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Lifestyle changes like regular exercise, healthy eating, getting enough sleep, managing stress, staying socially connected, and avoiding harmful substances are proven ways to help prevent, manage, and improve mental health issues.
Here are some ways to use lifestyle changes to improve your well-being
Eating plenty of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and beans helps good bacteria in your gut. These bacteria make more than 90% of the serotonin in your body. Serotonin helps us to improve our mood, sleep, and digestion.
Reducing inflammation: Eating too many processed foods and foods with a lot of sugar can cause overall body inflammation. This inflammation is then connected to a greater chance of feeling depressed and experiencing memory and thinking problems.
Exercise quickly releases feel-good chemicals in your body like endorphins, dopamine, and norepinephrine, which can help lift your mood, similar to mild stimulants or antidepressants.
Good quality sleep helps with mood regulation. During deep sleep, the brain cleans out waste products that are linked to brain diseases.
Mindfulness practices like deep breathing, meditation, and yoga help reduce the levels of stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline in your body. And help the body move from a stressful "fight-or-flight" mode to a relaxed "rest-and-digest" mode.
Meaningful interactions with friends, family, or community groups release oxytocin (a hormone that promotes positive feelings), which buffers against anxiety and loneliness.
Cutting down or stopping alcohol, nicotine, and recreational drugs helps keep the brain's chemicals balanced and stops the cycle of getting worse after using them, which can make anxiety worse.
Participation question:
What would you like to be different in your life right now that those changes could help with?
What might your life look like in one or two years if you succeed?
Helpful Videos:
Ten Little Habits to Change Your Life in One Month [https://youtu.be/pm-2PgmtVvI?si=r6JHHCFdL3WKn8s4]
Helpful Resources:
Potential Benefits of Behaviors and Lifestyle for Human Health and Well-Being [https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12566935/]
Small Lifestyle Changes That Add Up to Big Health Benefits [https://www.sciencenewstoday.org/small-lifestyle-changes-that-add-up-to-big-health-benefits]
Seeking Help
Mental stress can cause us not to be able to see the good things in life and lead to excessive rumination or worries, which can result in serious health problems. If you have serious, long-term problems with negative thinking and feeling depressed, see your doctor or talk to a therapist if they are related to any mental challenges.
Are you looking for a therapist? 7 Cups has online, certified therapists with a paid option. For more information on what happens in online therapy at 7 Cups, Read Lisa’s (a therapist and director of therapy) explanation
https://www.7cups.com/forum/therapy/General_2432/WeveLaunchedTalkTherapyon7Cups_319430/ [https://www.7cups.com/forum/therapy/General_2432/WeveLaunchedTalkTherapyon7Cups_319430/]
To apply for 7 Cups online therapy, click on this link (must be logged into member account) https://www.7cups.com/online-therapy/?ob=1 [https://www.7cups.com/online-therapy/?ob=1]
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