Have you ever received mental health advice that had a profound impact on your life?
An internet user asked, “What is the single most effective piece of mental health advice you’ve ever received?”. Below, we’ve compiled the best answers!
Leave Work At Work
“I work in the news and used to get emails on my phone. It was awful. I always wanted to look at my phone and see what was happening or check my phone if something was happening.
I disconnected my phone and left work at work. It’s so much better.”
Don’t Burn Yourself To Lighten Up Others
“You shouldn’t burn yourself out for the sake of others.”, said one.
“Can’t stress this one enough, trying to instill it in my daughters.”, another added
Everyone’s Coping Mechanism Is Different And There’s Nothing Wrong With That
“One of the most liberating things my therapist told me was that my coping mechanisms and outlook were perfectly reasonable given what I had gone through.
They just weren’t compatible with the life I *wanted* to live going forward.
One of the worst parts of being a little crazy is *knowing* you’re a little crazy.
Being told that I wasn’t but simply had to unlearn some habits that I picked up from going through a hard time helped me be easier on myself.”
Worrying Unnecessarily Does No Good
“50% of the things you worry about will never happen and the other 50% are going to happen anyway.”, said one.
“Yes, otherwise you will ‘suffer twice’. We often suffer more in imagination than in reality.”, another added.
Toxic People Must Be Cut Out, Even If They’re Your Closed Ones
“Sometimes you need to cut people out of your life that are toxic. This could include family members.”, said one.
“This is the absolute truth.
There’s no more reason to keep family members in your life than anyone else.
The downside is there is almost always collateral damage, and you have to decide if that’s worth it.”, another added.
Torturing Yourself Because Of Others Is Not Worth It
“If you’re gonna kill yourself because of someone else, they aren’t worth it. They likely aren’t even second-guessing what they did, nor are they thinking about you. It’s hard, and it hurts, but sometimes you just gotta move on.”
You Cannot Improve While Staying In Your Comfort Zone
“My friend told me that if I don’t get out of my comfort zone I’ll never improve. Annoyed me right off, but my life has been infinitely better since.”
Isolation Will Doom Yourself
“Your feelings of shame will increase exponentially if you isolate yourself, which will exponentially increase your desire for isolation. Find someone to talk to as if your life depended on it because it does.”
You Can Control Your Thoughts, Not Outside Events
“You have power over your mind, not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.”
It’s Okay To Be Not Okay
“I think the most important lesson that I learned is the idea that it’s okay to be not okay and that health is more of a process than a state; it will always be a part of your life and it’s not a problem to be solved and then forgotten about. Build strategies to improve it and manage it day by day.”
It’s Okay To Walk Out, Sometimes
“It’s OK to walk out of an overwhelming situation (regarding anxiety attacks in my case). You don’t need to share or owe an explanation to others, and no one will notice anyways.
Also hey, some fresh air and quiet can work wonders!”
We Become What We THINK About
“Our brain ‘wants’ to validate our feelings and beliefs. So, if you keep telling yourself you’re ‘always sick’, or you’re a ‘loser’, or that you always ‘screw up’, or that you’ll ‘never lose weight’, guess what?! Your brain will make it true so that you’re ‘happy’ that you were right in thinking that!
Thinking negative thoughts will even make you sick. The first thing that starts to go on in women is our reproductive organs. Ulcers, digestive issues, tumors, etc. You will have psychosomatic repercussions in your body.
Be very vigilant of your thoughts!!! Repeat to yourself every chance you get until your brain makes it so. I am healthy! I am content (happiness is a temporary state of being). I feel great! I am loved. My life is great! Whatever. Just keep the word ‘no’ out of it.
Like, don’t say, ‘I’m not fat’ because you’re using two words against you. You’re thinking of ‘fat’ and you’re using the word ‘no’. Just say you’re ‘healthy’.”
Anyway, we truly ARE what we think. So think wisely! And positively!”
Write Daily In An Online Journal
“Write daily in a password-protected online journal that nobody else will ever read. It allows you to be brutally honest with yourself, and turning your thoughts and emotions into sentences somehow clarifies them and gives you perspective.
Also, regularly read past entries to see what was going on for you in the past and compare it to now.
It’s a form of therapy, and it’s totally free. You just have to be willing to do it and do it consistently. But it means you don’t have to dump your thoughts onto other people quite so much.”
Someone Else’s Behavior Towards You Reflects Their Personality, Not Yours
“The way someone acts towards you says more about them than about you. If someone has the tendency to be violent and they are towards you (for example), they aren’t being violent because of you but instead because they are just following their tendencies.”
Get Off Social Media
“Get off social media. Endless amounts of envy. Comparison. Inundation with tragedy and conflict across the world that is outside your control.
None of it is conducive to making your life better or more satisfying. Use the internet as a tool to improve your life. Not as a barometer for success or happiness or fulfillment.”
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This article was originally published on Mrs. Daaku Studio.