The state of our mental health and wellbeing can impact every part of our lives. Struggling with your mental health can impact your relationships, daily ability to accomplish tasks, and can even negatively harm your physical health. For example, if you are feeling depressed, you might not engage in self care activities such as exercise. You might neglect to reach out to friends and family for an extended period of time. Your dishes and laundry might begin to pile up.
If you have experienced any of the above, medication might offer some assistance towards improving your mental health. However, pharmaceuticals don’t work for everyone.
None-pharmaceutical mental wellness interventions can be beneficial for many, not just those who can’t access medication. These holistic wellness and self-care strategies can be practiced by almost everybody, and may help improve your life adn mental health in more ways than one.
- Meditation and mindfulness
- Practicing sleep hygiene
- Reducing the use of technology
- Exercise and yoga
- Getting out into nature
- Therapy
- Engaging in creativity (maybe link benefits of art therapy here)underlying factors causing these things).
- Building social connections
Holistic wellness involves a number of practices, including the ones above, that allow someone to care for every part of themselves: body, mind, and spirit. These methods do not involve taking medication, although they can be practiced alongside prescribed pharmaceuticals and/or herbal supplaments. Wellness practices are flexible and are primarily driven by your own preferences, desires, and goals for your own health. This article will guide you through the different types of non-pharamceutical holistic wellness methods and how each individual type may benefit you.
Meditation and Mindfulness
Meditation and mindfulness are some of the most accessible ways to engage in a mental well-being practice. It can be started today, without needing to make any other big changes to your lifestyle. Benefits of meditation can help with your health. It can improve sleep and anxiety, depression, stress management, focus and concentration, and even addiction recovery.
There are many different types of meditation, including:
- Mindfulness
- Guided
- Candlelight
- Chakra
- Focused attention
- Zen
- Vizualization
- Chanting
- Mantra
- Body scan
- Spiritual
- Kundalini yoga
- Progressive muscle relaxation
- Samatha-vipassana
- Drumming
- Qigong
- Transcendental
- Metta
- Christian
- Metta
And likely many more. Many of these types of meditations may overlap, and may also go alongside other practices such as yoga. However, the most common types of meditation are discussed below.
Mindfulness
This type of meditation is a great strategy for managing anxiety. Mindfulness is a skill, so it can take some work to get just right for your needs, but it is worth it. Per the website VeryWellMind, the purpose of mindfulness is to calm your mind and body through working to let go of negativity and slow your racing thoughts. It also involves allowing yourself to accept your feelings and thoughts. Mindfulness can be practiced anywhere. You might practice mindfulness while going for a walk without headphones, while going to sleep, or even while brushing your teeth or at your desk.
Focused Attention Meditation
Focused attention meditation, also known as concentration meditation, can be a good way to practice a certain mindset. The main difference between this type of meditation and mindfulness is that focused attention involves focusing on a specific thought, idea, or action to encourage existing in the present moment. It might involve focusing on your breath, a mantra, a sound, or a simple thought. Practicing this kind of meditation can help someone feel grounded (to feel fully present) if one is worried about the future or past. Mindfulness and focused attention meditation can definitely go hand-in-hand if desired.
Reflection Mediation
Reflection meditation can be beneficial to those who might need insight as to who they are and what they want. According to MindWorks, it is a process of self-reflection. While other meditation practices involve working to reduce your thoughts, reflection meditation involves engaging your mind. Much like mindfulness meditation, reflection can take place almost anywhere. The Bakken Center for Spirituality and Healing states that a reflective practice can also include movement, such as yoga or Tai Chi. Ultimately, this meditation practice can help you discover subconscious thoughts and feelings that you potentially didn’t know you had.
Resources
- Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience offers factual information on how mindfulness can change our brains.
- The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health discusses meditation and mindfulness, their benefits, and what they might be able to treat.
- Mindful offers a guide on how to get started with mindfulness.
- The Free Mindfulness Project provides a variety of resources in regards to meditation and mindfulness as well as other closely related strategies.
Practicing Sleep Hygiene
As mentioned in the previous section, meditation and mindfulness can help with sleep. This is an excellent benefit, because sleep hygiene is an important part of your mental wellbeing. If your sleep is off, it doesn’t matter what you do to be healthy (pharmaceuticals or not), because sleep impacts every part of you. Lack of sleep can cause you to have trouble making decisions, difficulty with problem solving, emotional regulation, and tolerating change, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
Luckily, if you aren’t getting good sleep, there are things you can do to improve, according to the Mayo Clinic:
- Sleep for no more eight hours
- Don’t go to bed hungry or too full
- Be aware of how what you eat and drink affects you
- Stick to a consistent sleep schedule
- Create a relaxing environment
- Limit daytime naps
- Reduce stress (perhaps using the meditation techniques discussed in the previous section)
Consistency is one of the most important parts of getting good sleep, as going to bed and waking up at the same time helps your brain establish a sleep schedule.
However, whether or not you already do all of the above, getting poor sleep might not be your fault. There are over 80 different types of disorders that can cause someone to get worse sleep, according to Cleveland Clinic, which also states that more than 50 million people in the United States have a sleep disorder. A few common sleep disorders include, (but are not limited to):
If you struggle with your sleep, trying the tips discussed in this section might be a good first step. Another good step could be keeping a sleep diary for your own knowledge and to note any patterns. If you complete all of the above, talking to your healthcare practitioner would be a good next step, as they may be able to help you explore non-pharmaceutical sleep interventions if that is your preference.
Resources
- The Sleep Foundation provides factual information about the importance of sleep hygiene, sleep solutions, and bedding.
- Headspace delves into sleep hygiene tips and how to go about adjusting your habits.
- Centre for Clinical Resources offers information sheets and worksheets for those who want to improve their sleep.
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital provides numerous resources for sleep education and better sleep strategies and guides.
Reducing the Use of Technology
Lowering your phone and technology usage holds more benefits beyond falling asleep more easily. This holistic wellness strategy can help with all the mental health and wellness problems this article has already gone over and more. It’s understandable that this may be a difficult strategy to implement, as we need technology in many parts of life. Also, social media and the internet give us a burst of pleasurable brain chemicals which can cause you a harmful habit of too much time online. However, there are specific times and uses when you can take a break from the screens, such as an hour or two before bedtime, or when going on a mindfulness walk.
Benefits of reducing the use of technology include:
- Increasing your creativity
- Strengthening your relationships
- Encourages being present
- Lowers stress
- Can reduce strain to eyes
- May increase productivity
- Improves self-esteem
- Have more time for other activities and pleasures
- Reduces FOMO (fear of missing out)
There are different strategies for reducing screen time, and even though it can be challenging in today’s world, starting with even one strategy can allow you to be flexible with your screen time to experience the benefits. Even if you are on screens, there are things you can do to make it less appealing, such as turning on the setting that makes the display black and white. Another wellness tip is turning on the settings that most phones have that turn off the blue light on the phone, which can help with sleep and your circadian rhythm.
You can start to reduce your screen time for good mental health, using the following strategies from the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI):
- Set times for your news consumption. It can be tempting to scroll every new update that our phones give us, but this can cause stress and anxiety for a number of reasons. Limiting how often you check the news can keep you from doomscrolling as well.
- Manage your social media. Being aware of, and then unfollowing social media accounts that make you angry, anxious, or upset in any way can be a huge benefit to your mental health. Even if you are friends with someone on social media that you don’t feel uncomfortable disconnecting from (such as family), many social media platforms have the option to unfollow them without unfriending them.
- Turn off phone notifications. Hearing your phone ding can cause a Pavlovian response in your brain to check the internet and social for updates. This can lead to inadvertently scrolling for a while every time you get a new notification
- Work on your focus. Many of us tend to engage in multiple activities at the same time, such as watching TV and scrolling our phones. Concentration on one activity at a time can help you enjoy it more and help prevent overstimulation. NAMI also gives a tip that if you see something that interests you, but don’t have time to look at it right then, save it for later.
- Reflect on your needs when you reach for your phone. Because of the burst of happiness chemicals you get when you reach for your phone, you might find yourself reaching for it when you feel stressed or upset. Resisting this urge and considering what you actually need can be beneficial for your mental and physical well being, and help you reduce screen time overall.
Other tips from NAMI for reducing screen time include:
- Don’t use your device during meals
- Don’t use your phone when you’re with others
- Pick a daily time to intentionally disconnect
- Choose a part of your home to be screen free
- Find other hobbies you enjoy besides scrolling
Resources
Nemours Children’s Health provides resources on children’s health, including reducing screen time and preventing obesity in children.
Health Screen Habits offers tools for mindful use of technology for the whole family.
Center of Excellence provides a Q&A for those looking to help students reduce screen time, including those who are experiencing addiction-like behavior to the use of technology.
Kelty Mental Health provides safety tips for screen usage including how to avoid giving out private information, how to avoid online exploitation, and more.
Exercise
Now that you have more time due to reduced screen time and more energy from better sleep, you might be wondering what else you can do to improve your mental health and wellbeing. Like sleep, getting exercise is a vital part of this process. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, and everything helps. All movement is good movement, as long as it doesn’t cause pain, injury, or other harm to yourself.
Benefits of exercise include (but are not limited to):
- Increasing your energy
- Increasing your mobility
- Reducing the risk for various diseases and conditions
- Improving your sleep
- Help with symptoms of depression
- Stabilize your mood
- Increase your stamina
- Increases happiness
- Reduces pain
- Live a longer life
- Improve your blood sugar
- Improve your bone density
As you can see above, exercise is a great non-pharmaceutical approach to improving your mental and physical wellbeing overall. Doing something you enjoy can encourage you to develop a consistent exercise routine, whether it’s rollerskating, jumping on the trampoline, going for a walk, or doing yoga.
Exercise doesn’t have to be boring. It can involve getting out into nature, which can enhance the benefits of exercise. Going outside can benefit your mental health by allowing you to escape your evryday life, as pointed out by the UC Davis Health Department. Going out into nature can also be a good time to engage in meditation, which can clear your head of brain fog and increase your problem-solving abilities and self reflection.
Resources
- Nutrition.gov offers resources for exercise such as planners, exercise logs, and strategies for consistency.
- Weber provides information for how to get exercise at home, including links to virtual stress relief, personal training, and group classes.
- American Heart Association discusses the benefits of increasing fitness and strategies to do so.
- Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion provides tools, videos, and fact sheets to help the community increase their fitness. There are resources specifically for parents, adults, and older adults.
Therapy
Therapy is a science-based, non-pharmaceutical strategy for caring for your mental health and wellbeing. This holistic approach offers the opportunity to process trauma or other stressful life events with an objective person (the therapist) who is trained to understand what you’re going through. Therapists and counselors are also trained to recognize and help you cope with mental illness. According to Psychology.com, there are about 77 types of mental health therapy, so there is bound to be one for you. Some of the most popular types of mental health therapy include:
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). The American Psychological Association (APA) states that CBT is a type of treatment that has been proven to be effective for mental health disorders including anxiety, depression, substance abuse, marital problems, eating disorders, and even severe mental health conditions. The APA goes on to report that this type of therapy has been proven to be comparatively effective to medication and other types of therapy.
- Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT). The Psychology Today website conveys that DBT was originally created to help chronically suicidal patients who exhibited self-destructive impulses. In particular, this type of therapy was designed for those with psychiatric conditions such as borderline personality disorder or emotional dysregulation disorder.
- Group Therapy. Per the American Psychological Association, group therapy involves one or multiple therapists or psychologists who moderate and guide a group of patients through discussions of a specific problem. This type of therapy is flexible, with discussed problems ranging from substance abuse to panic disorder to grief and much more. This type of therapy can help someone feel less alone in their problem, put their problem into perspective, and be held accountable for goals they are striving for.
As previously mentioned, therapy provided by a licensed and trained clinician can be just as effective as medications for many. It is an excellent holistic mental wellness approach to consider.
There are also alternative therapies (also known as alternative medicine) to consider. WebMD states that these are treatments that are used instead of traditional therapy. According to Google, there are over 23 types of alternative therapies. These include:
- Acupuncture
- Chiropractic
- Massage
- Homeopathy
- Biofeedback
- Hypnotherapy
- Meditation
- Ayurveda
- Tai Chi
- Yoga
- Herbal medicine
- Aromatherapy
- Dietary supplements
- Cupping therapy
- Naturopathy
- Botanical medicine
- Manual therapy
- Reflexology
- Reiki
- Moxibustion
- Chinese medicine
- Chelation therapy
The benefit of alternative medicine/therapy is that it can be practiced alongside anything else in this article, and many of the methods overlap with others discussed.
Resources
- Psychology Today helps you find therapists in your area and includes a bio for each so you can choose the one that fits your goals the best.
- National Alliance on Mental Illness provides various resources and education to individuals looking to learn more about mental illness and advocacy.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offers information about mental health including resources, educational content, and prevention information.
- Downstate Health Sciences University provides resources for alternative therapies including medical journals and links to internet sources.
Being Creative
Creativity plays a huge role in mental health and wellness. For example, music therapy is one non-pharmaceutical way to treat trauma and mental health conditions. There are also individual creative outlets you can take part in. These include:
- Visual arts, such as painting or drawing
- Performing arts, such as acting, music, and dancing
- Writing, including poetry, writing in a journal, and more
- Gardening
- Cooking
Accordidng to Better Balance Psychiatry, benefits of creativity on mental health include:
- Increasing your self esteem
- Reducing stress
- Improving your mood
- Coping with mental health struggles
- Increasing resilience
Taking the time to schedule a creative activity in your daily life can improve your mental wellness. You don’t have to be a skilled professional to benefit from creativity, and it’s beneficial no matter where you are starting out. If you get creative, you might even discover a new hobby!
Resources
Creativity Wake-Up has resources, including quizzes, assessments, playlists, and blogs, all for waking up one’s creativity.
Columbus Museum of Art offers creativity resources, including self-guided learning, for families, students, educators, and more. The website is of the belief that creativity is critical.
Venture Lab provides digital activities for practicing creativity for youth, educators, and adults of all ages.
Ideas.Ted offers an article with three strategies for increasing creativity that are based in science.
Conclusion
A holistic approach to mental health is one that takes your whole self into account: mind and body. Your mental health and wellness is an important part of that. Medication is a good way to start, but it’s not the only solution. Therapy is also a great strategy for many people, and there are many different types of therapy that may suit you. Beyond that, though, there are wellness activities you can participate in in your daily life to improve your wellbeing. Some of the interventions discussed in this article have specific ways to be successful for improved mental health. Others are more flexible, allowing you to make the choices that best suit your interests or lifestyle. Incorporating these activities and strategies into your daily life is likely to improve your mental wellbeing overall. Exploring each of these options is a great way to see what is the best fit for you.
Resources
- Harvard Business Review – This article discusses how to build a habit, which is important if one wants to utilize any of the strategies discussed here.
- National Institute of Health offers an emotional wellness toolkit with resources for how to manage emotions, reduce stress, have better sleep, and engage in mindfulness.
- Resources for Suicide Prevention – This resources offers nation-wide resources for preventing suicide in yourself or others.
- World Health Organization offers mental well-being resources to keep healthy and reduce stress.
- The Mental Health Coalition offers a resource library that is composed of resources from leading mental health organizations. Individuals can look up information to help themselves, loved ones, and others.
- Psychology Today educates on the “Five Cornerstones of Holistic Mental Wellness” and offers tips for improving one’s well being.
