Mental Well-being: 5 steps closer

Evidence shows there are 5 steps you can take to improve your mental health and well-being. Try these things that could help you feel more positive and able to get the most out of life.

1. Connect with other people : Good relationships are important to your mental well-being. They can help you build a sense of belonging and self-esteem, give you the opportunity to share positive experiences, they provide emotional support, and allow you to support others in turn. There are many things you could try to help build stronger and closer relationships. First, it has been proven that it is important to spend time with our family every day. For example, try to arrange a fixed time to eat dinner together, arrange a day to go out with friends you haven't seen in a while, try to turn off the TV to talk or play with your children, friends or family; have lunch with a colleague or visit a friend who needs support or company. It's also important to make the most of technology to stay in touch with friends and family. Video chat apps like Skype and FaceTime are useful, especially if you live far away.

2. Be physically active : It has been proven that being active is not only great for your physical health and fitness. Evidence also shows that it can also improve your mental well-being by boosting your self-esteem. Exercise helps you set goals or challenges and achieve them by causing chemical changes in your brain that can help you positively change your mood. A way to accomplish this is through free physical activities that will help you get fit. There is no need to feel that you have to spend hours at the gym. It’s better to find activities that you enjoy and that you will make part of your everyday life.

3. Learn new skills : Research shows that learning new skills can also improve your mental well-being by boosting confidence and increasing self-esteem by helping you build your sense of purpose and connection to others. Even if you feel like you don't have enough time or may not need to learn new things, there are many different ways to put learning into your life. Some of the things you can try include: healthy eating and cooking tips and even taking on a new responsibility at work. Maybe try new hobbies that challenge you, like writing a blog, taking up a new sport, or learning to paint.

4. “Give” to others : Research shows that acts of giving and kindness can help improve your mental well-being by creating positive emotions and a sense of reward. It also gives you a sense of purpose and self-worth by helping you connect with other people. It could be small acts of kindness towards other people or bigger ones like volunteering in your local community. Some other examples of things you could try include: saying thank you to someone for something they have done for you as well as asking friends, family or colleagues how they are and really listening to their response.

5. Pay attention to the moment (mindfulness) : Paying more attention to the present moment can improve your mental well-being. This includes your thoughts, feelings, body and the world around you. Some people call this awareness “consciousness”. Mindfulness can help you enjoy life more and understand yourself better. It can positively change the way you feel about life and the way you deal with challenges.

Ruggeri, K., Garcia-Garzon, E., Maguire, Á. et al. Well-being is more than happiness and life satisfaction: a multidimensional analysis of 21 countries. Health Qual Life Outcomes 18, 192 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12955-020-01423-y