How to be kind to yourself this world mental health day
02 October 2023
Nicola Heath, Psychology Subject Advisor
This blog was originally published in March 2020 by Phoebe Davis and Lucy Carey. The content has since been updated by Nicola Heath.
World Mental Health Day is on 10 October and is a time to reflect on our own mental health and ways we may be able to improve it. In this blog I’ve shared some research and ideas that might help you think about how to stay calm and be kind to yourself.
Managing your emotions
We know that being a student can be stressful at times and you’ve probably been told to try and think positively about a situation. In fact, that might not be bad advice at all. Work published by Vikram Chib found that changing your view of a stressful situation can reduce panicking and improve performance. You can read more about this in an article published by the British Psychological Society. So thinking positively about mock exams, presentations or that tricky lesson might actually help. In other words, ‘fake it till you make it’, and it just might work.
Another way of coping with difficult emotions is to balance them out by experiencing more positive emotions, like hope, gratitude, joy, excitement, and inspiration. Positive emotions have been proven to develop resilience and help manage stress during times of change.
Practising gratitude can be very powerful and lead to long term benefits. You can start small by taking the time to say thank you to people who have genuinely been kind or helpful. Why not make a habit of writing down three things you are grateful for each day and placing them in a jar or write them in a journal?
Think about what makes you happy, and try to do those things where possible. Sometimes we don’t really acknowledge the things we enjoy, but if you’re doing something you like, really take the time to appreciate it in the moment. If putting up Christmas decorations in November inspires you and brings joy, don’t let anyone stop you! There is nothing wrong with buying Christmas duvet covers in September, and there’s nothing wrong with celebrating Halloween throughout the whole of October.
Tips for managing stress
Remember stress and anxiety are feelings that everyone will experience from time to time. Everyone reacts differently to these emotions and that’s okay – we want to help you manage that stress though, and here are some tips:
- Keep in touch with people. See people face-to-face when you can, or give them a call. Talk to your friends, talk to your family, talk about school or talk about anything but school. The same applies with your teachers – and ask for advice if you need it..
- Exercise. Don’t sit at home feeling anxious, break up your day by keeping active. If it’s cold, wrap up warm and bring a hot drink with you. Go pumpkin spotting at the end of October, or Christmas decoration spotting come December. If you’d rather stay home, look online for exercise videos. The NHS ideas for exercise is a great place to get started or learn some new techniques.
- Get enough sleep. Even though it’s starting to get darker earlier, once you arrive home don’t sleep on the sofa all evening and end up being awake all night – a regular sleep pattern is still important. And don’t start going to bed at 8pm just because it’s dark. Read a book, have a bath or talk to a friend, then go to bed at your usual time. You can read more about healthy sleep and good “sleep hygiene” at Headspace.
- Limit screen time. Try not to check your phone all the time. Constantly checking Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and other apps can be stressful if the only topics are negative. Keep an eye on how you’re feeling – there is some evidence that scrolling but not posting or commenting makes us feel worse.
- Stay calm. Mindfulness, meditation or yoga may help you to feel calm. Your usual app store will have lots of apps for you to download and try.
- Start a bullet journal. Some find these journals a good way to plan, reflect and meditate, whilst letting your creativity flow. There are no wrong or right ways to do these diaries, but you can search on YouTube and Instagram for tips and ideas to help you. Read more about bullet journals on BBC Bitesize.
There are resources available on the Mental Health Foundation’s dedicated World Mental Health Day website. And advice is also available from the NHS website, which talks about five steps to mental wellbeing.
Reaching a tipping point?
Feeling stressed is not the same as feeling overwhelmed by anxiety. Here are some symptoms you might have if you are finding it difficult to cope:
- You feel frightened, nervous or panicky all the time.
- You can’t sleep.
- You have no appetite or are overeating.
- You can’t concentrate on anything.
- You’re suffering from palpitations – your heart feels like it’s racing.
If you are experiencing symptoms like these, there are people who can help you. Talk to your family, a teacher who knows you well, a friend or your GP.
If you don’t want to talk to somebody face-to-face, here are some organisations that can help you:
Final thought
Be kind to yourself and others. It’s normal to have days where you don’t feel like yourself. Chances are, at some point you’ll speak to someone who’s having a bad day, and that’s okay. We don’t have to be cheerful all the time but be kind to everyone (including yourself) and soon there will be something else to focus on and be joyful about.
Stay connected
Share your thoughts in the comments below. If you have any questions, you can email us at psychology@org.uk call us on 01223 553998 or tweet us @ocr_psychology. You can also sign up to subject updates to keep up-to-date with the latest news, updates and resources.
About the author
Nicola joined OCR in 2022 as the Subject Advisor for Psychology. Prior to joining OCR, she taught psychology for over 10 years and had various other responsibilities in that time including being Head of Year. SENDCo and Subject Leader for PSHE. Nicola has a personal interest in mental health and wellbeing and enjoys reading, baking and spending time outdoors to relax.