New Year, New Me right?

But what if it’s not? What if we don’t change? How about just prioritising our mental health and wellbeing and maintaining it as best we can without the unnecessary pressure of trying to transform ourselves? 

For as long as we’ve all been alive, New Year’s Resolutions have been a part of our culture every January. According to the Almanac, it was the ancient Babylonians that started the tradition in 2000 B.C. at the start of the farming season when they vowed to plant crops, return borrowed equipment, and repay their debts. This was then adopted by the ancient Romans who would make promises to their God to behave well in the year ahead. 

Why New Year’s Resolutions?

Skip forward a few thousand years and multiple evolutions later, we still hear a great deal of talk about making resolutions to change something about ourselves on January 1st. In the modern day, the most common New Year’s Resolutions include losing weight/getting fit, quitting drinking or smoking, taking up a new hobby and saving/earning more money. Very rarely do we pledge to focus on our mental health, improve our thinking patterns and become more confident in ourselves.

There are a few psychological theories as to why we aspire to do things differently at the start of each year.

Picturing ourselves transforming our bodies, going to the gym, learning a new skill and having more disposable income makes us believe that if we make that change we will become happier, more successful people. It’s only natural for us to feel motivated and inspired to get going as soon as possible.

A recent Insideout Mastery article found that, of those surveyed, 23% quit their New Year’s Resolution in the first week, and only 36% made it past the first month. 

Amanda E. White is a therapist, speaker, and the author of Not Drinking Tonight. She says: “Often people do not map out or think about what it will take to accomplish a goal or make a resolution and instead rely on the excitement of the new year as the thing that will push them through.

How Can We focus On Our Mental Health?

We don’t often encounter people who say: “my New Year’s Resolution is to improve my mental health”. That’s not to say that common resolutions like improving fitness, losing weight and having more money won’t benefit us mentally but they don’t hold the key to true inner peace and healthy cognitions. 

Focusing on our mental health and wellbeing is a multi-faceted, long-term commitment that can contain many daily elements. These include:

1. Better Sleep

Most adults need at least seven hours of good quality sleep on a regular basis in order to feel rested when they wake up. Try and stick to a bedtime routine where possible so that your system can both fall and stay asleep more easily. Make sure you have a comfortable bedroom at a temperature to suit you with as little light as possible and avoid heavy meals, alcohol and caffeine before sleeping. Better sleep is proven to contribute to your mental health and wellbeing.

2. Reflecting on Positive Mental Health

Consider three good things that happen each day and make a note either digitally or with pen and paper. Read them back often to remind yourself of all the great things in your life. The January blues often get us feeling down so celebrate the little things.

3. Healthy Diet

A healthy, balanced diet with plenty of fluids does wonders for our physical and mental wellbeing. Studies have found that healthy diets can help with symptoms of depression and anxiety especially when they combine fruit, vegetables, fibre, antioxidants, seeds and probiotic-rich foods. Anything with high levels of vitamin D is also great for the production of serotonin – the happy hormone, so oily fish, red meat, cereals, eggs and fat spreads are beneficial too. 

4. Regular Exercise

Engaging in regular exercise, such as walking, playing sport, going to the gym or yoga enhances the production of endorphins – a chemical produced by the body to relieve stress. It also helps maintain a healthy weight, prevent various serious medical conditions, improve cardiovascular fitness and strengthen bones and muscles.

5. Embracing The Outdoors

Being outside has long been championed as a way of reducing anxiety and boosting mood, and many mental health advocates recommend it to help people feel better. It’s been proven to lower stress, blood pressure and heart rate whilst raising the amount of oxygen in your brain as you breathe in fresh air. Exposure to sunlight is also good for boosting vitamin D and serotonin levels.

6. Human Connection

Regular human interaction is vital for our mental health. Arranging enjoyable activities with family and friends is not only good for our confidence levels and sense of belonging, it also boosts our communication skills, brain health and lightens our mood. Though the temptation may be to shut ourselves off to the world after a stressful day or situation, it’s important to have social activities planned with those whose company we enjoy. 

Doing these things daily until they become part of your routine and lifestyle can hold the key to feeling mentally healthier on a permanent basis. See our other resources on mental health or contact us on how Headclear can help your workforce and their wellbeing.