Words by Margaret Garland
Looking after your mental health in the current climate is just as important as looking after your physical health. The Wellbeing Team has come up with some strategies to help you and your child through a unique start to the school year.
1. Make a plan – put together a list of actions that you can implement daily. It may also help to identify potential stressors and find a strategy to minimalize their impact.
2. Focus on your strengths – We can often take our strengths for granted and under-value them however they can be extremely useful when facing challenges or trying to achieve goals. Take a moment to identify your strengths, write down as many as you can and how they might be helpful with the challenges you are facing. For e.g. Your strength could be creativity, how will that be helpful?
3. Have a holistic approach – taking care of yourself;
· Physically – spend time in the fresh air, exercise, drink water, adequate sleep
· Mentally – take time to reflect, develop a gratitude journal, music, art, pets
· Spiritually – pray, read God’s Word, encourage others, take in God’s creatio
4. Recognize there will be challenges. There often are stressful situations and anticipating them helps us to create strategies to manage them effectively. Being prepared for known stressors allows us to put some solutions in place to minimalize the disruption.
5. Keep in contact with family and friends. Have a support network that you can lean on in times of need. Celebrate your successes with them and talk through your challenges with them
