Around 1 in 4 people will experience a mental health problem this year. You are not alone in feeling anxious, tired, lonely, and burn out. Here at LID Publishing, we want to help break the stigma around mental health and make wellbeing more accessible.
Below are 7 excerpts from some of the books that we hope will help you manage stress, deal with negative emotions, and find calm in a hectic world.
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The power of breathing
“We all differ in how we show we’re anxious. There’s often a sense of restlessness, feeling twitchy, having sweaty palms or a flushed face, breathing more quickly, feeling light-headed or having more headaches and migraines. It can feel quite debilitating […..] Monitor your breathing; inhale through your nose slowly, hold for a few moments, and exhale through your mouth slowly. Regulating breathing helps to reduce your heart rate and give you a sense of control and calmness.”
(The Crisis Book, Rick Hughes, Andrew Kinder & Cary Cooper)
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Positive nutrition
“Plan your meals on a meal planner (and accept that it will go horribly wrong). More often, even if it means getting up from your desk often, Never eat your lunch or any other meal at your desk or wandering around the streets. […] Always enjoy your food and keep that in the forefront of your mind. And most of all, don’t forget the power you have to change our planet’s future health by the choices you make with your food ‘dollar’.”
(Positive Nutrition, Kate Cook)
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A Mindful Mantra
“Gently notice your temptation to move away from painful or unsettling thoughts, feelings, and emotions. Instead, turn toward them and let them be without getting entangled in them. Find a willingness to sit with them and look at them. If this is too difficult, focus your body to put some space between your thoughts and the problem. Note your bodily sensation and remind yourself that you’re not trying to change them, but to explore them with curiosity. Tell yourself that it is okay to feel this. Soften your body, relaxing more deeply with every breath. Let your thoughts be. Treat yourself with kindness and compassion; embracing the things that cannot be changed and accepting the new reality takes time and courage. Through the difficulty, remember not to neglect the sweet spots of life still available to you.”
(The Mindfulness Book, Martin Newman)
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Altering your attitude
“Consider what lies ahead today, and what is it that you want to happen, who do you want to be /need to be? Write it down and keep it visible or in easy reach, perhaps on the back of a business card or clipped to your PC screen. Read and remind yourself of your intention when you feel off-course. Set your intention and let go of it! Gripping tightly to an intention makes it a ‘have to’, which closes down other new options, or better and different things. Hold your intentions lightly.”
(The Attitude Book, Simon Tyler)
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Finding your purpose
“When you are on purpose you are in flow. You unlock the necessary skillset to thrive in today’s complex and unpredictable world […] How do you know when you’re on purpose? A purpose energizes. It strengthens resilience, helps people be at their best, enables creative flow, ignites passion, and inspires. A purpose connects authentically. You certainly don’t need to be in touch with all these characteristics on a consistent basis to be on purpose; however, paying attention to them will give you a good indication about whether you are on track or not.”
(Purpose, Ben Renshaw)
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How to practice progressive relaxation:
- Get comfortable in a chair, with your feet flat on the floor and your hands in your lap, and close your eyes.
- Spend 5 minutes relaxing your whole body. Start by focusing your attention on your toes, and then consciously relax them. Some people like to tense the muscles first and then let them loose.
- Once your toes are relaxed, relax your feet, ankles, calves, knees, thighs, and so on, all the way to the top of your head, and even your face.
- When you are done, in your own time, open your eyes.”
(The Brain Book, Phil Dobson)
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Taking positive action against stress:
- Keep on top of your physical and emotional health; this means paying attention to eating healthily, keeping fit, making time to relax, not smoking and watching how much alcohol you’re drinking.
- Look how organized you really are. A major factor in our increasing stress levels is feeling that we have a lack of control over our lives. Use one method to organize your day and your life, take a break at every opportunity, be realistic about how long a task will take, and keep communicating, especially if things aren’t going to plan.
- Stop…and relax! Developing your ability to unwind after you’ve had a bad day will reduce your stress levels and help give you a positive outlook moving forward.
- Change the way you think; try to use more positive vocabulary and take a step back from a situation to weigh up all the evidence before you reach any conclusions or make decisions.
- Don’t be afraid to put yourself first.”
(Positive Male Mind, Dr. Shaun Davis & Andrew Kinder)
If you would like to learn about World Mental Health Day, visit Mind.org website for more information.
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