10 Habits That Can Damage Your Mental Health
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Most of us focus WAY more on our physical health than our mental health. But honestly, I think most of us would be physically healthier if we paid more attention to our mental health. Because most of our struggles when it comes to getting physically healthier, stem from us being mentally unhealthy, right? So in this episode, I’m going to chat with you about 10 habits that are damaging your mental health. Here’s a sneak peek:
Not eating enough food
Not getting enough sleep.
Not doing enough of what you’re truly passionate about
Spending too much time on social media
Not setting boundaries
Not expressing your emotions
Not honoring your body with movement
Comparing yourself and your life to others
Holding yourself to unrealistic standards
Not saying NO enough.
If you loved this episode, be sure to check out episode 79: Three Things That Deserve Boundaries and episode 39: How To Stop Comparing Yourself to Others. Both are super relevant to what I discuss in this episode and I know you’ll find them extremely helpful!
TRANSCRIPT:
Hey, hey, beautiful human. Can I steal five minutes of your time? I have something super important to share with you, but I promise I'll be really quick. You're listening to my weekly bonus episode of Embrace Your Real with me, Julie Ledbetter. I'm about to give you a quick tip for building your confidence, honoring your body, and unconditionally loving your authentic self. Stay tuned if you're ready to embrace your real. Let's get it, let's go!
Hello, hello, and welcome back to another bonus episode. I'm so grateful that you are here spending some time with me today, wherever you're tuning in. Now, I think many of us focus way more on our physical health than our mental health. It's like the first thing that we go to when we want to change something, is we try to change the external. But I honestly feel like most of us would be more physically healthier if we paid more attention to our mental health because most of our struggles, to be honest, they come from and stem from us being mentally unhealthy.
In this episode, I want to chat with you about 10 habits that might be damaging your mental health. But before I do, I have to share this super sweet review. It says, "What women need. This podcast is everything. Julie delivers the message all women need to hear in a world that makes women feel like they aren't the right shape, size, or age. Julie's a beaming light giving us our confidence back. As a coach myself, I hear so many women trying to fit the mold that the media has created. I direct almost every one of my female clients her way to empower and encourage them throughout the week. Thank you, Julie, for putting this podcast in the ears of women."
Oh my goodness. I love that so, so much. Especially as coaches, like you mentioned, we have to remember that we need to dive in ourselves, and we need to be encouraged and empowered ourselves, so I appreciate you. I'm so grateful for you. If you haven't already rated and reviewed the podcast, it takes less than 30 seconds. It really does help us out. You can scooch over to Apple podcasts and go ahead and do that now.
Okay, so I'm going to jam pack these 10 bad habits into one five-minute episode. Are you ready? Let's get it, let's go!
If you're feeling like your mental health is off, I need you to ask yourself if you are struggling with any of these habits. Number one, not eating enough food. You have to remember that our mind needs fuel, too. It's not just our body. Just how our body doesn't properly function without enough food, it's the same with your mind. When your mind isn't fueled, it will cause your mindset to waver. If you feel like your mental health is suffering, take a look at the food that you're eating. Make sure you're eating enough. And also, when I say food, I mean fueling your mind with things that bless your heart. This can be a book. This can be a podcast. This can be a sermon. This can be a show. Be very, very, very intentional about what you are fueling your mind with, food and other things.
Number two, not getting enough sleep. Now, I am the biggest advocate on sleep. I believe sleep is everything, and it's crazy how the world can change overnight for the better when we get enough sleep. I would argue that if you're feeling mentally off, if you can prioritize this one thing, you honestly see such a difference as to how it helps you, how it enhances you, how you don't feel so on edge, you don't feel so sluggish. So if you can get enough sleep, and I'm not going to tell you how much sleep you need. Only you can decipher that yourself. That is so important.
Number three, not doing enough of what you're truly passionate about. Yes, yes, yes, and more yeses. I need an amen. You have to do more of what makes you happy and do more of what gets you excited, what makes you feel alive, and what gives you that renewed energy. For me, I'm passionate about moving my body, and I know for me, if I don't do it enough, I feel mentally off. Maybe for you it's reading or playing with your kids or getting out into nature. I will tell you that the more that you do something that you love, the less you will likely feel off. So when you're feeling off, remember, go out there, do something that you love. Maybe this is a wake-up call for you. Maybe your job, maybe your career is not your passion. Ask yourself, what am I truly passionate about? Think about this. So much of your life is at work, so if you're not loving what you're doing, only you can change that.
Number four, spending too much time on social media. Put the social media down, and go live your life. I am preaching to myself to be honest. It's hard, and I will be the first to tell you it's very, very difficult. But if you think about it, maybe if you spend less time on social media, you'll have more time for what you're actually passionate about. So if you're feeling mentally off, maybe you need to put your phone down. Put a limit on your phone. I know for Apple phones, you can put a limit on the app, so that could be a 15-minute limit. It could be a 30-minute limit. And it will literally kick you off the app if you set that limit. And see how this impacts you. And I promise you, it will refresh you in more ways than one. This could even be like a fast one day a week from social media and just being super mindful of that and putting your phone down and spending more time with those around you who you love, the things that you love doing.
Number five, not setting boundaries. I don't believe any of us are setting enough boundaries, and I'm speaking to myself, too. Whether we're scared we don't have enough confidence or we have no idea where our boundaries should be, I actually dive super deep into this topic on Episode 79: Three Things that Deserve Boundaries. So please, if you are struggling with this, which I know many of us are because I talk to you guys on a daily basis, I've linked it in the show notes, so be sure to go give it a listen after this podcast.
Number six, not expressing your emotions. Allow yourself to feel what you're feeling. Allow yourself to express what you're feeling because whatever you're feeling is valid. Your feelings are always valid and worthy of being felt and being expressed. Remember that no one can read your mind, so without expressing what you're feeling, they'll never know. And I know that seems crazy because we take up so much of our time inside of our own head, that it's almost like sometimes you get frustrated if the other person doesn't understand why you're flustered or why you're doing what you're doing. But you have to remember that you have to communicate to them. They often don't know what's going on, so don't keep your feelings to yourself because that will honestly do nothing for you.
And if you feel like you don't have people in your life that you can talk to about, journal, journal, journal. This is something that I've really gotten back into over the last two years, and I can't tell you how good it feels to journal my heart out. Some days, it's a page. Other days, it's 10 pages. It feels like a release that I need to get off my shoulders and out of my head. And when I can get things out of my head onto paper, it changes it. It changes your mindset.
Number seven, honoring your body with movement. Movement literally transforms your mindset. When you move your body, you change your mind. It's as simple as that, so go move your body. It is literally one of the best things that you can do for your mental health. It gives you more clarity, more energy, more confidence, more happiness, and it is truly the ultimate mood booster. So if you don't regularly honor your body with movement, please, please, please start prioritizing it for your mental sake.
Number eight, comparing your life and yourself to others. I have said it before, and I'm sure you've heard this so many times that it's like almost been a broken record, but comparison is truly the thief of joy, so if you want to be happy, you have to stop comparing yourself to others. You have to stop comparing your life to their life. The end. That is it. I actually do an entire episode on this, Episode 31: How to Stop Comparing Yourselves to Others. So if you're struggling right now with comparison in your life, something that you're comparing yourself to or where you're at in life to somebody else, this episode is a must. I will link it in the show notes as well.
Number nine, holding yourself to unrealistic standards. You don't have to be perfect, and you don't have to do 10,000 things every single day. You don't have to have it all together all the time, so you have to start allowing yourself and giving yourself grace to do what you can with what you have and let that be enough. I say it so much, but truly let that be an anthem. Do what you can with what you have that day and let it be enough.
Habit number 10, not saying no enough. I actually just heard about this. I was taking a Peloton class, and they talked about the year of the yes. And basically, it was saying no to everything so that when you do say yes, it actually feels good. And I think that we live in this society where we are a yes man. Yes, yes, yes. You need this? Yes, I can do it. Need to go this way? Yes. And it's constantly trying to almost please everybody, and obviously also be this mindset of like I want to look like I'm everywhere at all times, and it can be exhausting and it can burn you out. So I want to remind you this year to start saving your yeses.
Always say no first. This is one thing that one of my mentors told me a few years ago, and it stuck with me ever since. Say no to everything first. Allow yourself to process it, and then if you still feel like you want to pursue it, then say yes, instead of saying yes to everything first and then regretting it and wishing that you could say no. So saying no to everything so that when it's a yes, it truly is a yes and it brings joy to your heart.
Go out there and prioritize your mental health because you are worth it. I'll see you guys in the next episode.
All right, sister. That's all I got for you today. But I have two things that I need you to do. First thing, if you're not already following me on the 'gram, be sure to do so @JulieALedbetter. Yes. It's with an A in the middle. For that daily post-workout real talk, healthy tips and tricks, and honest accountability to keep your mind and heart in check. The second thing. Be sure to subscribe to Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode.
Thank you so much for joining me. It means the absolute world, and I'm going to leave you with one last thought. The most beautiful women that I have met in my life are the ones who are completely confident and secure in being authentically themselves. Remember that beauty goes so much deeper than the surface, so go out there and embrace your real because you're worth it.