Staying Mentally Positive

Nowadays, I can’t believe how many people struggle to have good mental health which leads to many other problems in their life. For me, having good mental health means I have less anxiety and stress, not too worried about anything, having fun, thinking positively, and not letting anything make me feel too depressed. Many things allow me to be in this state of mind such as being around the right people, doing things rather than just staying in my room, and having a life other than studying every second of the day. You can tell if you are in a bad state of mind if you have a personality change, feeling a lot of anger or anxiety, feeling as if you are isolated from the outside world, thinking of risky behavior, and feeling too overwhelmed. It may be hard to realize that you are feeling such things, but the best indicators are when someone close to you such as your friends or family let you know that they see a change in you. Being in this position, talking to someone can help release a lot of emotions.

Sometimes, it is hard being away from my family, but I am easily able to overcome these feelings by keeping my mind off such things by doing things I love. Fitness has always helped me have great mental health as it is a way for me to connect with other people and get my mind off anything that keeps me stressed. Going to the gym, playing intramural sports, or simply hanging out in the burrow with other people helps me laugh and stay positive and keeps me away from things that may be keeping me stressed out. For some reason, a lot of people get stressed when they lose a game in intramurals, but at the end of the day, it is just a game and you are only playing for a t-shirt.

To be thriving, there is no single definition that describes what it means to thrive. I feel that we must all decide what makes us feel like we are thriving. Personally, I feel like I'm thriving when I am happy in what I’m doing and being successful in whatever I choose to do. At times, it may be stressful to get to the stage where you feel successful in something you accomplished, but you have to realize that there is always someone out there who is ready to help you achieve your goals. Reaching my goals is something that has always contributed to my mental health, but realizing that the people around are there to help me every step of the way has made me think positively about anything that I encounter.

Additionally, to have good mental health, it is important to stay healthy. This means eating right and exercising. I know it is hard to eat in the cafeteria, but at times you need to push yourself to eat rather than staying hungry. I get it, the food was good the first couple of weeks, but I guess a lot of people have been struggling as well. I have friends who sometimes choose to be hungry rather than eating the stuff and they have been losing weight over time and feeling a little depressed and tired more often. If you are at this point, I encourage you to balance your diet by eating something different every day, rather than just sticking to the same diet. Sometimes, putting food down your throat is a better option than staying hungry the rest of the night. It may also benefit you to buy a mini-refrigerator and stock it up with food so that on days where there is unattractive food, you can use the items in your fridge to make something. If a grocery store is nearby, it is a good way to keep yourself stocked with food, and walking there can count as a form of your daily exercise. In all, doing even some of these things will lead to better mental health and I hope you all can find a solution to your problem by reading this.