24 July 2024 | Kirsten Howson

5 Key Tips To Self-Care

24th July has been chosen to mark Self Care Day to symbolise the fact that self-care can be carried out 24 hours a day and 7 days a week (World Health Organization). Self-care awareness and education have grown rapidly over recent years, and it is now the 5 year anniversary of the “WHO Guideline on Self-Care Interventions for Health and Wellbeing” which can be accessed here: 

WHO guideline on self-care interventions for health and well-being, 2022 revision – WHO (www.who.int) 

We wanted to mark Self-Care Day this year with 5 key tips. With increasingly busy lives, it is important that we can make time to look after ourselves.

Understanding what Self-Care is 

“Self-care” is a term that is often associated with expensive products and activities, which can create the illusion that it is inaccessible to many, either due to lack of time or resource. Self-care can, however, be simplified and made more accessible by considering it as a gesture of appreciation to ourselves. This can look very different to different people and there is no “one size fits all” rule but can be as simple as making a drink in a favourite mug or allowing ourselves the time to spend on a hobby or enjoyable activity. It is important to be intentional about these acts and acknowledge them as gestures or tokens of appreciation or kindness to ourselves.

Exercise and Activity

Physical activity carries significant benefits to both our physical and mental health, acting to enhance mood and quality of life. There is a large body of literature that supports this, highlighting the impact of physical activity on anxiety and depression (Mahindru et al., 2023). There are a range of neurobiological mechanisms believed to underly this, including the impact of exercise on neurotransmitter levels (Basso and Suzuki, 2017). Green and Smith (2018) stated that exercise is integral to the health of our vascular systems. 

One of the main barriers that many of us face is finding the time to commit to exercising, but exercise doesn’t necessarily need to be a time-consuming trip to the gym or an expensive exercise class. It can be helpful to incorporate activity into everyday life, for example walking to the shops rather than driving or taking the stairs rather than the lift. Whilst there are great positives to an increase in people being able to work from home, it can mean a significant reduction in mobility for many of us, so it is important to remember to get up from our desks and walk around regularly or use some time on our lunchbreaks to do some stretches.

Connecting with Others

Reaching out to friends, family and colleagues, particularly during periods of increased stress can be extremely helpful. Connecting with others when stressed can have the benefit of simply sharing a concern or stressor but there is also the possibility that others may be able to offer practical support or solutions. Løseth et al. (2022) showed that recovery from a stressful period is improved through the support of a friend. Possible mechanisms behind this are the adoption of successful coping strategies and the impact that the support has upon neurobiological mechanisms (Ozbay et al., 2007). 

Sleep 

The National Health Service advises that sleep requirement varies between individuals, however, adults require an average of 7-9 hours per night (NHS). Blackwelder et al. (2021) found that participants who slept for an average of 6 hours and below each night had a 2.5 times greater chance of experiencing regular mental distress than participants who slept for greater than 6 hours each night. Poor sleep has also been found to be associated with poor physical health, in particular, increasing the incidence of cardiovascular issues (Hsieh and Martin, 2019). For tips on improving your sleep hygiene, please visit: 

Fall asleep faster and sleep better – Every Mind Matters – NHS (www.nhs.uk) 

Diet and Fluid Intake

Diet is another factor that contributes to both physical and mental health. One mechanism by which diet can impact upon mood is the effect that differing food groups are believed to have upon the production of the neurotransmitter, Serotonin (Markowitz et al., 2008). It is important, particularly during periods of increased stress, to ensure a healthy and balanced diet. For further dietary tips, please visit: 

Eat well – NHS (www.nhs.uk) 

Fluid hydration also has a significant impact on overall wellbeing. Liska et al. (2019) identified a link between body fluid deficit and tension and Masento et al. (2014) highlighted that the intake of water can uplift mood. By maintaining fluid intake and hydration levels throughout the day, unless advised to follow a fluid restricted diet, we can reduce our stress levels and enhance our mood. 

If you are struggling with any mental health concern, please do reach out for support from the following:  

In the case of an emergency, call 999 or attend your nearest A&E Department. 

What we offer at SimComm Academy: 

At SimComm Academy, we run many standard and bespoke courses to suit your needs. These focus on mental health and wellbeing and are for people with clinical and non-clinical backgrounds. Here are a few examples of the mental health and wellbeing courses we have available: 

  • At Ease with conversations 
  • Supporting friends, neighbours and the community 
  • Mental Health First Aid, with simulated practice 
  • Communicating with people with mood disorders, anxiety disorders, psychosis, and eating disorders 
  • Wellbeing and re-setting the balance 
  • Civility and Professionalism 
  • Gender ‘Illumination and awareness’ 
  • Kindness in Practice 

References: 

  • Basso, J. C., & Suzuki, W. A. (2017). The Effects of Acute Exercise on Mood, Cognition, Neurophysiology, and Neurochemical Pathways: A Review. Brain plasticity (Amsterdam, Netherlands), 2(2), 127–152. https://doi.org/10.3233/BPL-160040 
  • Blackwelder, A., Hoskins, M., & Huber, L. (2021). Effect of Inadequate Sleep on Frequent Mental Distress. Preventing chronic disease, 18, E61. https://doi.org/10.5888/pcd18.200573 
  • Green, D. J., & Smith, K. J. (2018). Effects of Exercise on Vascular Function, Structure, and Health in Humans. Cold Spring Harbor perspectives in medicine, 8(4), a029819. https://doi.org/10.1101/cshperspect.a029819 
  • Hsieh, C. G., & Martin, J. L. (2019). Short Sleep, Insomnia, and Cardiovascular Disease. Current sleep medicine reports, 5(4), 234–242. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40675-019-00157-8 
  • Liska, D., Mah, E., Brisbois, T., Barrios, P. L., Baker, L. B., & Spriet, L. L. (2019). Narrative Review of Hydration and Selected Health Outcomes in the General Population. Nutrients, 11(1), 70. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11010070 
  • Løseth, G. E., Eikemo, M., Trøstheim, M., Meier, I. M., Bjørnstad, H., Asratian, A., Pazmandi, C., Tangen, V. W., Heilig, M., & Leknes, S. (2022). Stress recovery with social support: A dyadic stress and support task. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 146, 105949. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2022.105949 
  • Mahindru, A., Patil, P., & Agrawal, V. (2023). Role of Physical Activity on Mental Health and Well-Being: A Review. Cureus, 15(1), e33475. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.33475 
  • Markowitz, S., Friedman, M. A., & Arent, S. M. (2008). Understanding the relation between obesity and depression: causal mechanisms and implications for treatment. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 15(1), 1. 
  • Masento, N. A., Golightly, M., Field, D. T., Butler, L. T., & van Reekum, C. M. (2014). Effects of hydration status on cognitive performance and mood. The British journal of nutrition, 111(10), 1841–1852. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114513004455 
  • National Health Service. Eat Well. NHS. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/ Accessed on 11/04/2024. 
  • National Health Service. How to Fall Asleep Faster and Sleep Better. NHS. https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-wellbeing-tips/how-to-fall-asleep-faster-and-sleep-better/ Accessed on 11/04/2024. 
  • National Health Service. Insomnia. NHS. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/insomnia/ Accessed on 11/04/2024. 
  • Ozbay, F., Johnson, D. C., Dimoulas, E., Morgan, C. A., Charney, D., & Southwick, S. (2007). Social support and resilience to stress: from neurobiology to clinical practice. Psychiatry (Edgmont (Pa. : Township)), 4(5), 35–40. 
  • World Health Organization. Self-Care Month 2024. WHO. https://www.who.int/news-room/events/detail/2024/06/24/default-calendar/self-care-month-2024    Accessed on 05/07/2024. 
  • World Health Organization. WHO Guideline on Self-Care Interventions for Health and Well-being. WHO. WHO guideline on self-care interventions for health and well-being, 2022 revision Accessed on 05/07/2024. 

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