May, with its blooming flowers and longer days, signifies a season of renewal and growth. It’s a time when nature seems to wake up from its slumber and that means it is the perfect time for us to dig into our ambitions and aspirations. As I reflect on the significance, of this month, I realize the importance of mental health daily practices, taking charge of my life, and steering it in the direction that I desire. 

Taking charge of one’s life is not merely about making grand gestures or drastic changes; rather it’s about cultivating a mindset of empowerment and making conscious choices that align with our goals and values.

Here are a few strategies that I am employing to embrace May and take control of my life.

A LOOK BACK AT THE MONTH OF APRIL

April was such an incredible month for my business. I made the same in April as I did for all of last year!!! I said yes to things that I normally wouldn’t say yes to and I am so glad that I did. 

First: I helped my employer with their new website. I found a template but did all the work of fixing it to fit their brand and I am so in love with how it turned out. I created pages that were blank to begin with and I stepped into a part of my creativity that I had only ever done for myself.

Now I am not a web designer but this turned out perfectly and I am so in love with it. Feel free to give it a look. This is their new website, RnR Hot Tubs and Spas. 

I have stepped into my poetry more and I am almost complete with writing my second book, Until We Speak. I love how my poetry is really telling my story and it has shifted so much for me, even since my first poetry book, Meraki Pages, which wasn’t even published a year ago!!

Things feel like they are falling into place even though I don’t know what that means. However, there are some things that I want to focus on over the next month and with it being Mental Health Awareness Month, May feels like the perfect time to step into these strategies.

Mental health encompasses our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act in daily life. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. Prioritizing mental health is essential not only for personal well-being but also for fostering healthy relationships and maintaining overall life balance.

Neglecting mental health can lead to serious consequences such as increased anxiety, depression, and other mental health disorders. Chronic stress and unmanaged emotions can adversely affect physical health, leading to problems like insomnia, heart disease, and lowered immune function.

MENTAL HEALTH DAILY PRACTICES I AM STARTING

I am currently working on a blog post that will have 365 lessons that I have learned over the last year. It feels like a HUGE undertaking but I am having so much fun looking back on how my life has changed over the past year. 

However, by saying this, I know that there are things that I need to improve on and figure out how to add to my life. That is where the daily practices for my mental health come in. I started a poem that I titled, Burn It Down, and this feels like what the rest of 2024 is going to be. 

So here we are, talking about ways that I am going to burn everything down and rebuild in my beautiful way. 

Join me in starting these daily practices for your mental health. Don’t feel obligated to choose all of them because it can be overwhelming to make ALL changes at once. Pick and choose what you want to begin with and go from there. I am going to promise myself to do these for the remaining days of May. That feels doable. 

Start the day with positivity

Creating a morning routine that promotes positivity can set the tone for a mentally healthy day. Practices such as meditation, writing in a gratitude journal, and doing light exercises can enhance your mood for the day.

These practices are going to look different for everyone but I am going to get back into writing my morning pages. I found them difficult to do but it made me just write everything down that was going through my head. 

What are morning pages?  These are from the book, The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. Here is what her website says, 

“Morning Pages are three pages of longhand, stream-of-consciousness writing, done first thing in the morning. There is no wrong way to do Morning Pages – they are not high art. They are not even “writing.” They are about anything and everything that crosses your mind – and they are for your eyes only. Morning Pages provoke, clarify, comfort, cajole, prioritize, and synchronize the day at hand. Do not overthink Morning Pages: just put three pages of anything on the page… and then do three more pages tomorrow.”

I want to start with a clear mind and the ability to plan my day without everything feeling scrambled and scrunched in my head. 

Again, for me, this looks like:

• Meditating for at least 5 minutes. I do prefer to do a guided meditation to help me focus on something. 
• Writing my morning pages. 
• Shower and get ready for work.
• Make myself a healthy breakfast and lunch.

Stop eating out

My husband and I carpool to work every day. The benefit of working near one another. However, that means that lately, we have been stopping to eat on the way home more often than we should. Stopping this is going to affect us in a few different ways. 

• We are going to be able to save money. I will be the first to admit that I am terrible at saving money. I am going to come up with an affirmation that I can use to reframe my mindset around this. However, right now, this is my truth and it is something that I am working on. 
• We are going to get healthier. I mean, eating out is nice because it means that I don’t have to cook or even clean up the kitchen afterwards BUT we have been trying to focus on our overall eating and this is going to make a HUGE improvement in that. 

The only day that I plan to eat out for the rest of this month is my daughter’s birthday. She turns 13 and we are going to let her choose where she wants to eat. 

Create a budget

I am taking control of my finances in 2024 and it starts now. I want to be able to have a substantial amount in a savings account as well as money in my checking account. We are finally at a place with both of our careers, where this is a possibility. 

I am trying to figure out how to create a budget that covers all of the bills but gives me some flexibility to spend a little on myself when I want to. I even bought some fun little finance trackers from FiloFax. 

Workout consistently

I joined a gym on Friday and started working out there on Saturday. I need to figure out a schedule that is going to work for me but I am so excited.

I have been so exhausted lately that I need to take control of my health so working out is one of the steps in this process. 

Yesterday I took my daughter. I did a 22-minute moderate walk on the treadmill with a 1.5% incline and then for four minutes, I walked on the step machine. After that, we both did the 30-minute circuit that the gym has set up to workout your entire body. 

My booty is hurting today but I will take that as a good sign. With working out, I will be increasing my water intake. I am terrible at drinking water but I have added a mint green tea to my morning at work and I have water bottles at work so I don’t have to remember to bring them. 

Ending the day with gratitude

Since I am starting the day with positivity, it feels perfect to end the day with gratitude. I have a few small notebooks that I can use to write all that I am grateful for. I know that some days will be better than others but there is always something to be thankful for.

Do you have a gratitude journal?

Write the negative in a journal

Another way that you can add journaling to your evening routine is to write down the things that happened that day. Get everything out of your head before you go to sleep. Think of this as your evening pages. When something happens that we keep replaying in our head, we tend to focus on it and it can affect our sleep, increase our anxiety, and make us feel worse about our life.

Get these thoughts out of your head so that you can go to bed with a clear mind. Don’t let the negative take over your head. We all get caught up in it but this is a way to take back control so that we don’t give the negative aspects the power that it thrives on to survive.

OVERCOMING THE CHALLENGES THAT WILL COME UP

I wish that I could say there would be no challenges but we all know better than that. I need to have a few plans in place to help with the challenges that will arise. 

Here are a few things that I am going to do to overcome the expected challenges:

• Have a snack in the van for my husband on the way home from work.
• Keep my favorite tea at work so that I can make it when I first get there.
• Make a breakfast that I can easily take with me as 5 am is so early in the morning.
• Have my notebook set on my bedside table for me to easily grab and write in.
• Decide on a meditation the night before so I don’t have to search in the morning wasting valuable time.
• Keep my debit and credit cards out of reach so I can’t easily spend my money.

Taking charge of your mental health is a powerful step towards living a balanced and fulfilling life. This May, let these empowering tips guide you through your journey of mental wellness. Remember, every small step can lead to significant changes and your mental health is worth every effort.

Follow me on Instagram @inwordwhispers as I share my journey.