How to Strengthen Your Mental Health Muscle

According to the Canadian Mental Health Association, 1 in 5 Canadians will experience a mental health problem or illness in a given year. Mental health difficulties don’t discriminate and can happen to anyone. We all potentially will be the 1 in 5 at some point in our lives. Developing positive mental health habits will build your resilience and give you a tool kit to draw from when you are faced with life’s challenges.

When you build physical muscle you become stronger, healthier and better able to manage injury.  Building ‘mental health muscle’ can do the same for your overall well being. Just like physical muscles, our mental health ‘muscles’ need to be worked out and strengthened. When you have healthy mental health habits in place your confidence in dealing with setbacks can be enhanced.

Habits are the behaviours you do everyday – some health promoting – some health destroying.  Our habits determine our health and if you can establish a healthy habit – you can change your life!  

Think about a habit as simple as brushing your teeth. Every day we practice this habit without even thinking but if we ever leave the house without brushing our teeth, it just feels wrong! That’s the power of a ‘habit’.  So imagine if behaviours related to your mental health were habits. How awesome would that be – if we didn’t do them it just wouldn’t feel right!

5 Habits to Build Mental Health Muscle

#1. Switch Self-Judgement for Curiosity

Self judgement is the habit of self-criticism that typically involves your inner critic telling you something along the lines of, ‘I’m not good enough’,’ I’m not smart enough’, ‘I don’t belong’ or ‘I can’t do something’. Constant self judgement can effectively shut you down from moving forward in any number of areas.,

Curiosity, on the other hand, opens the door and allows you to explore the reasons behind your self judgement. Check your inner critic by asking ‘where is this coming from?’ ‘why am I telling myself this?’ and ‘how can I reframe it?’.  For example if you are telling yourself “I can never do anything right” – pause and reflect where you have heard this message in your life. Ask yourself, “what purpose is this serving me now?”, then reframe it in a compassionate way, like “I sometimes don’t do things right but I’m open to trying and can learn from my mistakes”. 

Switching self judgement for curiosity is a powerful habit that can help you be in charge of your inner critic and develop greater self awareness. When you can let go of negative self judgements, you develop self compassion and are in a stronger position to deal with life’s difficulties. 

#2. Close the Loop

Have you ever had something bother you where you can’t seem to let it go? You play a situation over and over again in your mind, like a news loop, wishing it had turned out differently or hadn’t happened at all? You get stuck in a thinking pattern of ‘should haves’ and ‘could haves’. 

Getting stuck in this thinking pattern can wreak havoc on your mental health often causing you to lose sleep, and increase your stress level.  When this happens, practice the habit of ‘closing the loop’ – have that conversation, write that letter or journal about it to get it out of your head. 

It is always better to deal with something that’s bothering you rather than let it fester.  It doesn’t always feel like the easier route but ‘closing the loop’ helps eliminate stress and gives you a sense of accomplishment that builds your confidence for dealing with uncomfortable situations.

#3. Take Control

Sometimes in life things happen that are beyond your control and you feel overwhelmed and unsure of what to do. Finding even the simplest things that you can control is a healthy habit that will support your well-being during these stressful situations. Making your bed in the morning and establishing a simple routine are ways of taking control, as are talking to someone who cares about you or reaching out for support. Figure out what you do have control over and focus on those things as you work to sort out the bigger issues.

#4. Reduce Stress

Too often we look to the big vacation to de-stress but inevitably we come back to the same daily situations that resulted in the stress in the first place. Build healthy habits into your daily routine that help reduce your stress levels and allow the big vacation to be a healthy bonus! Include what works for you, whether that is making sure you have some daily down time, exercising, connecting with others, or getting out in nature. 

#5. Practice Gratitude

When you practice the habit of gratitude by noticing and reflecting on the things you are thankful for, your brain interprets the world as a good place and a safe place. In this state you can feel more alive and have more compassion and kindness. Begin each day with an attitude of gratitude. As you awake and before your feet hit the ground identify 5 things you are grateful for. If you want to experience gratitude more powerfully try writing down your 5 things.

Building your mental health muscle takes practice and time. When building your physical muscles you don’t expect to go to the gym just once or be an expert at it right away. Be kind and gentle with yourself as you introduce new habits and know that you are learning as you build new skills. Over time, as you focus on building your mental health muscle, ‘it just won’t feel right’ when you don’t use your new habits.

If you would like to learn more about building your mental health muscle join me in a free 45 minute virtual/phone consultation to explore your wellness goals and what might be getting in the way.  Connect today at www.soundliving.ca 

Ann-Marie Deas, M.S.W., R.S.W., R.H.& L.C.

Ann-Marie is a registered Social Worker and Health & Life Coach with over 30 years experience in School Social Work and Children’s Mental Health. She is the founder of ‘Sound Living – Transformational Coaching, Counselling, and Consulting’ and can be reached here.