Put Your Mental Health First This Year!
Whether or not you’re one to make New Year’s resolutions, it’s hard not to take inventory of your life as the new year draws near. At least in my personal case, there are always things I want to change physically—but this year, I’m trying to put more emphasis on improving my mental health. I reached out to Anita Chlipala, a licensed marriage and family therapist, as well as Megan Jones Bell, PsyD, chief science officer at Headspace, for some strategic steps to take for a more mentally healthy new year.
Identify your stressors.
It should come as no surprise that in order to face down your mental blocks, you first need to know what they are. “Take an inventory of your stressors,” Chlipala says. “What’s really a priority? Number your stressors on a 1-to-10 scale of importance, and then tackle the most important.”
Not only will this help you get a sense of the biggest concerns in your life, it’ll help you understand where you should be placing your focus. “Sometimes it’s easy to give in to a sense of urgency that can just cause more stress and anxiety,” Chlipala says. “Take it one task at a time.”
Excerpted from Real Simple
