Mental Health Impacts Every Part of Your Life

You open your eyes lying in bed and think about how your day will play out. What you might not have realized before is how your mental health will have a direct and dramatic impact on everything that you do on that day. Your mental health is likely to have a bigger impact on the way that your day plays out than almost anything else going on in your life. 

Strengthening your mental health is a process and isn't accomplished all at once. Fortunately, there are small steps that you can take in the right direction to help get yourself to the place you want to be with your mental health. Understanding more about the various influences on your mental health is a good place to start. We will take a look at some of the myriad of things that have a direct impact on your mental health daily. 

Cultural Influences

There is seemingly no shortage of various cultures and sub-cultures that one might belong to. Each of those cultures can have at least some sway and pull on how an individual behaves. One way that culture has a huge impact on one's mental health is how culture influences if someone decides to seek mental health treatment in the first place. These impacts can be both positive and negative in nature. The National Library of Medicine explains: 

More often, culture bears on whether people even seek help in the first place, what types of help they seek, what types of coping styles and social supports they have, and how much stigma they attach to mental illness. Culture also influences the meanings that people impart to their illness.

Those who receive mental health services don't come just from one particular culture or sub-culture, but there are cultural influences that may cause some individuals to avoid seeking the care that they honestly need. It is imperative to understand how your own culture and sub-cultures can have an impact on your desire to seek out the mental healthcare services that you may require. 

At the same time, you should try to understand that there are aspects of the environments that you live in that can impact your mental health. A few examples of various cultural influences on your mental health include the following:

• Workplace Influences - Many of us spend as much or even more time with our co-workers as we do with our friends and family. Naturally, this means that the relationship that we have with the work that we do as well as the people that we work with will impact our mental health. Symptoms of poor mental health outcomes as a result of a less-than-desirable workplace might include feelings of a lack of purpose or burnout. Be mindful of these feelings if you begin to experience them. 
• Religious Influences - Those who are part of a religious community may find that it has a direct impact on their mental health. Those impacts can manifest in positive or negative ways depending on the individual. Being mindful of your relationship with your religion, your religious community, and the leaders within that community is highly important. 
• Social Influences - The friends that you make and the relationships that you build with those people will have an impact on your mental health. Again, this can manifest in both positive and negative ways depending on what your friends do. Don't be afraid to cut social ties with people who are causing a drain on your mental health. 

These are just a few of the influences that directly impact your mental health. There are many more that you interact with daily. Keep this in mind as you think about the kinds of people that you want to keep around you and the environments that you wish to put yourself in. 

Preventative Measures

We all have the ability and the responsibility to take care of our mental health. It is possible to use preventative measures to avoid falling further down the rabbit hole of poor mental health. You should take the following steps to 

• Get Good Sleep - We sleep approximately one-third of our entire lives, and it is essential to ensure that we get good sleep each night. Purdue University explains that good sleep is directly tied to good mental health. If you have been experiencing less than desirable sleep, then you should work on improving this immediately. 
• Remain Active - Not only is regular exercise good for keeping your muscles strong and maintaining a healthy weight, but it is also important for your mental health as well. Exercise at a gym is good, but getting outdoors and getting fresh air is even better according to research from UC Davis Health. 
• Keep Your Social Ties Strong - Reach out to the people who care about you regularly. You need to keep your social bonds strong and continue to maintain the connections that you have. This can help you to stay mentally healthy and have people to speak to when things aren't going your way. Make sure your personal relationships serve both you and the other person as well. 

These are a few of the things that you can do to keep your mental health strong and help make the most of your everyday life and experiences. 

Fuel Your Brain with Functional Ingredients

Your body requires fuel, and the results that you get from your body depend upon the quality of the fuel that you put into it. This is certainly true when it comes to your mental health. So, what are some of the foods that you should be eating regularly to keep yourself mentally strong? 

Foods with Antioxidants 

Make sure to include some foods that are full of antioxidants when you can. These antioxidants are a critical part of how your body breaks down the other foods that you eat. The good news? Some fun and tasty foods contain a significant amount of antioxidents within them. For example, very dark chocolate is a food that has plenty of antioxidants in it. 

Lean Proteins 

Another great addition to your diet is lean proteins which can provide you with the amino acids and energy that you require to power through your day. Healthline reports that good examples of the foods that fit into this category are lean poultry products, seafood, and grass-fed beef. There are plenty of exciting and delicious meals that you can make using these types of proteins. Add them into the rotation today. 

Foods to Improve Your Immunity 

Getting sick is never fun, and it can be a major drag on your mental health. If you have to stay away from your work, your family, and your friends for a prolonged period, you might experience negative impacts on your mental health. Consider adding chaga to your diet to help boost your immunity. It will help you stay healthy and avoid the possible consequences of being sick frequently. 

Hydrate for Clarity

The majority of the human body is made of water. Water is the critical component that makes all life possible. Therefore, it is extremely vital to remain well-hydrated to maintain your mental clarity and health. CNET reports the following about this: 

The brain needs water to function, and when there isn't enough, your cognitive abilities are compromised. Studies have found that dehydration is linked to impaired cognitive function and memory. Essentially, it makes it harder to concentrate, remember things and fight off brain fog.

The amount of water that an individual should drink daily can vary from person to person. However, almost all of us can benefit from consuming more water than we currently are. The USDA reports the following eye-opening statistic about water consumption within the United States:

• The average water consumption per individual in the United States consumes 3.9 cups of water per day. 

When we properly hydrate our bodies, our bodies will reward us with the mental clarity that we seek. Reaching that goal requires being mindful of our water consumption habits.

Sometimes things get busy and it is all too easy to forget to bring drink the amount of water that we know we should be drinking. To help yourself with this, you should make an effort to bring a water bottle with us wherever you go. Simply making this a habit in your life is a great way to get more water in than you might have otherwise. Also, consider carrying coconut water or water with trace minerals with you. These types of water contain electrolytes that help you retain water within your body and keep you better hydrated. 

Rituals for Relaxation 

Creating rituals in your life that you can stick to is an excellent way to put yourself in the right mental frame to handle each day. Human beings like patterns and routines, and establishing a good one for yourself that you can stick to is paramount. Start by making a list of the things that you need to get done for the day. Then, work in some time to focus on self-care. It might seem like your self-care time takes away from the other activities that you need to do for the day, but it doesn't need to. Rather, taking time to take care of yourself is something that you ought to do on a daily basis regardless. It is the best way to keep your mental health strong and ensure that you don't falter in your quest to improve your mental health. 

There are relaxation techniques that people throughout the world use to bring down their stress levels and maintain their mental health. Meditation is a great example of this. If you are unfamiliar with the practice, the Cleveland Clinic explains: 

Meditation is an ancient practice that dates back thousands of years. Despite its age, this practice is common worldwide because it has benefits for brain health and overall well-being. With the help of modern technology, researchers continue to expand their understanding of how meditation helps people and why it works.

Regularly practicing meditation may help reduce your stress levels and help you to have a better outlook on life. Don't get discouraged if the practice doesn't immediately click with you. Those who have been practicing meditation for a long time state that it takes a significant period of time to become fully immersed in it. The more that you practice meditation, the easier it tends to get. 

Nature's Impact on Mental Health

Human beings are naturally drawn to nature and to the origins of all life. It makes sense that getting back into nature is something that helps many people start feeling better and more connected with the world around them. 

Anyone can get out into nature and enjoy it. Even those who live in cities can find a neighborhood garden or local dog park that they can enjoy. When you are feeling like things might be dragging you down a little bit, you can always take yourself to a new location to refresh your mind. To enhance the experience even further, you should try to reach out to friends who can join you out in nature. It is a lot of fun to have a shared experience in nature, and you might find it easier to get out more often if you have people who can hold you accountable to get out and exercise. 

Nutrition's Impact on Mental Health

There are plenty of factors that influence your mental health as we have outlined here. Laird Superfood understands this and seeks to provide you with the foods that you require to improve your mental health and keep it maintained at a high level. Our products are clean, plant-based products that you can trust.