Healthy Lifestyle Checklist of Simple Tools for Mental Health

 INTRODUCTION

In this Post I have described my initial focus in psychotherapy. I believe most folks who come to see me are troubled by obsessive thinking that is Brain Mind connected. If there is no change to this stuck Brain structure, other changes are very difficult. They will take extra time and energy.

These simple tools provide the avenue to a grown-up-person-brain when used regularly. It is my conviction that most people have all the brain resources they need to be successful. 

My hope is for all to use these simple, effective tools for joy, satisfaction, and relief while respecting self, others, and situations.

The Checklist             

I have listed some suggestions that are helpful with supporting healthy mood and thinking. Please remember these suggestions are not prescriptions. Check these with your physician or pharmacist to make sure there are no interactions with your current regimen. These researched suggestions are as up to date as I am aware. When you start feeling better --- keep doing these things!

Step One: Behavioral

_____ Sing, whistle, hum, chant or wear earphones while listening to music – the rhythmic vibration of your brain soothes your cingulate gyrus by helping you make endorphins and anandamides. This is to stop rumination - obsessive/crowded/racing thoughts. Rumination is the core problem of most mood and anxiety disorders. People ruminate, obsess, overthink, etc. ( They get stuck) processing things they can do nothing about or that they have already done all they can do. When you do that, you get tired, run out of brain chemicals that ordinarily make you feel better, and crank adrenaline into your system which becomes cortisol that stresses the system and can cause weight gain. It also leads to hormonal and metabolic difficulties. You are irritable, hyper-vigilant, pooped, cranky and desperate. If you keep it up, you're also anxious and panicky. The final outcome is the inability to access your strengths -- creativity, intelligence, experience, problem-solving skills, caring, nurturing, etc.

_____ Regular physical activity that is consistent with your physical state

_____ Relaxation training (preferably a deep muscle, progressive method - See the post)

_____ Breathing exercise: Inhale for a count of….4; Hold for a count of…...4; Exhale for a count of..... 8; repeat the sequence 10 times.

If you feel dizzy or light-headed, make sure you exhale completely. If the dizziness continues, consult your doctor. Make sure you are seated or lying down the first few time times you do this exercise and do it as your only activity.

_____I am feeling/thinking____________ and that’s OK with me and I’m OK with me.

Feelings and thoughts are pretty much out of our conscious control. You may be able to push them around for a while but all you get is worn out, lots of rumination or internal arguing and they come back anyway. The area where you are in charge is about behavior and choices,

Step Two: Nutrition

_____ You don’t have to eat a lot; it’s important to eat regularly. Mediterranean plan seems to do the best. It's a great reference for the types of foods and frequency of eating.

_____ Drink water to stay hydrated
 

Step Three: Supplements

_____ Take 1000mg or 1200mg of Omega3(fish) oil after eating. After a couple of days at one gelcap of fish oil, increase the fish oil to get at least 1000mg of EPA per day (look on the back of the bottle for the amount of EPA per dose; increase as appropriate) If you decide to take the capsule forms, they usually come in 1000mg or 1200mg and that’s OK. If you have difficulty with gelcaps, get flavored fish oil and take that. Try to find a double or triple strength fish oil -- that way, you only have to take 2 or 3 per day.

_____ Take a multi-vitamin/mineral daily

Additional Suggestions:
 

_____ Take 200-400mg of B6 and 200-400mcg of B12 daily – Get a B-100. (check with Doctor if taking statin meds)

_____ Take a minimum of 1000mg of Flaxseed oil (or Flaxseed granules)

copyright, 1998

 

CONCLUSION

If you have read this far, you have the tools to greatly improve your life. One of the difficulties to implementing these simple tools is their simplicity. 

Another is the inflexibility of the MIND. This inflexibility is the result of childhood programming of a little, not fully developed brain along with a mind overwhelmed. What 5 year old can screen write a responsive movie without regular updates?

Use the tools to bypass judgmental censorship or rigidity of the belief system. Try these tools! Read future posts for further tools and enrich your world view. Enjoy.