Dear Mental Health We Are Strong 💪🏼| Coping Strategies |

Are you suffering from a mental health condition such as depression, anxiety and or panic attacks? If so you're far from alone. The condition is likely to be affecting all aspects of your life. Depression is a common illness with more than 300 million affected world-wide (WHO, 2018).

From darkness into light- physically, mentally & emotionally. To you I look like the same person.

If you suffer from a condition which affects your physical or mental health and well being then YOU ARE in fact an expert in that field! No one can tell you otherwise. We have all struggled at some point in our lives with motivation, self-esteem, confidence and even finding happiness. I myself have fought my demons, overcome some of the most challenging obstacles in my life and I use it as a valuable tool in my career. A skill we as physiotherapists must continue to grow and improve which is 'communication'. How well can you tap into someone else's way of thinking and understand the reasons for their unusual actions/behaviours and habits. Without somewhat experiencing life in their shoes we cannot judge, we can express compassion but we will never know how they feel inside.

From my own experience I have found these simple lifestyle changes to help me to regain a healthy life back, improve motivation and my overall general health and well being whenever I have been feeling low.

1. ALARM BELLS- I put my alarm on early in the morning to rise up whether I am working or not, then I proceed to make my bed. Research suggests that people who make their own bed every morning are likely to succeed in having a more productive day. So ask yourself, are you a bed-maker or a bed-faker ☝🏼?

2. ROUTINE- I always have my own routine going, I can be flexible however so nothing upsets the apple tart. Adhering to a routine allows us to foster good habits that match our goals and aspirations. It also allows us to eradicate bad habits that do not serve us well ☝🏼.

3. Practice what you preach. I know the benefits of a healthy diet and regular exercise therefore I practice this daily. Most of us know now that exercise releases good endorphins into the bloodstream making us feel good and in conjunction with this I always ensure I eat 1 of my 5 a day. You might have heard the saying 'you are what you eat'.

A fruitful snack to rid of the sweet cravings we all get! I like to get creative with my foods.

Other benefits of exercise include:

• Enhancing mood: natural cannabis-like brain chemicals and other natural chemicals are released which enhance your sense of well-being.

• It takes your mind off worries: getting away from the cycle of negative thoughts that feed depression and anxiety.

• Emotional benefits include increased confidence/self-esteem (meeting your exercise goals and getting in shape).

• Getting more social interaction: exchanging a friendly smile or greeting as you walk around can help your mood.

• Coping in a healthy way: doing something positive to manage depression or anxiety is a 'healthy coping strategy'.

Technology today can be used as a cue to move! To increase activity levels and I myself wear my apple watch which tracks all of my activities on a daily basis 🙌🏼.

Technology can be a useful tool in promoting physical activity!

4. I wear a smile on my face daily, it helps me get through the day. Whether feeling high as a kite in good spirits or low down we all naturally put on a brave face its human nature, we do not want anyone to see we are struggling. Thats ok keep smiling, if you find this helps you well why not. I try to project positive vibes and people are attracted to positive energy. It is natural to want to surround yourself with good company that helps build you up. So remember when you are feeling angry or low always try to keep this negative flow of energy for the gym scene. Who wants to be around the doom and gloom, the complainer, the hypochondriac, the highly strung individual??.....Wonder why people are avoiding you now you know ☝🏼.

5. Bottling things up? Open up to a loved one or good friend. Choose carefully who you decide to talk to about your personal issues or battles as not everyone will understand you. A problem shared is a problem halved after all!

6. Housework- friend or foe? Personally I find doing regular house chores such as cleaning and hoovering help me to achieve that feeling of productivity and it reduces the likelihood of anxiety with an un-expected guest arrives to your front door! Be prepared.

7. Re-visiting your GOALS in life. If you feel as if you are getting submerged in work or not yourself perhaps a 'change' is needed. Often we fall off the bandwagon due to life stresses and often I find that refreshing and refurbishing your short & long term goals keeps you on track. If you haven't set any personal or professional goals there is no time like the present. It can lead you to amazing chapters in your life ☝🏼.

8. R&R: this one is for the previous and current workaholics. It is a task sometimes to STOP, sit down, look around and evaluate things. Are you so engulfed in your work you find it hard to RELAX? Don't worry it is pretty common. My own experience has opened my eyes to the negative impact that not taking regular breaks can do to our physical and mental well being. As we continue the cycle of all work and no play we convince ourselves we are winning the game but in fact we are losing. The human body is amazing in that it can withstand masses amounts of physical and mental stress applied to it, not only this but it can ADAPT so well that we can over work and feel fine. Well we think we are fine!. The very moment you are forced to relax for more than 2 days or so BOOM exhaustion hits you and you are flat. All the avoided rest periods you didn't willingly accept to take are not so much in your favour. As hard as it is, if you are due a break from life stresses, take it, the repercussions SUCK!.

I MADE the time to fit at least 1 holiday a year in....don't be jealous but there I was not having a care in the world walking the beaches of beautiful Bali, Indonesia. This is me the same girl who would have worked every day and night of the week.

These simple lifestyle changes above are what I have integrated into my life and I always try to encourage my patients to consider these as an option if they are struggling from any form mild-severe cases of depression or anxiety. I think personally it is nice to get an insight into someone else's thoughts, its allows you to reflect on your own self, thoughts and actions. These can be baby steps to living a healthier and happier lifestyle 😀.

Please feel free to leave your own advice, opinions or experiences on this topic.

The Physio-Swan 🙏🏼