Signs and Strategies to Cope Covid-19 during stressful situations. Have you noticed any shifts or changes lately? If so, it’s ok and you’re not alone. Being mindful and aware that life and situations and our reactions to those things can cause changes in our mental health.
Recognizing Signs
Changes in our mental health rarely happen overnight. Often times they are usually gradual and show up in the areas of our thoughts, feelings and behaviors.
A few signs of changes could appear as:
- Changes in your mood or appetite
- Headaches
- Sleep difficulties- too little or too much
- Difficulty concentrating or remembering
- Difficulty with decision making
- Becoming anxious or irritable
- Nausea or upset stomach
- Suicidal thoughts
- Muscle tension
- Excessive spending and trouble managing money
Seeking the support of a mental health professional to go deeper and more specific as it relates to these signs is encouraged, especially if you’ve noticed these symptoms for a prolonged period of time.
Strategies to cope and support Mental Health
It’s important to recognize there is no one size fits all approach to taking care of any area of your health, especially your mental health. Depending on your current needs and where you are as it relates to taking care of your mental health, strategies to support your mental health may vary.
Healthy Boundary Setting
Give yourself permission to set healthy boundaries around your mental health. Being okay with saying NO. Learn to recognize your triggers or the things that drain your mental energy, whether that be people, situations, conversations or environment’s.
A healthy boundary can look like, not answering the phone, if the person on the other end is normally negative and your feel drained after speaking with them.
One thing a day for YOU
Make your mental health a priority. Do one thing a day that supports your mental health and overall well-being. A few ideas are:
- Getting enough sleep
- Going to therapy
- Connecting with you support systems
Alternative ways to maximize brain performance
Are you someone who feels like your mental health is pretty well managed and you’re looking for alternative ways to maximize your brain performance to maintain good mental health?
Research and data driven tools to support your mental health are:
- Breathing exercises
- Yoga
- Meditation
- Biofeedback and neurofeedback
I encourage you to take some time this week and be intentional about checking in with yourself. Be patient and kind to yourself, give yourself permission to take some time for you to recharge.
Visit tracyalston.com for more alterative services and tools that you can utilize to support your mental health.
Let’s begin to make mental health a priority and something recognized as just as important as any other area of health in our lives.
We will get through this together!!
WATCH VIDEO SHOW HERE
https://tracyalston.com/covid-19-signs-and-strategies-to-cope/
Shine Brighter!
