Save Yourself

Many people engage in activities that negatively impair their mental health but they are unaware that the state of their mental health has degraded. Here are some of your habits that might be affecting your mental health without your knowledge.

Poor sleep habits

Many people don’t get enough sleep which affects different aspects of their health including their mental health.

When you are sleep deprived, it affects your mood and makes it challenging for you to manage stressors. According to recent research, lack of sleep has been linked to the cause of mental health problems like chronic anxiety, depression, and other diseases.

Isolation

If you love spending time alone, it might not be too good for your mental health. It is important to have some people around you that you converse with.

Even if you don’t like having people around, you need to create little time for this. When you are always isolated, it might be impossible for you to relax mentally and physically.

Lack of exercise/physical activity

When it comes to physical activity, it doesn’t just affect your physical health alone, it can also boost your mental health.

If you don’t exercise regularly, you are likely to develop mental illnesses like depression, anxiety, etc. Additionally, you might not be able to produce endorphins which help to put you in a great mood.

Procrastination

Many people are unaware that when you procrastinate, it can affect your mental health. Procrastination increases stress levels in the long run and it makes the individual feel less of themselves.

Additionally, it can reduce confidence and energy levels, which would make the person less eager to do productive things.

Apart from these habits, there are others like poor posture, disorganization, lack of gratitude, venting, etc. When you realize that your mental health is not in a good shape, it is best to see a mental health counselor for help.

The state of your mental health can determine if you feel positive or negative. It also decides if you’ll be able to leverage on what life brings or not. Therefore, if you feel out of place with the state of your mental health, you can apply some of these tips to get it back on track.

Network with other people

When you maintain good relationships with other individuals, it can be positive for your mental health. First, it would give you a good sense of belonging and it would improve your self-worth.

Additionally, networking allows you to hear positive experiences from other people, and you will also get the chance to share yours. If you are looking for a solid support system that will provide emotional support, you can get it from networking with people.

Practice gratitude

Another way to boost your mental health is to show gratitude. You can begin by writing down the things you are grateful for.

When you practice this daily, you will realize that there are so many things going on in your life that you are not aware of. This will help you recognize some ongoing positive things and appreciate them more.

Give to people

Another way to improve your mental wellbeing is to practice giving. When you give to people, it creates a feeling of positivity and fulfillment. This habit imbues a sense of purpose and self-worth. Additionally, it is another chance to connect with people.

When it comes to giving, you don’t have to wait till you have too much. However, all you need do is give the little you can. You will be surprised that it will meet people’s needs.

Learn new skills

When you learn new skills it can enhance your well-being. It helps you build grit, self-confidence and a sense of purpose. These new skills will improve the quality of your life and help you make new connections.

Sleep regularly

Getting enough night’s rest is quintessential to improving your mental wellbeing. Researchers have advised that everyone should get between 7-8 hours of sleep each night, as this habit has untold benefits.

Self-destructive habits are behaviors that have the tendency to harm the individual and those around them. Over the years, these bad habits develop to be a part of the individual and it often ends negatively.

For people who are moody or slightly depressed, one common habit they have is abusing drugs or alcohol. They have swallowed the faux belief that these substances come in handy when you are depressed or feeling sad. In the mid-term and long-term, they will have physical health and mental health problems.

Also, asides taking substances, these same people would prefer to keep to themselves rather than speak with other people. They prefer self-isolation to mingling with people, without being aware that this affects their mental health as well.

It is easier for someone who is self-isolating to pick up bad habits, because they are all by themselves. There is no one available to correct them and this further encourages their bad habits.

The state of mental health of an individual largely depends on what the person surrounds themselves with. Bad habits thrive when the environment alongside with other factors, are favorable.

Someone who speaks negatively to himself would most likely have a poor mental health, than someone who has a positive disposition. The individual who is negatively inclined would also take steps that do not tend towards self-improvement.

As humans, we are the end-results of our thoughts-process and behavior. So, our mental health is largely dependent on what we indulge ourselves in.

It is important to stay away from self-destructive habits that have a large tendency to negatively impact your mental health. One way to achieve this is by self-discipline. And this self-discipline can be implemented by identifying those habits.

When you know those habits that are affecting your mental health, then it is important to take action by seeking help.

In addition, it is also vital to run regular checks on yourself by visiting a rehab or a healthcare provider.

Self-destructive habits are what we do that add little or nothing to our lives. These are habits that affect our productivity, mental power and performance. The tricky aspect about these habits is, they do not look harmless. But you will be surprised at the extent of damage done when you realize the habits have eaten into you.

The good part is, these self-destructive habits can be combatted. Below are some of these habits

1. Self-defeating mindset: People who have this mindset are bound to fail at what they do. The reason for this is, they do not believe in themselves. They underrate themselves to the extent that they are always pessimistic. When such people fail at a particular expedition that is the end! They see no reason in trying again.

Solution: To fix this kind of habit, it is important to always believe the best about yourself. You can start out by speaking positive things to yourself each day. See each challenge as a stepping stone to a greater level.

• Laziness: This is one of the greatest self-destructive habits. People who are lazy shy away from responsibilities. They believe they are not meant for such and there are other people who are naturally wired to do them. However, they fail to understand that, highly successful people are not lazy. When they do not succeed at something, they muster ample courage to continue.

Solution: Combatting laziness can be achieved by finding something that motivates you. In a nutshell, the proficient antidote for laziness is motivation.

• Abuse of alcohol and drugs: This is one of the habits that destroys both the physical and mental health of an individual. Abuse of these substances makes one miserable, and people make the bad habit of taking these substances anytime they are feeling depressed and worthless

Solution: Abuse of alcohol and drugs can be combatted by seeking help from a reputable rehab.

• Social isolate: People who make decisions to stay away from family and those that care about them, think they are doing themselves good. However, they fail to realize that they are inducing self-harm. We need people around us to keep us mentally stable; people who would always run checks on us.

Solution: To kill this habit, you can start by attending social events periodically. Once you begin to get comfortable with it, you can increase the regularity.

When you are fully aware of your needs, it does not suggest that you would be motivated enough. There is a need for you to also access your needs. First and foremost, you need to realize that when you feel helpless or lazy, it just means that you have not been able to fulfil your needs.
It also implies that the sense of growth is not felt any longer, and you do not have any control over your environment.

It also suggests that the sense of connection which you have with others, has been severed.
One of the most essential ways of ensuring that you do not feel this way, is to start making attempts to meet your needs.

Doing this has many approaches, which includes coming to terms with the fact that there is a need for you to create a measurable goal, put yourself in a situation when it is impossible for you to win, and also receiving something on a free basis.

The following steps are quintessential in aiding you to leave the helpless state:
Border yourself with triggers: Whatever surrounds you has the capacity to affect your thought pattern and behaviour.

There are a good number of ways whereby you can motivate yourself to get into action. You can decide to fix automated emails, calendar updates and the likes, which would remind you to remain focused or go through with any specific action.

Scheme an exciting event: Another feasible way of ensuring that you leave the helpless state, is to plan an event which would leave you in the excited state. You can decide to go in a date to eat out, or probably see a movie. You can also decide to go for a long walk with anyone you deem fit.

Ponder on rejection: When you get rejected, it should not be an avenue for you to be depressed. Rather, it should be an opportunity for you to feel motivated that you can perform much better.

Celebrate yourself: One thing which you must never do, is to look down on yourself as a failure. Whenever something does not work out successfully with you, it should serve as a motivation to you that you can perform much better.

Knowledge is a weapon. However, accurate knowledge is a better weapon. It is seemingly difficult to overcome a vice where little or no knowledge about the possibility of freedom is unknown.
As a matter of fact, we all find men and women, including adolescents, doing self-destructive things, at one point or the other. Behaviour is said to be self-destructive when it is harmful or potentially harmful towards the person who engages in the behavior. Self-destructive behaviours may be deliberate, born of impulse, or developed as a habit. They are actions that negatively impact our mind or body by the life choices we make. More obvious forms of self-destructive behaviours are eating disorders, alcohol abuse, drug addictions, sex addiction, self-injury, and suicide attempts, or a host of other behaviours that feel helpful in the moment but harmful overtime.
Self-destructive behaviours are basically inexhaustible and usually occur for quite a number of reasons. The major ones include: Childhood trauma via sexual and physical abuse. As a matter of reality, it does have deep psychological effects and imbalances on such individuals. Amongst other causes include disrupted parental care. It is generally caused by loss, pain, or other trauma, often occurring early in a person’s life. Self-destructive behavior appears in many forms, including antisocial, addictive and compulsive behavior, self-injury, neediness, and irresponsibility and tends to become worse if indulged.
Nearly all forms of self-destructive behavior tend to have a negative effect on physical health. Whether it’s not eating, overeating, self-mutilation, unhealthy sexual activity or abuse of alcohol. Not only is the physical health of such individuals threatened, also is the emotional health.
The following are possible means of overcoming self-destructive behaviours
Turn toward the problem: one of the biggest problems with making life changes is that we tend to avoid thinking about the problem. Look at the problem. Acknowledge it, and then you overcome it.
Learn to believe that you can: in the beginning, you probably have doubts that you can stick to this change. If you want to change your eating, you can’t change it all at once. It’s not realistic. Pick one change, and be specific.
Find support: Ask your partner or good friend, or family to support you. If you don’t have anyone supportive around you, find a group online.
Those with self-destruct behaviours can be helped if they have someone to talk about it. If it is noticed that they frequently engage in such acts, then there is an urgent need to caution them and if possibly stop them from doing so.