A to Z of coping skills

 Hey readers,

I think more then ever we need to look after our mental health especially as we are going through a lockdown. 

I have devised A to Z list of coping skills that may be of use. I use some more than others so you have to test out what works for you. 

The key message in this post is to make time for you and look after your mental health. 

A - be assertive - learn the art of saying no without feeling guilty. 

B - breathing is so important and as someone who suffers from panic attacks learning to use your lungs fully will really help calm you down when you are panicking. 

C - call a relative or friend that you can talk to about the way you are feeling. 

D - Distractions are fantastic to give your mind a break and gives you the chance to think about something else. 

E - exercise is a great way to burn off some of the frustrations and can make you feel better that you are doing something positive for you.

F - be flexible with your thinking and options. 

G - gratitude list is a great method to try to focus on positive aspects of your life. 

H - healthy eating can help a lot by having a balance and nurtures diet. 

I - ignore people who are annoying you, focus on people who believe in you. 

J - jumping can help as a form of exercise such as a trampoline.

K - keep it simple, don't make it complicated and appreciate the small things.

L - laughter is a beautiful thing and watching a stand-up comedian or funny videos on the internet can really take your mind off things to smile. 

M - meditation is a technique where you can focus on here and now and train your mind to stop wandering off. 

N - Get out in nature as it is so good for your mental health and can give you some enjoyment. 

O - go outside which I know during lockdown is hard. But you can walk once a day for exercise and that will help massively for your mental health. 

P - Getting in the habit of positive self-talk can be really useful to help you train your mind to think more positive. It is hard work but sticks with it and it makes a big difference. 

Q - quiet time is important because it gives you time to recuperate and relax.

R - read a positive quote can help make you think of happy things in life.

S - brainstorm some solutions - just by writing out ideas can help clear your mind. 

T - tension exercise is great if your get was anxious and relax your muscles. There are lots of videos on Youtube that can run through how to do step by step. 

U - understand that feelings are ok and you are human and feeling like this is ok. But remember feelings change all the time. You are in control of your thoughts and have the choice to listen to them or not. 

V - visualise on a board with things you want in your life can be a therapeutic activity to do. You can look back when you need to see positive aims that you want to achieve.

W - write your feelings in a journal, it can be a simple as writing one positive thing that has happened in the day. 

X - exhale out all the bad stuff and breathe in all the good stuff.

Y - yell as loud as you can into your pillow.

Z - zone out and relax whether it be with a book or a movie, something that you can focus on other than your own thoughts. 

Hope this has been helpful. Love to hear your thoughts in the comment section down below. 

Cheers for reading X