Micro-Habits to Improve Your Mental Health

If you search for ways to be happier, you’ll get flooded with more information than anyone can sort through.  So how do you determine what’s quality and what’s snake oil?  I always encourage my clients to not only do their research but to do quality research but if you’re short on time, here are a few tried and true micro habits that you can start implementing.

Exercise

I know what you’re thinking, “I don’t have time to exercise.”  While this is often true, you don’t have to run 10 miles or hit the gym for an hour-long workout to reap the benefits of exercise.  If you want to make a lasting change, start small.  This can include taking the stairs instead of the elevator, parking at the edge of the parking lot at the grocery store, getting up and moving around during commercial breaks, or doing a quick, no equipment necessary, workout at home.  Exercise has been proven to reduce anxiety, depression, and low mood.

Sleep

If there was one thing I could instantly change for clients I work with that will have an almost immediate impact, it would be that they get more and better sleep.  Sleep experts recommend that you get 7-9 hours of sleep every night and if you don’t, there are several negative consequences associated with poor sleep.  If you want to start getting better sleep, it might be time to address your sleep hygiene habits like avoiding screen time close to bed, limiting caffeine intake after noon, and creating a bedtime routine.

Gratitude

One of my favorite happiness exercises is simple, easy, and only takes a minute or two out of your day.  Try doing this with your family at dinnertime, scheduling a call with your friend, or asking your kids when you pick them up from school.  All you have to do is identify three good things that happened during that day or start your day by identifying three things you’re grateful for.  What this does is it trains your brain to look for positive things rather than easily finding things to complain about.

Journaling

We’ve all heard of journaling but if I told you to journal, would you know exactly what to do and how to do it?  One problem with these micro habits is that we don’t have a clear and easy-to-understand path to do them.  Check out this list of journal prompts that are separated into different areas of life so you can focus on an area you’d like to work on.  One journal entry I like is to journal about something positive that happened in the last 24 hours.  By doing so, you get to relive that experience and get some of the same good feelings you felt when the experience occurred.

Call a friend or loved one

If you’re like me, you’re terrible at staying in touch with friends.  To help with this, I recommend putting a recurring event on your calendar and if you can’t make the original time, don’t move on to your next task until you reschedule it.  A little reminder is nice so check out the Habit app where you can customize which tasks and behaviors you want to do and your phone will send you regular reminders throughout the day.

A couple of guidelines to consider when making changes include:

-If something isn’t working, don’t be afraid to change or remove it.  Too tired to take the stairs?  Take the elevator and write down three gratitudes while on the elevator.

-Start small, smaller changes are easier to accomplish and less likely to be given up on.  If you want long-lasting results, the changes you make need to be easier to do at the start.

-Cut yourself some slack.  If you set out to do something, harsh judgment, and excessive criticism are not your friend.  Show yourself the same compassion you’d show a loved one who is trying to make changes.

-Tell someone about it.  If you know you have to tell a friend or accountability partner, you’re more likely to at least try.

-Pick your own micro-habit.  This list covers only a small percentage of changes you can make so customize it to make it worthwhile and meaningful to you.