Banish These 3 Things From Your Life For Better Mental Health

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Sometimes to get well, we need to minimise or cut things from our lives that are doing us more harm than good. Read about three of the most important things to banish for better mental health below.

Negative self talk

First of all, if you want your mental health and reduce anxiety to improve then learning to recognize and disregard negative self-talk is vital.

Negative self-talk is one of those things that seems like it's coming from ‘us’ but is just another way of our brains trying to protect us from danger. The idea being that your brain warns you of things that could cause problems for you in your life. Unfortunately, most people don't realise that it's their brain trying to protect them, or that they don't have to believe everything it says. Oh, and very few understand that the brain can't tell the difference between bad behaviour and a bad person!

                                                              

Of course, the trick is in being able to disregard it, because as human beings you will never be able to banish it fully, indeed, trying to do this can be counterproductive. Instead, why not use a strategy such as thanking your negative thoughts and then redirecting your attention elsewhere? You can even treat them as a radio playing in the background that you aren't paying attention to, as this can help to minimise their effect on how we feel.

Smoking

No judgments here, as no one is perfect many people choose to smoke cigarettes because they feel it helps them cope with their anxiety. The ironic thing about smoking is that while it feels like it helps in the moment, it's making things worse. After all, smacking is not only terrible for your general health but limits the amount of oxygen that can travel around your body, something that is known to trigger or intensify the anxiety response!

Of course, when it comes to quitting some folks choose to go cold turkey. Although, there is no shame if this option isn't right for you. Indeed, many people find a more gradual quitting process much easier to manage, particularly if they are suffering from mental health issues.

Others choose to invest in a vape, an item you can click here to learn more about. The reason being that they offer the opportunity to cut down nicotine consumption in a graduated way, while still offering an alternative habit that can be soothing.

Too much junk food

Now, don't get me wrong, junk food can be delicious and who doesn't love to dig into a tasty pizza or crispy fries as a treat? However, too much of the stuff can cause problems for us, especially in terms of mental health.
 

                                                             

After all, our bodies are very financially tuned, organic machines and if we don't fuel them with the right nutrients they can easily become thrown off balance. Indeed, recent studies show that a great deal of serotonin which is a vital element for good mental health is produced in the gut, so how could what we eat not have a direct effect on how we feel? With that in mind, a healthy balanced diet is as vital to good mental health as any other change you can make.