🌟 5 tools to support your mental health

Hey Flawsome Human,

It’s Wednesday again, happy Hump day.

This newsletter is all about accepting your flaws & allowing yourself to be a human — and we all struggle sometimes.

I am a big mental health advocate & I have spent the past 10 months experimenting with different things to improve my own.

When you’re near rock bottom, you’re willing to try anything and everything to get you to a better place. Last week I talked about therapy & that’s one of the things that has definitely helped me, but I want to add a few more.

Let’s get into it.

🧠5 TOOLS TO SUPPORT YOUR MENTAL HEALTH🧠

1️⃣ Journalling

Second best thing to therapy — I swear by it. Pen to paper can do more than you realize; we have so much going on in our heads, and it’s difficult to sort through it if it isn’t laid out in front of us. Journalling is a great way to also just release things you might be carrying.

Five minutes, that’s all you need in a day to journal. Brain dump what’s going on, things you’re grateful for, and goals you’re maybe working towards.

It’s also such a nice thing to reflect on — I love looking at old journals to see how far I’ve come.

2️⃣ Limited screen time/social blocker apps

Easy to say, hard to do. We live in a scrolling world and it’s hard to escape. I use an app called Freedom (not affiliated, I just like it). It locks me out of certain apps at specific times, so I can’t even access them.

Whenever I am feeling drained, anxious, or discouraged, I usually have been spending WAY too much time on social media. Try your best to limit your time on social, especially when you first wake up.

3️⃣ Non-negotiables/boundaries

Make them, and stick to them. But be realistic. My non-negotiables are; getting in 30 minutes of exercise daily, no social media for the first hour of waking, and 1 day off from work a week. Simple, but it works for me.

What boundaries or non-negotiables can you implement to make you feel better daily? Maybe it’s putting your phone on airplane mode at 9pm weeknights (this is a new one I’m trying to stick to).

4️⃣ Exercise & Nutrition

Totally underrated. You will be happier (and healthier) if you’re fuelling your body correctly and getting in regular movement. I take an 80/20 approach with my diet; 80% whole foods, 20% “fun” foods.

Exercise doesn’t need to be intense, just make sure you’re getting it in. A walk around the neighbourhood, a yoga class, or a bike ride all count. You’re never too busy for 30 minutes of movement in your day (even 10 minutes is better than nothing).

5️⃣ Plant Medicine

Now, this one isn’t for everyone. I have never experimented with plant medicine until this year. I do feel that if it is used correctly, and with a professional, it can be incredibly helpful & a great addition to regular therapy. It can help bring up memories buried in our subconscious & make us more compassionate towards ourselves & others.

I have done psilocybin, ayahuasca, and peyote this year and every single one taught me something about myself. In April I went to a healing retreat in Mexico to do an ayahuasca ceremony & while it was one of the scariest things I’ve done (I had no idea what was going to come up), it helped me better understand my past.

If you are open to hearing about my Ayahuasca experience, you can tune into my podcast episode this week:

Watch on Youtube

Listen on Apple

Listen on Spotify

If you found any of these helpful, let me know. Or, if you’ve had your own experiences with any of the above, reply to this email (would love to hear what works for you).

See you next Wednesday. 😊

Stay Flawsome,

-Erica