Mental makeover
The first cup of coffee in the morning is what gets some people out of bed.
A caffeine fix, no doubt, can wake you up and get the juices flowing, but can it improve your overall wellness?
According to Olivia Dorn, a counselor with Samaritan Counseling Centers of Greater Birmingham, near Brook Highland off U.S. 280, a routine cup of joe can improve overall mood and happiness.
As September is National Self-Improvement Month, Dorn agreed to shed some light on easy things you can do to improve your overall well-being.
The first step, she explains, is figuring out what areas of your life you want to work on improving. From there, Dorn said setting small, measurable goals for improvement is the best way to get started.
“It becomes less of an enormous task,” Dorn said. “Just setting out to ‘improve my life’ is such a huge undertaking and can encompass any different number of things. If you can break it down into small areas, it is easier to tackle those and focus in.”
General wellness improvement
Exercise
At least a few times a week, Dorn recommends getting any kind of exercise you can. She said if you enjoy walking your dog, dancing or swimming, it’s important to continue actively doing those activities.
Sleep
Sleep is just as important as exercise. Dorn said people today tend to have the mentality of “work, work, work” and “go, go, go” all the time. They often take work home with them, work late and even go to bed with their cell phone or iPad.
“That really isn’t conducive to you getting good quality rest,” Dorn said. “Something that you can do that will really help your day-to-day functioning is to make sure you are getting good quality sleep. That means getting seven or eight hours — or however much you need — of uninterrupted sleep.”
She suggests sleeping in a cool, dark room without any bright screens such as the television on. Electronic lights actually trick the brain into thinking it’s still daylight outside, which can make it harder to fall asleep.
Diet
Dorn said diet is one of the most basic things you can control to improve your well-being. Drinking water and staying hydrated is very important, as well as maintaining a healthy diet.
“Those are some core things that are going to help most people improve their wellness and their well-being,” Dorn said. “Then those things also have an impact on your mental state and your emotions.”
Dealing with stress
Many people are guilty of turning 40-hour work weeks into 80 hours when they pile their job, taking care of the family and housework all into the mix.
One of the more common issues Dorn said she hears in the counseling office is how to balance work and personal life in the state of constant work people tend to stay in. She said people feel like they don’t even have a spare minute in the day.
Mindfulness is a technique Dorn uses during her counseling sessions, which she thinks is very helpful. It gives the person 30 seconds to a minute to focus on breathing, to focus on what is going on and to let go of all of the worries and to-do lists.
“Deep-breathe, get some oxygen going and relax even if it is just for a minute or two,” Dorn said.
She said taking time for yourself can feel counterintuitive when there are so many things to be responsible for, but taking a minute to relax and breathe deeply will improve mental well-being and ease tension.
Stress can cause symptoms such as aches, pains and headaches, and it makes people work less efficiently. So taking a moment to relax actually improves work.
Dorn suggests monitoring stress levels and finding time to do things that make you happy even if it is just that cup of coffee every morning.
“Find something that is positive and really improves your mood and makes you feel good,” Dorn said. “To start your day with that can really set the tone for the rest of the day.”
Positive Vibes
1. Exercise more
2. Sleep more
3. Spend more time with loved ones
4. Smile more
5. Listen to more upbeat music
6. Help others more
7. Spend moretime outside
8. Do more things that make you happy