(*Possible trigger) I was quite shocked when I started my research for this article. I like to look for facts and there was actually no evidence that suicide rates go up over the holiday period at all, according to the Centre for Disease Control. (Call me your personal mythbuster.) I was under the impression that suicide rates would skyrocket with so many services being closed, but there are actually loads of places that are available to support you through this time.
Lets just keep this article short today as we know its not an easy subject to talk about. I’ve got some sites for you to look at if you need help, and I’ve got a few suggestions to help with those feelings. (Taken from many personal feelings of others in crisis).
Crisis Support
If you are in a crisis and you are in danger please call emergency services for help. Also, have a little look on https://www.samh.org.uk/about-mental-health/suicide/suicide-prevention and also https://www.mind.org.uk/ because they have lots of numbers for organisations that can help depending on your circumstances. There are so many reasons that you could be feeling this way and only you will know which service will suit your needs.
How can Distraction Help?
Something that may just help you is distraction. It sounds really simple, and whilst not underestimating the seriousness of the situation, suicidal feelings can pass sometimes within in the space of half an hour, we can actually feel much different. Some of the suggestions found when doing this research were a few ideas as simple as watching a film, listening to music, reading, exercising playing a game, or even be creative.
Break it down into small activities
It may feel like these are not things you can achieve when you feel so low, so just make it smaller. Listen to your favourite song. Read a short article. Walk outside to the end of the street then turn back. Watch a half hour programme. Play one game on your phone, or do one puzzle, or even just start one puzzle. It doesn’t have to be a huge profound action that changes everything instantly, all it needs to do is divert your thoughts to something more positive for a short time. Do not be hard on yourself if you manage to the bedroom and jump into bed instead of making it, you are still moving around.
Safety Precautions
If you really feel like harming yourself, try to try to find ways to keep yourself safe by locking medications away or ask friends or family to only give you the medication you need for a little while. Share your thoughts with trusted family members or a friend. Put sharp objects away in a hard to reach place for the time being.
Remind yourself of reasons to live. No matter how small they might seem right now. Write them down and add to this list whenever you can.
Stress, depression, anxiety and loneliness are common at this time of year and people can feel like a good way to avoid these feelings is by using drugs or alcohol. For people with addictions this time of year can be particularly difficult as alcohol seems to be limitless. Either drinking too much or mixing alcohol and drugs can be very dangerous.
How can we stay safe?
So, how can we be safe at this time of year? We can safety plan for it. If you are the person dealing with the addiction its important to try and stick to some kind of routine if possible. It may help to make a plan for each day. Eating regularly and getting enough sleep are also important. Most people would advise healthy foods, plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and a good exercise regime and that is fantastic if that is what you can manage, but whatever you feel your body can cope with is fine, just make sure you eat something.
Making a budget can also help to alleviate some stress over this time. It is important that you don’t go into withdrawal as this is also dangerous, so a budget can help to ensure this isn’t an added stress.
Achievements – no matter how small!!
Ask your friends and family to help you over this time. This could be doing something simple like getting a to-do list done for each day. Nothing is too small for a to-do list. If it consists of brushing your hair, brushing your teeth and eating a slice of toast, write it down and stick to it. No matter how small, its an achievement of what you need to do to get through this time.
Self Care
If get-togethers are too much for you, arrange to do something else. Maybe a friend could visit you, or go for a walk with you. If you meditate or do yoga etc, its a great way to de-stress but if you don’t, just find the time to breathe. Find a video for relaxation, there are plenty that will help you to slow your breathing and just find a bit of time each day for yourself to relax. Drink plenty of water if you can, or make some re-hydration salts and make that a part of your to-do list, as its an important part of looking after yourself. Make sure you know the signs off overdose and withdrawal and ask for help if you need it.
Friends and Family members
If you are a friend or family member of someone facing addiction, help them to make these lists. Encourage them to get out for a walk, or have shower or some kind of self care. It would also be great to do some research about the addiction your friend or family member is facing, and look up signs of overdose and withdrawal, so that you can get them help if needed. Drug addictions will differ as will alcohol so its best you research for the individual you care about. Ask how they are feeling and be there if they need to just talk. The biggest gift you can give them is genuine care.
Support
There are a number of organisations who can help, including AA, Al-Anon and NA, local alcohol and drug organisations, but there are also others who can also support family and friends too, as well as those in addiction and you can find out more about them on these links:
Domestic violence is unfortunately something that people have to deal with in their daily lives but over the festive period, incidents can happen more frequently – whether it’s because more alcohol is involved, more time is being spent at home or due to financial strain over this period.
Victim Blaming
It’s important to remember that the victims are not to blame , and the perpetrators merely use all these reasons as excuses for their abusive behaviour. There really is no excuse. Instead of focusing on statistics and the dangers though, I thought we could focus on being proactive over this time. Leaving the relationship has many implications, and especially at this time of year may be impossible but we can focus on staying as safe as possible.
Being proactive – Safety Plans
Making a safety plan can really help you, and others know how to cope if an incident does occur. Writing the safety plan down is not essential if you fear your abuser might find it, but make sure you are totally familiar with your own safety plan, everyone will be different.
First of all if you need emergency help from either the police or an ambulance, do not hesitate to call. If however it is a situation you can safely get away from then the safety plan comes into play.
I personally used to make safety plans with family or friends. So if you have a close friend or relative that you can call, let them know about your safety plan, and let them know a specific phrase you will only use if you need help. For example, you call your mum and say “I’ve burnt the toast” and that person will know you need help. This is where every safety plan is different because that could mean that person needs to call the police and send them to you, or it could mean you need to meet them at a certain place to get you to safety. Or they can ask you if you need the police and you can give yes or no answers.
Safety plan in your own house?
The next thing to think about is a safety plan in your own house. We don’t often think about how we would escape our own home, but it can be useful in these situations. If you have a room with a lock on it and a window in it, you can always go into there, and get out of the house if needed. From there it is good to have an idea of where it is safe to run to. Possibly a neighbour, or even to a local shop, that would allow you to use a phone.
If you have children in the home it’s also a good idea if they are old enough to include them in the safety plan. Tell them who to call if you need help, teach them safe places to go should an incident occur.
I genuinely hate having to write anything like this, but I do think it is important we realise the importance of a little planning. I truly hope that nobody needs to put this into action, but should the need arise, I hope this helps, even just a little.
Health over the Christmas period. We all know that the Christmas period can be a bit (or very) stressful.
Stress affects our bodies the same way, so whether you are worried about what to buy and for how many people or you are worried about spending time with toxic family members, your body will react in a similar way. Extra pressure= extra stress.
How does stress affect the body?
Stress can cause indigestion and heartburn at the best of times but add all that party food and our stomachs can really go through a tough time over Christmas. Stress affects our sleep, our breathing, our eyesight, we can get headaches or muscle aches much more easily, blood pressure rises and we can experience chest pains. Listen to your body over this time and if you notice any of these things, you can try to address them by taking a step back and making some time for ourselves.
Why is this period more stressful?
People who already suffer with anxiety can struggle more over this time as normal services are sometimes closed. Those with social anxiety can be overwhelmed with the pressure to be around lots of people. Some people are dealing with such loneliness and depression that they worry they will be completely left alone over this time. We all have our own unique situations to face so there will be no right or wrong way to deal with them all, but I do have a few suggestions and some websites that may be able to help over this time. The suggestions can be adapted for your own situation.
What can we do?
The first thing is talk to someone about it. It’s easy to say this but we don’t really emphasise the power of this enough. We all go through some kind of stress and it actually helps us to feel less alone. This also provides you an opportunity to listen to someone else and provide comfort and a listening ear for them, so you are not only helping yourself, but the other person as well which can help to boost your mental health.
I saw a suggestion that said “do something you are good at”, but I think it should be , do something you enjoy, you don’t have to be good at it. There’s already enough pressure to get everything perfect right now, so just enjoy what you do.
Try to eat well. This is hard with so many treats around but it really does make a difference, even just not being in pain over this time. You can enjoy treats as well though, it’s just about moderation. Take a little break from everything. Go outside for a walk. Run yourself a nice bubble bath. Watch your favourite film. Just take your mind off the stress. Sometimes an early night can do the world of good if you are a good sleeper.
Why think about boundaries?
This one is really important, set boundaries. You might want to write a list of all the commitments you have made. Then make a schedule. This way you can see your plans written down so if someone else asks you to do anything else you can actually check if you have the time to take anything else on. You could write in your break times as well. Setting boundaries is also really important if you are dealing with anyone toxic. This can include certain subjects being absolutely off limits, and everyone knowing that if these subjects are brought up, you will need to leave the situation. This is forward planning to make sure you feel safe in whatever situations you find yourself in. It also puts the responsibility on others to be mindful of what they are discussing.
I hope some of those suggestions can help you even a little over this period. I’ll pop some sites below of places you can contact over this period.
Stay safe everyone. M
Helpful sites
● Samaritans ● Giveusashout.org ● The Silver Line (for over 55’s) ● Standalone.org.uk (for those not in contact/estranged from loved ones) ● Uk-sobs.org.uk (for those affected by suicide) ● Switchboard.lgbt ● Tommys.org (loss of a baby) ● Trusselltrust.org (emergency food and support for people in need
It’s really important for everyone to talk. Whether young or old or in between, we all have things that affect our lives and our mental and physical health. Discussing these things can really help us in several ways. It seems like a very simple example but it’s very true that if we had a broken leg we wouldn’t hesitate to talk to a doctor and get help but we seem to struggle more with opening up about our feelings. Talking can help us to cope with the stresses of life. From little things to massive things, just talking to someone else can help us to feel less alone. It lessens the stigma around mental health problems as well. Have you ever noticed that when one person has been brave enough to speak about their feelings that it empowers others to do the same and the “taboo” around mental health issues is somewhat lessened? I definitely have. It can actually help to improve our physical health as well. Stress affects our physical health greatly. Talking can also help to strengthen relationships. Any relationship is built strong with good communication. The most important thing I have found though is that talking helps build a good relationship with ourselves.
This year Time to Talk is the 2nd of February and it’s a Thursday. I don’t know about anyone else so far this year but I feel like January lasted a decade and for some reason this week has only begun and I’m feeling like it’s already more than half way over and I haven’t completed anything so far on my never ending list of tasks I feel I need to complete. Even thinking of writing is a daunting task for some reason today, let alone sitting down with my laptop. I have told you this not because I want to focus on the negative but to highlight that it’s actually Ok to feel that way, it’s absolutely fine to talk about it or write about it, or express it any way that I need to, and it’s also possible that although I feel this way today, things can change and there are people that I can reach out to (and I have, you know who you are).
The fun part for me about writing anything is that I allow myself to get lost in research, I often seem to get diverted and end up finding out about things that are not related to the subject at hand but I do love my hours of just researching.
I did say I didn’t want to focus on the negative and I really don’t but it is also important for us to acknowledge what can happen when we don’t talk. If we ignore our mental health and our problems we can allow the situation to worsen. This can lead to things like self harming, self medicating on illegal substances, prescription medication or alcohol and in the worst cases it can lead to suicide. Lack of communication can lead to a substantial increase in depression, stress and anxiety. Let’s think back to the broken leg situation, would we walk around and allow it to become infected and become worse or would we seek help? And very much like a physical health problem, when we talk about our mental health we can discuss things like treatments and recovery plans. For some people a recovery plan could involve doctors and medication, for others it could be things like meeting with friends on a regular basis to catch up. Everyone is different and it’s absolutely normal for your treatment and recovery to be different to others. Also, life changes all the time, it’s totally fine to revisit the conversation and change the plan.
When we talk to others it gives them a chance to help us. It gives us a chance to express how we feel. Sometimes just saying something out loud to another person can take away its power over us. It helps to reduce stigma. I have personally felt less alone after discussing my problems with trusted friends or family and even a good doctor. It also helps us to problem solve. When we have an open dialogue with someone who we can discuss problems with, we sometimes find we had all the tools we needed, they might suggest a therapy group, or a therapist, or a community group that can help too. If we don’t talk we might never know. Finally, it can help to educate others about mental health problems and the importance of talking.
I have heard about Blue Monday before and to be totally honest I have never paid much attention to it at all for a few reasons. Firstly, I just don’t understand how we are all meant to be feeling the same way on this one specific Monday and secondly as I have aged I have found each Winter more and more depressing, so by January I am generally blue all week, not just on the Monday. So, I thought I would do a little research into where this saying has come from, who it has come from and why are we OK agreeing with Blue Monday really being a thing??
This year Blue Monday falls on the 16th of January. Now before we all set our alarms for the worst day of our year I will just give you a basic description of what I found online to be the cause for Blue Monday. Apparently it happens because of an overindulgence over the festive period, a feeling of guilt that we haven’t stuck to our new year’s resolutions already and a lot of us have unpaid credit card bills from trying to buy gifts etc (or in our current climate just trying to keep our families warm and fed). This was just a general search, there could be more reasons, but after I read about not sticking to new years resolutions I wondered why it wasn’t called the Blue 2nd of January, but that’s probably my lack of will power talking.
Here is where my research really started to both interest and annoy me at the same time. I never recalled there being a Blue Monday when I was a child, I thought possibly my parents has sheltered me from this horrible Monday. It turns out that the term was only released in 2005 in what I can only say in my opinion was nothing but a PR stunt by a well known travel company!
A psychologist coined the phrase the year earlier in 2004 when he was asked to come up with a “scientific formula” for the January blues. I think what annoyed me the most is that nothing was mentioned about the lack of daylight and so our vitamin D levels by January can be rather depleted and many people suffer with things like seasonal affective disorder (S.A.D) and this could well be contributing to why people feel a bit lower at this time of year. Anyway, personal annoyance put to the side, there really isn’t such a thing as Blue Monday in terms of scientific proof.
So, now that we have found out where this phrase has come from but a lot of people will still be feeling a little blue, whether it be a Monday or any other day of the week I thought I would write up a short list of suggestions of things we could try. I will include things I will never try, things I already love and things I am not completely opposed to trying because we are all so different, some of these suggestions might just not be for you and that’s absolutely fine.
Call a friend. It could be someone you haven’t spoken to for ages or someone you talk to every day, heating a comforting voice can make a difference.
Meditate. Even just sit and concentrate on your breath for a little while to slow things down. Sometimes we can get more agitated and down when we aren’t breathing properly so just slow down, 5 or 10 mins is enough or take as long as you need.
Physical activity. This one divides people. Some people love to get moving and some people when they see that phrase think they have to run 5 miles, seriously physical activity could be something like get up and cook your favourite meal from scratch, go for a short walk with the dog if you have one, or with a friend that has one, do the ironing. When I say physical activity this by no means implies getting to the gym and sweating for an hour or two, I would be a hypocrite to suggest this, the last gym I was in I was in high school, and even then I was unhappy.
Set realistic resolutions. This means that we can avoid the guilt of not sticking to the big ones that we have made. So if you like to have 5 sweets or chocolates after your dinner as a treat, can we cut it down by one a day? If the long term goal (this is mine) is to really get on top of tidying the house , start by making the bed every morning. It’s more about the mindset than the resolution, stop giving yourself things to feel guilty about.
Get creative. This could be drawing, planting new colourful things in the garden, It could be buying a cheap bunch of flowers and arranging them beautifully in a vase to enjoy in our room. Why not try a new meal? Be creative in the kitchen, even chopping veg differently can make an everyday meal just feel different.
Eat well. We have all had months of overeating, sweets and chocolates are everywhere, give your body a treat and give it a vitamin boost it probably needs by now.
Make the most of natural light. Even on a dull day we can take 10 mins to just be outside, it really does make a difference. If you are not able to be outside, open some windows for a little while and breathe in some fresh air. Trust me it does make a difference.
Change your environment. Change the bed sheets, move the furniture, go visit a friend or a relative. There are so many ways we can change our environment. I could write a whole blog just about that, but our minds need things to change now and again.
If you have been diagnosed with seasonal affective disorder why not invest in a proper S.A.D lamp?
Quit a bad habit. I am not even going to give any suggestions here because we all know what we would like to change or quit, why not just try reducing it a little?
Learn something new. Nobody is too old or too young to learn something new. Even listen to an information packed audiobook while you go about your day, it’s surprising how much the mind can absorb even when we think we aren’t paying full attention.
These are all important questions. I must admit when my depression was really bad I had a compulsive spending habit II would go to work and every day come home with at least one new item of clothing. I now have enough clothes to last me well into my 80’s as long as I don’t gain any weight or grow any taller which I’m sure won’t happen, so my money wise and attainable resolution this year will be to get rid of what I no longer need or use, declutter my space and only buy essential items (which isn’t easy for a compulsive spender).
I hope some of these tips help a little. And also the knowledge that Blue Monday is nothing to be feared, it’s not even really a thing alleviates some pressure. Have a fantastic week. I’ll be back soon with some more of my dorky research.
M
(Hope you enjoy our volunteers humorous take on Blue Monday…. 🙂 )
“The perfect Christmas doesn’t look like the ones on TV, it looks like the one you enjoy. There’s so much pressure to be happy and to be part of a big celebration but I’ve found that finding downtime, solitude and space to simply feel however I feel makes the holidays easier to manage.
Whether it’s a whole day of peace and quiet or locking yourself in the loo for a few minutes of meditation, being able to recharge can make a world of difference. It gives me the ability to truly enjoy time with loved ones without burning myself out.
A few of my favourite tricks to recharge my mental batteries are:
• The dog is always happy to go out – fresh air and a bit of movement really does clear out the cobwebs.
• Meditation – taking time to be in the moment can stave off anxiety spirals before they become overwhelming.
• Your phone is useful – text a friend, watch that video that always makes you laugh, look at pictures of chilled out capybaras. Distractions can really help.
If social anxiety has taught me anything, it’s that people and relationships matter, the rest doesn’t. Celebrate with your loved ones in the way that works best for you and that will be a perfect Christmas.”
Thanks,
Katie S.
p.s. our thanks goes to Katie, one of volunteers peer workers for this article. Lived Experience proves to be very helpful.
Photo – The Old Packhorse Bridge – Carrbridge, Scotland. (Maggie Wright)
Why do we have panic attacks and how can we help to control them?
I know I usually write about food but this has come up in my family life and also heard about a few people suffering panic attacks so I thought I would love to give everyone a super simple way to deal with these horrible events. They really are events, because after you have had one you can be left completely exhausted, mentally and physically drained and worst of all for me was the knowledge that I might suffer these for a long time. However, “square breathing” is something I had to learn and want to share with you.
To give a little bit of background as to why this information was shared with me, I had to spend some time in a psychiatric hospital and I was assigned a relaxation therapist for a few weeks after I was discharged. She taught me this and when I had to take it to the real world, I must admit it worked for me.
So before I get into the thing that “worked for me” I did a wee bit of research because that’s how I roll and I was absolutely aware that my experience of a panic attack may differ from everyone else.
Signs of panic attack
Some of the signs you are having a panic attack (btw, everyone is different) you may get all or just a few. Sudden intense anxiety, shaking, crying, feeling disorientated, rapid and irregular heartbeats, dry mouth, breathlessness, sweating, dizziness, chills, hot flashes, tightness in the throat, sense of impending doom or danger, fear of loss or control or even fear of death. .
Are panic and anxiety attacks the same?
This part of my research was actually a learning curve for me because I have always assumed a panic attack and an anxiety attack is the same thing. They aren’t and here is the difference and I absolutely wish I had known this years ago. An anxiety attack is a response to a perceived threat , like you saw an abusive ex or something, you already know the danger, your body responds with anxiety. The difference with a panic attack is it seems to come from nowhere, u don’t see the danger, you just cannot shake this.
Triggers for panic attacks
So triggers for a panic attack are things like over breathing (I researched this because I have never heard this term) so hyperventilation, when you breathe too quickly and you are not getting enough oxygen to the brain, hence the dizziness. Long periods of stress, physical changes after illness, change of environment and lets not forget our main ones, trauma, whatever kind – whether the death of a loved one to….actually I wont even go there because I guess if you are reading this you know what has made u traumatized. But please be aware and hopeful because life after trauma and panic attacks doesn’t need to be terrifying. Feeling afraid after trauma is absolutely normal and panic attacks can happen when something or someone reminds you of the trauma. Like I said before though, your body is reacting and it is scary.
Square breathing
Here is one of my ways to deal with panic attacks, sorry for boring you with the research but I have never claimed to not be a research nerd.
Find something with 4 corners, anything, it could be a bus when you are waiting at a station, your tv when you feel overwhelmed, anything with 4 corners. What I love about this technique is that we generally all have phones so we are looking at something with 4 corners, or a tv, whatever it is, just find something you can count to 4 with. So focus on the top left hand corner and breathe in all the way along to the top right hand corner, then breathe out to the bottom right hand corner, them breathe back up to the beginning corner and repeat as long as you need.
Don’t even worry about how long it takes for you to get there either, people who think you can keep breathing out for longer than you have breath are not getting the point, your breathing will naturally slow down because your mind isn’t focused on panic. “Square breathing.” Genuinely hope this helps at least one person. Stay safe everyone
Why do we have panic attacks and how can we help to control them?
I know I usually write about food but this has come up in my family life and also heard about a few people suffering panic attacks so I thought I would love to give everyone a super simple way to deal with these horrible events. They really are events, because after you have had one you can be left completely exhausted, mentally and physically drained and worst of all for me was the knowledge that I might suffer these for a long time. However, “square breathing” is something I had to learn and want to share with you.
To give a little bit of background as to why this information was shared with me, I had to spend some time in a psychiatric hospital and I was assigned a relaxation therapist for a few weeks after I was discharged. She taught me this and when I had to take it to the real world, I must admit it worked for me.
So before I get into the thing that “worked for me” I did a wee bit of research because that’s how I roll and I was absolutely aware that my experience of a panic attack may differ from everyone else.
Signs of panic attack
Some of the signs you are having a panic attack (btw, everyone is different) you may get all or just a few. Sudden intense anxiety, shaking, crying, feeling disorientated, rapid and irregular heartbeats, dry mouth, breathlessness, sweating, dizziness, chills, hot flashes, tightness in the throat, sense of impending doom or danger, fear of loss or control or even fear of death. .
Are panic and anxiety attacks the same?
This part of my research was actually a learning curve for me because I have always assumed a panic attack and an anxiety attack is the same thing. They aren’t and here is the difference and I absolutely wish I had known this years ago. An anxiety attack is a response to a perceived threat , like you saw an abusive ex or something, you already know the danger, your body responds with anxiety. The difference with a panic attack is it seems to come from nowhere, u don’t see the danger, you just cannot shake this.
Triggers for panic attacks
So triggers for a panic attack are things like over breathing (I researched this because I have never heard this term) so hyperventilation, when you breathe too quickly and you are not getting enough oxygen to the brain, hence the dizziness. Long periods of stress, physical changes after illness, change of environment and lets not forget our main ones, trauma, whatever kind – whether the death of a loved one to….actually I wont even go there because I guess if you are reading this you know what has made u traumatized. But please be aware and hopeful because life after trauma and panic attacks doesn’t need to be terrifying. Feeling afraid after trauma is absolutely normal and panic attacks can happen when something or someone reminds you of the trauma. Like I said before though, your body is reacting and it is scary.
Square breathing
Here is one of my ways to deal with panic attacks, sorry for boring you with the research but I have never claimed to not be a research nerd.
Find something with 4 corners, anything, it could be a bus when you are waiting at a station, your tv when you feel overwhelmed, anything with 4 corners. What I love about this technique is that we generally all have phones so we are looking at something with 4 corners, or a tv, whatever it is, just find something you can count to 4 with. So focus on the top left hand corner and breathe in all the way along to the top right hand corner, then breathe out to the bottom right hand corner, them breathe back up to the beginning corner and repeat as long as you need.
Don’t even worry about how long it takes for you to get there either, people who think you can keep breathing out for longer than you have breath are not getting the point, your breathing will naturally slow down because your mind isn’t focused on panic. “Square breathing.” Genuinely hope this helps at least one person. Stay safe everyone
Hi guys, it’s our final day of healthy eating week and today we are going to take a look at food waste. We are now realising that in a lot of areas we need to start to reduce our waste and food is no exception. So as I have done all this week I will give a few suggestions to how we can reduce food waste and then I will go on to how food waste affects our mental health. I must admit I found researching this the most interesting.
I am a huge fan of reducing food waste, I waste very little but we are all different and what is most important is that everyone takes a look at what they can do individually to suit their own lifestyle and circumstances. So as I’ve done before I’m just going to write a little bullet point list with some ideas for you to try or not to try – its up to you.
● Avoid bulk buying ● Store food properly ● Use leftovers ● Create a meal schedule ● Preserve your food ● Buy the ugly fruit and veg ● Understand food labelling ● Make sure fridge is the right temperature ● Make shopping lists ● Freeze leftovers ● Measure your portions ● Freeze acceptable dairy products ● Freeze acceptable fruit and veg ● Use stale bread as breadcrumbs ● Make stock or broth out of older veg, this can be frozen ● Pack a lunch, it could be last night’s leftovers ● Log your food waste to see where changes need to be made
I’m sure there are more ways that you can reduce food waste but this was just a basic list I compiled to give you some ideas. Now, my favourite part, how does this affect our mental health?
I found this part of my research interesting because a lot of the psychology around food waste is related to guilt. Guilt leads to shame and neither are good for our mental health. A lot of people worry that if they were to waste too much food they would be characterised as lazy, excessive or greedy and careless. There is also guilt that if we do not always have access to food for our family or loved ones that we may seem like we do not care about them enough, so we buy more than we need, but then have to waste it. I cannot count the amount of times I’ve heard someone say it’s better to have too much than too little.
Financial worries also come into play. Especially in today’s climate. Fuel prices are so high and everything else is going up in price so we feel a need to bulk buy and make the trip worth it so to write a list of what we need for the week or month makes money sense. Also keep a list of the things that you regularly throw away and make a note to buy less to waste life. In a world that feels like it’s out of control, this one little step could really help our mental health, because we are taking control of the things we can.
My last point to make about food waste is that we need to look at our history. For years waste and wealth have been symbiotic. If you could afford to throw away food you were rich and the poor had to beg for scraps. Even until recently some people would never wear clothes that were handed down or from a charity shop, because we didn’t want to be viewed as poor. Thankfully now things are changing and we are starting to see that we can at least make a start to reducing the waste in our lives, not only for the planet but our own mental health as well because remember, you matter. Stay safe everyone. Been great doing all this research and sharing what I have found with you. M
Ah Wednesday, we are halfway through the week. Today’s topic is protein and how we can get creative with it. So as usual, I will start with a quick explanation of what protein is, probably a few ideas on how to use it differently but then we will have a closer look at why it is so important for our mental health.
I remember 20 years ago, I was just a young girl in high school with no major health problems to deal with. I remember all the cool older boys with their big muscles all talking about how much protein they had to bulk up and thinking, I will never need to know about that. How wrong I was, I personally feel
weak when I don’t have enough protein.
So what is protein?
The most basic way to explain protein is that it’s the building blocks of our body. Protein helps to build and repair the body’s tissues. We need protein to repair cells but also to make new ones. Protein is very important for growth and development in children, teens and pregnant women. We often think of proteins as meat mainly, and eggs and dairy products. Lean meat is the best so we are not having too much fat in our diets so I thought since meat is pretty self explanatory I’d give a selection, a very small one because I don’t want this to be too long, of different proteins. Some of these I knew and others I had no idea they were protein rich. So I am just going to rattle off a little list of plant based sources of protein that you may or may not have heard of.
I was amazed about the brussel sprouts, amazed and over the moon, I love them.
So why is having protein so good for our mental health?
A lack of protein means that your body can’t make the required amount of neurotransmitters required. This changes how the brain works. With low levels of dopamine and serotonin we can feel depressed and even aggressive. Protein packed foods can also help us to avoid sugary processed foods because we feel fuller. Lack of a sufficient amount of protein can cause mood changes, hair skin and nail problems, weakness and fatigue, slow healing injuries and slow recovery when ill. It can also make us feel really hungry. I know from personal experience that if I’m low on protein I will snack because I don’t feel satisfied, which then leads me to put on weight , which then affects my depression more, and it goes round in a vicious circle until I can get back on my feet with the healthier eating I do actually enjoy.
I will leave you with this last thought for the day which I found fascinating. 330 billion calls are made/born each day. That takes a good amount of protein. There are 86 billions cells in the human brain, all of which need help to repair. So if we are not looking after these cells by giving them the energy they need, how will we ever feel good mentally?
Tomorrow I will be talking about hydration and how important it is for our mental health. I hope a few of these pieces over the last few days have helped even a little. We can’t change everything overnight but every journey starts with one step. Stay safe. M.
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