Mental Health and Self-Care

Personally, I would say that my mental health hasn’t been in the best state even before the pandemic. Having suffered from anxiety attacks and frequent overwhelming negative emotions (especially during these tough times), it has been hard to be mentally well. Nevertheless, as I refuse to lose my battles against my personal mental health issues, I make sure to constantly take care of my mental health through different ways. One of which is by eating, specifically ordering my favorite kinds of food. Whenever I’ve had a stressful and overwhelming week, I frequently treat myself at the end of the week by ordering food from my favorite restaurants or just food that I’m craving for. In this way, I am able to make myself feel better and “rewarded” amidst having a difficult week, and I also have something to look forward to each week, which allows me to continue to move forward despite the hardships. Another way that I take care of my mental health is by going outside to just breathe in the fresh air and let the beauty of nature calm my anxieties. I particularly do this by walking (alone or with my dogs), jogging, or biking as I get to go outside and take a break from the worries and anxieties that await me in my home (especially since I do everything at home now). Breathing in the fresh air and just letting the tranquility encapsulated by the scenery of the trees, grass, and plants bring me peace, enabling me to feel lighter and, hence, have a more prepared disposition to face my responsibilities better.

During these unprecedented and uncertain times, I think that meditating would improve my mental health. A professional (for a different health condition) has actually suggested me to do this to improve my mental well-being and decrease my overall anxiety; however, I have yet to practice this. Because meditation can decrease feelings of stress and anxiety (the main factors that contribute to the deterioration of my mental health), I think that this is something that I should really try practicing to lessen these negative emotions and prevent me from feeling too overwhelmed. Additionally, meditation’s benefits to the mind and emotions can also lead to better and more thought-of actions and decisions instead of impulsive ones caused by disturbances in our emotions. Personally, when I feel stressed or anxious, I end up acting moody or getting easily irritated. With that being said, I believe that meditation can not only improve my mental health, but also my overall character, emotions, and decisions.

Now, as a member of the LS Community, I will promote self-care to fellow students especially amidst the pandemic by checking up on my friends in the community and reminding them to take breaks. By doing so, this can make them realize that they are cared for and that they may have been working themselves too much that they should pause and also set aside time to take care of themselves — it only takes a message showing my care for them to realize these. Moreover, initiating these kinds of conversations with my friends in the community can also be a form of self-care for the both of us. Getting updates on each other’s lives, current feelings, new hobbies, and more amidst a time wherein we cannot physically see each other can surely lift each other’s moods up, let us unwind from our personal anxieties, and remind each other that there are people who care for and are concerned about us and our well-being. On a larger scale on the other hand, I can promote self-care to fellow students — whether they are my friends or acquaintances — amidst the pandemic by sharing quotes or posts about self-care on my social media accounts. Personally, whenever I come across such posts on social media from my friends or acquaintances, it wakes me up to the fact that I may have been overworking myself or feeling too overwhelmed and that I should pause even just for a little bit. Thus, practicing this as well may allow my friends and acquaintances who’ll come across these kinds of posts from my account to give themselves much needed breaks to take care of themselves in their own healthy and responsible ways.