Stimulate the brain to enhance health and wellbeing

In the past couple of years, we have all spent long periods in lockdown.

Substantial parts of our lives ground to a halt or were moved online.

We worked from home while caring for our children and other family members. Those who lived alone became completely isolated without any physical contact with others. And even now, we are facing the possibility of weeks of self-isolation.

In a situation such as this, it is very important that we take steps to practice self-care by making a conscious effort to pay special attention to our physical, mental and emotional wellbeing, both now, as well as during any period of self-isolation that we might be required to undertake.

Emotional stress

One of the greatest threats to our well-being is physical and emotional stress. This stress has a negative impact on our immune system, our energy levels, our emotional well-being, as well as our overall health, and our self-care practices can help reduce this stress.

My article “Self-Care stressed as Omicron makes inroads into wellness” discussed some important aspects of physical self-care. In this article, I will be discussing various proactive steps that we could potentially take to improve our mental wellbeing and keep our brains stimulated. Just as good nutrition is of utmost importance to our physical wellbeing, the way we think and the things that we fill our minds with greatly influence our psychological well-being.

 Mental self-care includes allocating enough time in our day for activities that stimulate, activate or enrich the mind. Some examples of such activities are (a) Doing puzzles such as crosswords, sudoku, word searches, brain teasers and jigsaw puzzles (b) Learning a new language (c) Learning a new skill (d)  Doing a course on any subject that interests you. There are numerous free courses offered by various universities and institutions that you can explore (e) Playing strategy board games (f) Learning to play a musical instrument (g) Reading books that inspire you or introduce you to new ideas (h) Listening to a new genre of music (i) Engaging in sports j) Trying your hand at creative writing.

Exploring new activities

If you already routinely do any of these activities and are already proficient in them, try something new. This is because, for any activity to be mentally stimulating, it needs to challenge us in new ways. It is also equally important to make sure that you actually enjoy whatever new endeavour you are embarking on, rather than regard it as a tiresome chore.

Another aspect of mental self-care is finding the time to introduce leisure activities into your schedule, as this will go a long way in helping you feel and function better in all areas of your life. Leisure activities could include anything that makes you feel relaxed and happy, such as gardening, painting, drawing or any other creative hobby, listening to music, dancing, singing, reading, cooking, baking and most importantly, socializing and interacting with other people.

Now, you may wonder how you are going to be able to make time in your busy schedule for these activities. Devoting just 30 to 60 minutes of your day to mental self-care will go a long way in reducing your stress levels and keeping you mentally stimulated.

Creative Hobbies can improve physical and mental wellbeing (Sweet Softies)

 Limiting time on social media

One easy way to find the time for mental self-care is to limit the time spent on social media and electronic devices. Most of us look at our phone as soon as we wake up, usually to turn off the alarm and check on our social media accounts such as Facebook. Twitter, Instagram and Whatsapp. As a result, we are faced with an onslaught of information before we have even had a cup of coffee.

To recapture some of the time we lose to the numerous apps on our phone, we can start by deleting and unfollowing any account that doesn’t provide us education, joy, or inspiration. Allocating the first hour after we wake up as a device-free period allows us time to relax and mentally prepare and plan for the day ahead rather than subjecting ourselves to a barrage of news, random information and other people’s views and emotions on social media.

As the day progresses, we could try to restrict the amount of time we spend on social media by scheduling specific time slots to check Whatsapp and Facebook messages and reply to them. These actions will free up sufficient time in our schedule for beneficial brain-stimulating and leisure activities.

Improving interpersonal relations

Having an effective mental self-care routine can reduce stress and anxiety and help us to deal with difficult situations and problems. It can also increase our energy levels, reduce burnout, help us build stronger interpersonal relationships with people who matter and contribute to our overall happiness. Mental activity increases the flow of blood, oxygen and nutrients to the brain which can help promote health, prevent disease, and help us cope better with illness. Mental self-care does not necessarily need to take much time and effort. However, it can have a tremendously positive effect on our health and wellbeing.

Self-care is very a personal exercise and each one of us will approach it in different ways depending on our personal and professional commitments. The activities and suggestions in this article are only meant as a guide to help you choose activities that are meaningful to you and your particular circumstances. Ultimately, what we all need to remember is that, making self-care a priority helps us to not only look after our own needs but also to better look after the needs of others in our family, as well as our friends and people in the wider community.

Sandhya Govind is a qualified and trained Naturopath and runs the ‘Sandhya’s Naturopathy Clinic,’ an integrated Natural Medicine facility, which helps people rediscover optimal health, radiance and vitality naturally. Email: sandhyanaturopathy@gmail.com; The above article should be read for general information purposes only and not taken as individual advice. Please always consult your GP or other authorised persons or agencies for personal advice. Indian Newslink and Sandhya Govind absolve themselves of all responsibility or liability in this connection.