Hi!
Welcome back to my blog. Today I am going to be writing about some of my new year's resolutions! In 2019, I have decided to set myself realistic and attainable goals and resolutions which I can make habits so that 2019 is a healthy and happy year for me! I am going to be sharing a few of them on this blog so that I can hopefully help convince you to choose some of them as your own or to show you how I am hoping to change my habits and become a more positive and healthier person.
Additionally, my mental health is not great and I have suffered from anxiety for a couple of years now. Many people who struggle with their mental health will understand that It can be difficult to sometimes learn ways to cope with pressure and stress. For me, academic pressure and physical problems have been the main reasons for my anxiety, which affects me everyday. I hope this list will also be helpful for others who need to learn ways to cope with stress.
Here are a few of the ones I have chosen :)
1) BEING HEALTHIER
I am working on becoming healthier by not only having a healthier diet and eating less junk food, but also exercising more as I aim to start new sports and become more active. Not only is this an achievable goal but I am sure that it will be beneficial for my concentration, relaxation and to reduce stress in the future. Exercise and physical activity will help produce endorphins in the brain which are chemicals that act as natural painkillers to reduce negative thoughts and stress.
Whether for you being healthy is to stop eating as much cake, or to spend less time on screens , to reduce stress or maybe to drink more water. Whatever it is, make a note of it in your diary or planner to ensure that slowly your goal can be achieved and over time you will be healthier.
2) GETTING THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF SLEEP
Getting more quality sleep is really important. With smartphones, tablets, computers and tv's getting the right amount of sleep can be difficult. Many people tend to go on their phones at night, but the blue light which is emitted from a phone can have some serious health consequences if you use your phone at night. It can Impair your memory, cause depression and some evidence suggests that it can damage your retina over time. And on top of all that, using your phone at night means that is likely to become a habit which will continue each night, making it more difficult for you to sleep. By turning your phone off at least an hour before you go to bed, you are much more likely to get the good night sleep that your body needs to function properly the next day.
You could do a more positive thing, such as reading a book an hour before you sleep in the space of time in which you would usually spend on your phone. Not only would this be a more relaxing end to the day and guarantee a better nights sleep, but books are an excellent way to gain knowledge on a huge variety of topics and also good exercise for the brain.
3) STOP PROCRASTINATING ON MY PHONE
This is so important! Phones are a big distraction, whether you are trying to revise for exams or just spend time with family and friends. Especially for children and teenagers, it can be difficult to not be tempted to take your phone with you everywhere and spend every minute of the day on it. But honestly, the internet and social media is not entirely realistic and it is not healthy to spend obscene amounts of time online. Try and do something more positive and limit the amount of time you spend on specific apps. Recently, Instagram introduced the 'my activity' setting which shows you how long you are on the app for. You could use this as a guideline to know how long you spend on social media or you could set a daily reminder (on Instagram) for a limit of time to spend on the app. You will then receive a reminder when you reach that limit of time.
If you have a newly- updated iPhone then you could also check in settings to see how much time you spend on your phone. Additionally, you can set a password onto screen time to limit your time on certain apps. You could also get a family member to write down a password so that you then can't get back onto the apps once your limited screen time is up. This is a really useful setting which I use everyday! If you don't have an iPhone then you can always install apps or use your settings to show how much time you have spent online.
4) START YOGA OR REFLEXOLOGY TO REDUCE STRESS
Yes counselling or going to the doctors to talk about your mental health can be helpful, but doing yoga is super beneficial. So many people (especially younger people!) dismiss yoga as stupid or boring, but it is useful and worth-while. Yoga is not only about twisting your body into different poses, but it is also about breathing and relaxation. Practicing yoga builds your ability to stay calm, focused and to learn to relax yourself. Additionally, it is easy to do at home as no equipment is needed!
I also do reflexology often as it helps with reducing stress and anxiety. Reflexology is focused on massaging the head and feet to release feel-good hormones. It therapeutically reduces stress and tension in your body to improve blood circulation. Reflexology also improves your mental health as many people can use the massaging techniques to reduce anxiety and stress in their lives. I find both yoga and reflexology equally rewarding as they relax me and set my day off to a better start.
5) BECOMING A MORE POSITIVE PERSON
Becoming more positive and happy is really important. I am trying to cope with my anxiety and learn new ways to reduce my stress so that I can become a happier and positive person. It takes time and patience to learn how to find happiness in the little things in life and to not to let your problems bring you down. Negative people, things and conversations can be difficult to erase, so make sure that you spend less time with negative people who impact your well-being or on social media where everything is very unrealistic and sometimes negative.
I am trying to become more positive by setting all these goals which I hope will make me a happier and healthier person...
Thank you so much for reading this post. I hope you liked it! If you did, please make sure to like and share this blog, I would really appreciate it! Also, please make sure to comment some of your own New Year's resolutions which I did not include!
I hope you all have a fab 2019! New blog will be coming soon.
All photos in the blog are not my own, they are free from wix.
Beth Lucy