Ten things you didn't know

10 things you didn’t know can improve your mental health - according to science!

Did you know a lot of simple day-to-day things can help our mental health? I didn't. I certainly didn't know pooping did. Also weird things, like negative thoughts. No, really. Scientifically, that's important for our mental state.

Mental health is important for so many different reasons. Relationship failures are often related to depression, stress, and anxiety. If you’re not feeling quite yourself, maintaining a healthy friendship, romantic relationship or even family relationship is very difficult.

Mental health also is a big contributor to production and motivation. With a healthy mental state, I feel that push to try new things. To venture beyond my typical comfort zone. This is personally one of my favorite lists so far. Mental health is very important and to know simple things that help, is great. Follow me on this interesting read to find out oddly exciting things that help our brains and slightly disappointing things too.

CAMPING! According to countless studies, camping can help boost your mood and energy levels! Who knew modern regressing would mentally progress us? Phsycreg.org outlines, ironically, 10 different ways camping actually helps our mental state, from helping us appreciate things, to even helping with sleep quality. (WHAT?) I wonder if that’s because sleeping during camping is so uncomfortable. By the end of your trip, all you have to do is lay on your bed for approximately 14 seconds to fall asleep. But also, the campfire and s’mores are a helping factor I think. I don’t know about all of you, but the entire camping process is one of my favorite summer activities.

Wildlife is a bonus as well. I’ve seen moose plenty of times here in Colorado while camping, I saw a baby moose one time too. For me, baby animals are an immediate serotonin jump. Like ducklings - they are just so little and FLUFFY.

Exercising! That’s right - to achieve mental clarity you have to experience physical exhaustion. Personally, I don’t enjoy exercise much. I prefer sitting on the couch typing a list of ten ways to improve mental health (wink). But seriously, the science is in and it shows it actually does help produce that happy brain stuff called endorphins! Mayo.org even says it helps to take your mind off things - maybe that’s because the only thing you can think about is trying to catch your breath and using your legs that now feel like noodles, to walk.

Another reason exercising helps our mental state is because it boosts our self-esteem, which is very important. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I suppose it’s time to get a gym membership.

Sunsets! No, really. Sunsets. They can actually relieve stress, in turn improving mental health. Now that’s more up my alley. Sunsets are amazing! Agoldlining.com states that it even helps long-lasting satisfaction in day-to-day moments. How cool is that? Watching the natural motion of the sky from day to night actually helps long-term. I guess that means I have to get some exercise to go see the sunset. Does that mean I get double the benefits? Also, sunrises! This actually helps more for the nervous system because of the sun's benefits. But also, the absolutely calming beauty surely is a benefit too. It also helps you get your day started. There’s not much better mental clarity than watching the sunrise while it’s nice and cool in the morning, birds are chirping and the slow of the human race is still occurring. Early morning is my favorite time of day.

Scents! Not the money kind, either. Lemon, lavender, cinnamon and peppermint to name a few. The reason behind that is because smelling things sends messages to a part of our brain called the limbic system which controls memory and emotion. Incredible. All I needed was a lemon to not get frustrated with parallel parking. Looks like I’ll be buying some incense for my car tonight! Flowers are actually a great gift idea for mom’s on mothers day, especially when it’s accompanied by a warm bath. I’ll have to let my husband know.

Food cooking always makes me happy. I associate the smell of Turkey with Thanksgiving and the smell of Ham with Christmas and even those associations make me happy.

Rain! I love the smell of rain. I’ve never heard anyone say “I hate that smell!” Of course, this is one of the main reasons scents are known to boost your mental health - memories are shockingly important for our happiness.

Cleaning! Ugh.. I knew it. I just didn’t want to address it. Reluctantly, I’m acknowledging that cleaning your home, car or even outside, can help depression, anxiety and stress. That doesn’t seem possible to me. Just because of the sheer despise I have towards dishes and laundry. I will say though, once it’s done I’m a much happier “camper” (HA). For me, I enjoy getting rid of things as well, in the long run, it’s less to clean. Also, pinesol smells great, so that’s an added bonus.

Organizing is also a great way to relieve stress and anxiety. Plus it’s fun. At least for me. It makes it much easier to do daily things and not having to find it every time, which can induce stress and anger.

Eating healthy - specifically vegetables! If this list does anything, it’s definitely showing why I’m on antidepressants and have anxiety. Studies seem to show having a well balanced diet filled with vegetables, fruit, and water - can improve your mood. What a world we live in when green beans can help me smile. I’ll definitely be making day to day changes after this! I’m discreetly enjoying these facts because all of these are giving me reasons to get healthy.

My entire childhood and honestly adulthood I’ve never enjoyed most vegetables. Plenty of studies show that even just the nutrition in vegetables helps stabilize mood but also the act of taking care of your health is detrimental to your mental state.

Work! No! No! Not work! “Honey I’m home from working myself to the bones, and I’m MUCH happier!” Apparently, work helps stabilize our moods. This seems like a cruel joke. I mean, for people who have a job they love, I get it. But for those who work in a cubicle from 9-5, it just seems counterproductive that something you don’t enjoy actually boosts your mental state. Interesting, very interesting. Bumming news for us stay-at-some-moms. I’m kidding, I absolutely adore my “job”. I prefer cute babies to just about all adults.

Working is also known to help your mental state by having a schedule and being needed. It’s also nice to be able to provide for yourself and family. I don’t even have to mention it, but we can also treat ourselves which personally always makes me feel a little better.

Pooping! Yes, yes. Really, pooping! No wonder my baby is always smiling. What about that scent though? That does raise some questions on number 4 of this list. Do gross smells negatively affect the mood? I guess that’s another list for another time! On any account, poo happiness is because of the Vagus Nerve, which actually helps A LOT of things in your body, like internal organs, digestion, heart rate, respiratory rate, and things like coughing, sneezing, swallowing, and puking. So apparently, pooping is a very happy thing to do. It’s also important for gut health, obviously. But I don’t think most people realize how much gut health affects mental health. If you stick around with my lists, I’ll write more on that too! Maybe that’s why my husband takes 30 minutes to poop while I handle all of the children… That has to be it.

Negative thoughts! That’s an interesting one. This is actually fairly important to our well-being. A main reason for this is suppressing thoughts makes it so we can’t fully enjoy the enjoyable things. I guess that makes sense. I mean, how fun would a roller coaster be without the highs and lows? You would simply just be “coasting” until it’s over. Interestingly, it also helps us communicate better. It’s also known to improve mental fogginess and decision making. On a more controversial note, it’s also an evolutionary growth for humans. That’s interesting, now I’m wondering if dogs and cats also have negative thoughts. Or if that’s just a human trait. Here’s more on that interesting read: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/03/why-negative-thoughts-are-good-for-well-being/#:~:text=Negative%20thoughts%20are%20actually%20vital,sadness%20in%20the%20human%20experience.

Parties! FINALLY! I knew it! Parties help our brains and emotions and I think that in itself is worthy of a party. Did you know celebration is actually a natural human tendency? Weird little mammals we are. Next time someone asks me why I have so many little parties, this is my excuse. They mustn’t dare mess with one's mental health. Right? The balloons have to play a part and the presents!

Thank you for reading and diving a little into the way I process facts! Go boost your mental health now. It’s important!