3 Easy Tips to Manage Mental Health During this Time

Audio Transcript Auto-generated

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  Hey, everyone.

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  My name is Heather Douche, and I'm so excited to

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  be a part of this campaign to talk about mental

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  health through Prezi video.

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  So I'm very excited to share that.

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  I have three easy tips for you all today for

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  managing your own mental health.

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  During this time you have context.

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  I'm gonna be specifically focusing in anxiety.

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  But these chips can be help over people regardless of

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  where they are in their mental health experience.

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  So to start, I want to share that mental health

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  concerns are really normal.

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  You may not have ever thought too much about this

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  in the past, but April happens, You Mental Health Awareness

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  Month. And so statistics like this you can find all

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  over the place.

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  But it's it's very common in the US, specifically, each

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  0.1% of us suffer from a mental health condition, anything

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  re arranging from anxiety or depression through to PTSD, bipolar

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  disorder or other related issues on DSO that you think

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  about five people you know, that's about one in five

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  U. S.

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  Adults and I will share that.

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  I am somebody who personally circles with anxiety.

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  And so I've been working for a long time to

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  manage these issues, and I'm excited to share with you

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  a few of the things that I work for myself

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  and for other people with a similar experiences.

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  And I want to also kind of acknowledge that it's

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  very normal right now that even if you're not somebody

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  who identifies as having a mental health concern that you

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  might have some temporary mental health concerns right now and

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  that's really normal, it's normal to feel lonely or isolated

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  or nervous or uncertain.

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  Um, all those anxiety that and depression related feelings are

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  everly normal toe have when you're experiencing, you know, shelter

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  and place, starting glow of an Temic or anything of

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  that nature on.

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  But it's okay to feel those things, but there are

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  some things you can do to sort of manage.

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  They don't stop you from feeling, but they help you

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  navigate how to best productively feel in your life.

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  And then the first thing I want to share is

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  thinking about how you acknowledge what's in your control and

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  what's not.

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  And so I want to share a couple of tips

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  for doing.

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  This is a practice on beginning to take control of

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  some of the things that feel really, really out of

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  control right now.

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  And so if you take out a piece of paper

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  or a document on your computer and you sort of

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  make two columns on the left side, I want you

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  to write all the things that are happening that are

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  stressing you out.

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  But they're not in your control.

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  So things like this global pandemic, things like how someone

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  that you know and care for is doing.

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  That's very far away from you right now.

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  And you can't access them.

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  Um, think about all the things that you can't really

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  control. And then on the right side, think about all

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  the things that you can really control.

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  So, for example, I can't control whether or not I

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  am impacted by Covert 19.

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  But I can control the preventative measures that I take

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  in my home and outside in order to manage those

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  concerns and just acknowledging them and running out on the

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  two sides how each of them might impact you and

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  then taking the things that you can't control and just

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  acknowledging. I can't control these things.

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  I'm not going to try Thio.

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  Um, but I am going to spend my effort and

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  my time on the other side of the list, which

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  is the things that I can and I'm gonna try

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  really optimize for understanding that list and really putting more

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  of it in my life so that I can really

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  feel good because it feels really good.

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  To check things awful is to make sure that you

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  feel like you've accomplished something in a day where it's

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  really hard to focus and so you can do things

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  that simple.

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  A scheduling, You know, I can control that.

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  I get exercise each day, and I'm gonna do it

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  at home workout video or take a walk or do

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  a meditation, you know, for 10 minutes each day.

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  Whatever that thing is for you that makes you feel

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  healthy and well in a climate where you can't control

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  your overall how, um and so identifying that, scheduling it

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  into your day, making it to do list where you

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  leave these things and you check them off as you

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  get them done, whatever really works for you on then,

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  if you're not really sure, you might be struggling with

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  this list of saying, you know I haven't really thought

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  about what's stressing me out before.

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  I just know that I'm feeling stressed.

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  One thing that's really going to do when you're trying

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  to figure it out.

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  His journal.

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  So this could be an online journal, A phone, you

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  know, note pad.

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  It could be an actual physical, you know, book that

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  you right into your where you share sort of.

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  Each morning, you wake up.

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  How are you feeling?

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  Scale of 1 to 10.

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  Are you feeling terrible?

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  One great attend and why do you think you're feeling

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  that way?

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  Did something just happen?

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  Did you get a great night's sleep?

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  Where did you get a terrible night's sleep?

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  Um, do you know that you have a stressful day

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  ahead of you, or do you feel like everything's really

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  in control?

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  Like, what are the things that are causing you to

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  feel any which way that you're feeling and sort of

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  having like a space to say, Here's the time of

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  day. Here's a day of the week.

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  Here's what's happening around me and here's how you feel

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  on and then tracking yourself for just a couple of

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  days and really understanding, which are the things that you

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  could do that usually lead emotionally afterwards to feelings that

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  are very calm and peaceful and thundered on, which are

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  the things that you're doing that are leading to a

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  heightened sense of anxiety and figure out how can you

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  optimize and maximize and have more of the things that

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  create positive outcomes for you and limit the things that

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  have negative for you.

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  So if let's say, for example, you feel really great

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  after doing, Ah, walk and talk phone call with a

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  certain friend or family member, how can you have more?

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  Can you schedule regular chats?

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  Can you make it a regular calendar of that in

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  your schedule?

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  If you know that there's somebody or something that's making

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  you feel bad and maybe it's what's in your Twitter

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  feed, can you unfollowed?

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  Can you mitigate?

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  Can you limit how much time you spend on Twitter

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  per day?

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  The next tip that I want to share is thinking

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  about how you can create a support network for yourself.

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  And so there are many ways you can do this,

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  and I recommend doing as many of these as you

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  can. There are things like having virtual therapy.

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  Tele therapy is super normal right now.

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  Ah, lot of therapists are keeping their practices open by

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  having these.

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  There are also acts if you're not sure where to

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  start, like talk space or others where you can find

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  that access to therapy that works for you.

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  And if you're currently employed, you know, looking into your

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  health care options through your benefits.

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  For example, the company where I work health care, it's

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  really created.

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  It's $10 Co.

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  Pay to see a therapist and network, and so you

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  can go to things like psychology dot com and find

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  access to a therapist in your area covered by your

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  health care provider.

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  Now's a great time to find a therapist, even though

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  I know it seems weird to do it through a

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  screen. But really normalizing that this is This is a

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  great way to get support.

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  And if you don't have access to that sort of

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  support, or that's not something that you're really willing to

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  consider at this time, there are a variety of other

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  things you can do, like finding friends, either people that

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  you already know that you're close to that make you

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  feel really great that you can sort of take turns

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  sharing with and affirming the feelings that how normal they

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  are, Um, or even finding new friends.

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  Right. So finding a slot community out in the world

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  that has a Shimla similar interests to yours, Um, or

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  making new friends through any kind of online communities that

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  exist through gaming through whatever else it is for you.

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  And then lastly, looking at work and knowing that work

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  is actually a really great place for support right now,

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  if you're lucky to have a job but stable on,

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  you're lucky to have some of the benefits that provided

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  by a lot of work places today.

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  So thinking about things like, Can you create a slack

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  channel with your friends at work?

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  Um, you know, we have slack sales at my workplace

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  that are things like mental health or reality television or

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  parenting or whatever that thing is for you that's really

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  messing with your mental health are making you feel really

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  good. Either way, finding community that can help acknowledge the

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  feelings you're having and sort of you feel like you

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  president connect with somebody else is having a similar experience.

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  It can help normalize those feelings and then they feel

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  a little more, um, under control.

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  And then the third tip that I want to share

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  is to really Marie condo your life.

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  And if you're not familiar with you, Marie Condo is

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  she wrote a really great book about the magic of

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  tidying up And what the idea is that you should

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  not make space for things that don't bring you joy

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  and that a lot of us are caring around physical,

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  but also, you know, emotional mental baggage with us that

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  are things that we feel compelled to do or keep,

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  but that we don't necessarily have thio.

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  And so, while Marie Condos book is really focused on

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  straightening up your house, thinking about how you can, you

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  know, look through all of your clothes and get rid

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  of a bunch of things you don't need and going

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  through old, you know, memorabilia and understand that you can

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  think things for the things they've given you, but then

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  maybe say goodbye to them.

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  You could do the same for the rest of your

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  life, too, and so three areas I recommend starting with,

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  and you can do this across your whole life.

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  But I would start with your workspace, since a lot

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  of us are now working remote for the first time.

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  If that's the position you find yourself in because your

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  office maybe not deemed essential so that you're now instead

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  of going into a grocery store or hospital.

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  If that's your workspace, you maybe don't have this this

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  opportunity. But if your workspace is your home changing around.

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  So, for example, I actually made my furniture out.

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  I put a picture of my dog behind me.

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  I made my workspace something.

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  But I'm really excited to step into.

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  That feels really good.

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  I used to have a backdrop that was like a

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  couch that sometimes had my dog's toys all over it,

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  and it didn't feel good.

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  It felt messy, and I felt out of control.

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  So I physically moved my desk to a different part

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  of the room, and I know for a lot of

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  you in large cities, you might have, you know, limitations

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  based on size or space or what you can do.

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  And maybe your workspace is currently like, you know, your

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  kitchen counter.

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  And if that's the case for you, I feel for

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  you. I used to live in a studio as well.

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  You know, How can you make the space really enjoyable

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  for the time being?

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  Maybe it's even investing in like a small standing desk

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  that you put on your kitchen table with all your

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  things. And then when the workday is done, you clean

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  it out.

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  Do you have to see it anymore, right?

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  How can you make your space that you're living in

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  that you're working in?

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  I feel really good and really at home.

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  It might be a simple is bringing in.

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  You know you can order online live plants now bring

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  in a really great plant life and you can focus

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  on water and every day or whatever that is for

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  you the next areas exercise.

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  You know, a lot of people's exercise routines have been

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  shifted on, and that could be exercise.

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  It could be meditation.

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  It could be the way you eat, but the broader

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  category of your physical health.

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  A lot of times these things impact how we feel.

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  We don't even know it.

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  And so you might find that as your journaling for

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  yourself, how things are going that you feel best when

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  you eat certain foods, you feel worse when you eat

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  certain foods, right?

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  Maybe for you, caffeine is really helpful.

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  Maybe it's really harmful.

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  Listen to your body and really understand what's working for

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  you. A Zafar is working out, goes a lot of

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  people might be feeling stressed, but they haven't made a

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  new plan for how they're gonna do.

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  Physical fitness and a world where there, Jim has closed.

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  And so what?

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  Can you D'oh!

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  Can you download Ah, Roku Channel that has, you know,

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  yoga videos and things on it that you can sort

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  of watch.

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  Can you access for you, uh, help videos on YouTube?

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  What are the things that you can do right now

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  to get back some of the feelings of normalcy for

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  yourself? A lot of times healthy eating and exercise are

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  the answers.

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  But everybody's bodies are so different, and so a lot

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  of it's listening to yourself too.

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  And it might even be working out less eating less

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  healthy, given yourself some space to just be a human

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  being for a little bit on honoring how normal it

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  is. Do not be perfect.

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  All of the time on and how you and how

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  you treat yourself and how you hold yourself.

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  Too disciplined.

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  Actually, is it really?

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  It depends on you.

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  And it's finding sort of that that normal medium outside

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  of the extremes that we often find ourselves splitting and

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  when the world feels out of control.

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  And then, lastly, social media, I referred to it before,

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  but I find that social media could be really helpful

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  connecting people.

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  For example, I haven't been using Facebook very much at

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  all, really for the last several years, except for remember

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  people's Birthdays.

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  And I found myself actually reading my news feed now

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  one so well, it's It's kind of nice to see

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  what people are up to you when I can't go

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  physically see them.

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  But I find for me that Twitter could be very

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  interesting and a great source of news and support.

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  But every once in a while I see a tweet

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  that just makes me feel like upset or depressed.

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  And so when I find those like recognizing I'm feeling

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  this way, I have to limit it.

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  And so giving yourself kind of even like allowances.

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  I'm gonna look at Twitter for 20 minutes with an

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  eminent stopping him and I go take a walk and,

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  like meditator, do whatever else it is, um, so you

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  can find the balance in your life and all of

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  these things are just soft suggestions.

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  I would say the most important thing.

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  I could give you a few if you take away

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  one thing from this video, which is to be kind

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  to yourself to try out the suggestions that I'm sharing,

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  but not to feel like you have to do them

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  or feel guilty if you don't do them.

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  Because ultimately you have to do what works for you

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  and really kind for yourself.

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  Um, and again also.

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  And I said that I think up every every part

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  of this talk, the feelings you're having are normal no

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  matter what they are.

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  You are not the only person feeling the way that

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  you're feeling right now, even if it feels that way.

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  A lot of times in social media thinks people present

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  he's picture perfect world like the Pinterest office, other whatever

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  else. But it's okay to share that.

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  There's another truth happening on the other side.

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  And, um, not everything that people are sharing is the

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  whole story and So it's OK that if you're feeling

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  alone, know that you're probably not alone and it's okay

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  to she makes Facebook her real feelings.

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  And it might be your vote ability helping somebody else

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  also be more valuable to.

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  So in the spirit of that I will share.

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  I have my like, pretty backdrop of like my desk.

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  That's great.

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  But I'm gonna actually show you my real dust, which

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  is a little messier, which has sort of a giant

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  water bottle on a soda can.

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  And I'm gonna phone and a cord, and it's not

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  so perfect all the time.

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  It's really up to you to sort of calibrate your

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  life the way that you feel joy, but also be

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  really awesome yourself that it's normal to not have it

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  all together right now.

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  And so if you could do one thing for me

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  after this is, try one or two of the tips

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  that I share, no matter how you're feeling, and if

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  they make you feel better awesome, I hope they help

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  and keep doing them.

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  If they don't help, don't feel guilty.

• 12:49 - 12:51

  Just don't do it and recognize that it's super normal.

• 12:51 - 12:53

  Do not resonate with every tip you're given out in

• 12:53 - 12:55

  the world and no one could do it all.

• 12:56 - 12:57

  So with that, I just want to tell you all

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  have a great day as best as you possibly can

• 12:59 - 13:00

  have in these times.

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  And I hope you got something valuable from this Prezi

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  video, so thank you.