Imagine if someone handed you over a map and asked you to reach from point A to B, without providing you with the right information and resources needed to get there. Well, that is currently the condition of the mental health discourse in India. While many understand the importance of nurturing the mind, only some have the manual and tools to realise this goal.
At Health Assure, we aim at helping our users get to point B, providing them with whatever they might need along the way! So here are ten paths that lead to a well-balanced mind, along with some tools that can help you reach that desired destination.
1. Diaphragmatic Breathing The sad truth is that most of us are shallow chest breathers. Want to turn that around? Imagine a balloon inside your belly. Place one hand on your chest, the other on your belly. As you inhale, imagine the balloon rising and as you exhale, imagine it deflating. Increase the flow of oxygen to your brain and give it the fuel it needs by taking a few deep breaths using this easy-to-use technique.
2. 5-4-3-2-1 Grounding The mind has a reputation of swaying as it desires and sometimes it wanders into unpleasant corners. Using the following grounding technique, you can refocus yourself onto the present: notice and name 5 things you can see, 4 things you can hear, 3 things you can smell, 2 things you can touch and 1 thing you can taste.
3. Say Hello To Some Exercise The human body has evolutionary evolved to keep moving around, in order to ensure survival. So when our sedentary lifestyle forces us to stick to the screen and sit for hours at a stretch, we are doing our mind and body some serious harm. And that’s why it’s time to say hello to some exercise!
4. Name It To Tame It Sometimes, experiencing multiple emotions can cause distress. Think of this exercise as untangling a knotted string, one by one. First, name your emotion. You can Google a list of emotions to help you identify the feeling. Next, ask yourself what can ease your experience of this emotion like massaging your hair, having some tea or speaking to a doctor about your cough and fever.
5. Safe Space Meditation Sit or lie down in a comfortable and attentive position. With eyes closed or opened, think of a safe place – real or imaginary. Pay close attention and notice what you can see, hear, smell, taste and touch in this place. Muse over these sensory details as much as you’d like. Bid goodbye to this place once you feel relaxed.
6. Some Gratitude, Please Pen down one thing you are grateful for at the end of each day. The exercise will allow you to run through several good things in order to pick one. And over time, your gratitude dictionary will include more and more things to be thankful for. This record will help soothe your mind during some dark days.
7. Smile Some psychologists believe that when we smile, the facial muscles used in the process provide our brain with feedback that things are quite pleasant and not as bad as it might think. Tricking your mind like this can give you some time to reorganise before the wheels start running again.
8. S-T-O-P Feeling like your mind might burst open? Stop what you are doing (S). Take a deep breath (T). Observe the sensations in your body (O). Proceed with something that will support you in the present like speaking to a friend or having a healthy snack (P).
Finding yourself lost when it comes to a nutritious snack?
9. Chunk It Just like one tries to memorise a phone number by dividing it into smaller groups, you can attend to overwhelming problems by chunking them into smaller manageable bits.
10. Seek The Help You Deserve If you find yourself wanting to seek help from a mental health professional, we have responsible and ethical practitioners available round the clock!
For any assistance or to book your appointment
Please call us at 022-61676633 or email us at support@healthassure.in.
