10 Natural Ways to Cope With Mental Illness

As the world is progressing further to the future making human beings busier day-by-day, a change in the mental state of a person is quite common. Although, in the past, many people disregarded mental illness as they considered it to be easily curable. But many scientific theories have proven that mental illness is not only psychological but also a physiological problem too. Hence, mental health should be taken seriously.

Mental illness or mental disorders are a group of disorders that affect mainly thinking, mood, behavior, etc. Some of these disorders are classified as:

• Depression
• Schizophrenia
• Bipolar disorder
• Anxiety disorder
• Phobias
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders (OCD)
• Personality disorders
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders (PTSD)
• Eating disorders
• Sleep disorders

And the list goes on.

How to diagnose mental illness?

If you are feeling something odd about yourself or if one of your closed ones tells you, it is best to consult a doctor as sometimes you may not know that you are suffering from mental problems.

 A doctor will evaluate you via:

1. Your medical history: to rule out certain common causes
2. Physical examination: to check whether symptoms are caused by other medical conditions
3. Lab tests: E.g. to check O2 and CO2 levels in the blood, check the pH of blood, etc. that can alter mental status.
4. Psychological evolution: to check your mental status

And some other evaluations based on the severity of your symptoms.

How to get rid of mental illness?

Treatment depends on what type of mental illness you are suffering from, the severity of your symptoms, and which medications and/or psychotherapy works best for you.

However, this article will tell you different safe ways that you can apply to improve your conditions naturally.

• Modify the source of stress

The majority of mental illness occurs due to stress in social settings like work, toxic friends, etc. If you can change it and adopt a new lifestyle, it can work out pretty well. But if you cannot, then the best idea is to modify it.

For example, if you have a lot of stress in your work, you can talk to your employer about it and come to terms with certain changes which are best for you. You can learn relaxation techniques like meditation; take a few more breaks to ease tension or take help from colleagues to reduce workload.

• Keep a diary

Coping with mental illness is not as easy as it sounds. Some days can be good and rest can be worse depending on several factors. You might get tired and lose interest in life eventually. Hence, almost all individuals suffering from mental illness should keep a diary or a journal every day. Write all the events of a particular day on the same night before sleep. It doesn’t matter if the events are good or bad. In this way, you can evolve almost every day and learn about your persistence in fighting mental illness so that you won’t quit.

• Avoid Substance Abuse

It is defined as excessive use of ‘mood-altering’ drugs such as alcohol, cocaine, tobacco smoking, etc. which can cause harmful effects on physical and mental health.

These drugs are taken thinking that it helps to reduce stress and anxiety. However, eventually, they are going to become an addict which can actually aggravate symptoms of mental disorder. For mental patients, quitting becomes a real challenging task.  Also, these drugs can produce physical symptoms that increase the risk of mortality.

• Remove all negativity and have a positive attitude

Many people fall into depression or mania because they cannot tolerate it when some people criticize them. Or they might think they are not perfect for the job and underestimate themselves. Some make a lot of mistakes and they think they are worthless. All these small thinking can have a huge impact on the psychology of your brain.

Everyone should start their day with a positive mindset. Manage your time, have a work-life balance, and always strive towards your goal. It’s always better to ask someone to help you then draining yourself with the entire burden. Avoid all toxic relations with friends and family if it’s stressing you too much. Stay organized and be disciplined. Make small reasonable goals every day and prioritize them. This positive outlook will change your life forever.

• Stay Healthy

This is one of the most necessary points. Body and mind go hand-to-hand. Even though you are trying to fight mental illness, if you do not keep your body healthy, your mind will not stay active.

Eat nutritious food, exercise regularly, maintain proper hygiene, and sleep 6-8 hours at night. You can also play sports or do some physical activities such as running, swimming, cycling, etc.

• Learn relaxation techniques

Mental illness can lead to an unstable mind which disrupts the normal thinking processes, mood orientation, etc. Learn how to control and relax your mind to reduce the severity of symptoms and improve mindfulness. Some of these relaxation techniques include:

• Meditation
• Laughter
• Deep Breathing
• Yoga
• Tai chi
• Aromatherapy

• Join Social Groups and meet new people

There is a reason why human beings are called social animals. It is always a privilege to meet a person with a completely different experience and perspective towards life. New people can help you understand what it is to live a happy life.

There are many social groups that you can join to meet new people. There are also support groups for people who have similar problems like you face which can help you cope with mental illness.   

• Don’t be a robot

One of the reasons why people suffer from mental illness is they tend to live their life in monotony. Most people do not quite have an exciting job but they still do in order to survive. This makes them feel that their life is going nowhere and that pushes them towards depression.

If you are one of those, then you can always add small extra elements in your life. Like, you can start gardening, dancing, singing, playing a sport, writing, cooking, etc. Find your passion and love for a particular niche and start doing it. Each and every person has 24 hours a day. Learn to multitask and manage time according to it. So, one day you can totally change your life.

• Share with Someone

Mental illness is not as easy as it sounds. It takes a heavy toll on your mind and body. It’s hard for people to cope with such illness when your friends and family are normal and don’t understand what you are going through.

As mentioned above, human beings are social animals. Each and every person develops with each other. To deal with mental illness alone can be dreadful. Therefore, find a person who understands you and treats you the way you want to be treated. If you cannot find a person, you can always seek a therapist. You can confide all your thoughts and feelings to the therapist and it is protected under doctor-patient confidentiality.

A trusted one or a therapist will help you navigate your life that will help you towards a better lifestyle.

• Accept your ‘self’

Don’t make a mistake to underestimate this one. Mental illness is different from other types of disorders that can stay throughout your life and not necessarily be solely cured by medications. But that’s OK. Nobody needs to be perfect.

You might not be able to get healed completely, but you can always improve your symptoms. But to actually improve the symptoms, you need to learn to have a ‘reality check’. You need to learn to be aware of what emotions you go through. If you are feeling sad, embrace the sadness, and find a way that you can distract yourself to. It takes a lot of concentration and perseverance to deal with all these things. But if you accept and embrace yourself, things will surely get better and better as time passes. You will learn how to live with yourself without any regrets. Just focus on what is troubling and make peace with it instead of fighting it.