In an insane world, it is hard to stay sane. Every day we are faced with issues that test our ability to keep level. If you feel or find yourself overwhelmed with the daily duty of living, or prevent getting to that point, try these tips.
Body
A healthy body contributes to a healthy mind!
Food: One can’t expect to be at one’s best if one doesn’t eat well. Everything in moderation is the key. Steering clear of foods high in cholesterol and salt, eating more beans, rice, and fresh veggies can help your body stay in balance. Eating a whole-foods, plant-based diet can prevent most common illnesses. Diet also directly affects energy levels and moods, the healthier you eat, the better you feel. Drinking lots of water is essential in maintaining energy, flushing out toxins, and preventing headaches related to dehydration.
Sleep: Sleep is essential for mental wellbeing. The average person should get between 6 and 8 hours each night, but everyone is different. There are accounts of people only needing a couple of hours of sleep a night! If you aren’t getting enough, try to plan some mid-day naps if possible, even 20 minutes does wonders (then the midnight dumpstering won’t leave you fatigued and grouchy). If you are having sleeping problems in general, check out our herb guide.
Mind
To survive in this world, we need to be able to take our minds back.
Meditation: Meditation can clear the mind of useless crap that often finds its way into our brains and mentally exhaust us. Setting up group meditation can allow trading of ideas and techniques. Solidarity meditation can help you with everyday stress and anxiety.
Create: Learning to express yourself in creative ways can help much of your problems by allowing yourself to see them by bringing them to the surface. Take up an instrument, cook, garden, build, paint, or carry a writing or sketching pad with you. Allow your everyday life to become an expression of self!
Panic Attacks
Given the amount of things we are forced to deal with everyday, it is easy to become overwhelmed and stressed. These are some tips on how to deal with panic attacks. Use as a person having a panic attack or a friend helping.
-Breathe! Keep your breathing steady, exhale twice as long as you inhale. Count your breaths. This will calm your breathings and keep you from hyperventilating.
-Remove yourself from crowded areas. If you are with a friend, take them with you. If not, it’s okay to do this alone.
-Come back to your body by having your friend hold you, or hold yourself. Sit somewhere soft and remember to breathe, rocking back and forth, until you come back to your body. Walking around also helps to put your body and breath back in rhythm.
-If alone, call friends until you reach someone. Tell them what you are feeling and what is going on. This will give you support from someone you trust.
-Don’t fight it. Letting the feeling come will be helpful. Fighting it will just create more stress and anxiety, the ebb and flow of emotions is natural.
Accepting yourself
The best thing to do is accept yourself with your problems. We are taught to hold back and act “normal.” It is totally natural to cry or get angry. When we learn about each other and our emotions, we become connected in ways that are unmatched by anything our society has ever seen. Making real honest emotional connection with others, ourselves, and our communities gives us the strength to fight the system.
Note: This is not meant to be a guide for people with serious mental illness. If that is the case, these suggestions most likely will not be enough. If you are dealing with someone who suffers a serious mental illness, we encourage you to find help, which is respectful and appropriate, whether social, psychological, or a combination.