked, it can contribute to poor mental health.
Attending church offers community support, encouragement and supports your spiritual life.
