The Importance of Downtime and How to Make It

HealthyPlace Mental Health Newsletter

Here's what's happening on the HealthyPlace site this week:

• The Importance of Downtime and How to Make It
• From the HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs
• Video: What Does a Person with Bipolar Disorder Look Like?
• Most Popular HealthyPlace Articles Shared by Facebook Fans
• Mental Health Quote

The Importance of Downtime and How to Make It

Living on overdrive, speeding along without applying the brake, is a danger to our mental health. According to an article in Scientific American, our brain needs downtime, a chance to meander freely, slowly process our lives, create, and recharge; however, many of us are overwhelmed with stress and anxiety. Our stressful lives are consumed by work (paid or unpaid, away from home or in the home), an over-attachment to technology, and unrelenting stressors. A lack of downtime is detrimental to mental health and wellbeing. It contributes to

• Racing thoughts
• Anxiety
• Rumination over problems and worries
• Depression
• Sleep problems, which aggravates mental health conditions
• The exacerbation of mental illness symptoms (all mental illnesses and personality disorders are negatively impacted by a lack of downtime)

Try these tips for creating downtime:

• Make it easy. Have a "play box" handy, full of things to de-stress: coloring books, cards, books, etc.
• Give yourself permission. It can be hard to have downtime because we value our goals. Making tangible goals for having downtime will help you see the worth in taking breaks.
• Schedule it into your day, and set an alarm to remind you that it's time to pamper your brain. Set an alarm to signal the end of downtime as well so you don't worry about making your break too long.

Downtime can ease mental illness symptoms and enhance wellbeing. Give yourself a break.

Related Articles Dealing with Downtime and Mental Health

• Dealing with PTSD: The Importance of Rest
• Relaxation Techniques for Relief of Anxiety and Stress
• Taking a Mental Health Break from Work When You Have Bipolar
• Restorative Yoga for True Relaxation
• Anxiety Coping Strategy: The Benefits of Relaxation

Your Thoughts

Today's Question: How do you create downtime when you have so many things on your plate plus mental health challenges? We invite you to participate by sharing your thoughts, experiences, and knowledge on the HealthyPlace Facebook page and on the HealthyPlace Google+ page.

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From the HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs

On all our blogs, your comments and observations are welcomed.

• Don’t Let Mental Health Stigma Be a Barrier to a Full Life
• Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) as Treatment for PTSD
• Help Your Support System for Bipolar Disorder Support You
• I Wish I Could Have Prevented Developing Schizophrenia
• Is Social Anxiety Ruining Your Fun?
• Finding Comfort in Depression Is Difficult, Not Impossible
• Is Dissociation a Dysfunction or a Positive Coping Skill?
• How to Find Peace in a Family with Mental Illness

Feel free to share your thoughts and comments at the bottom of any blog post. And visit the mental health blogs homepage for the latest posts.

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From HealthyPlace YouTube Channel

What Does a Person with Bipolar Disorder Look Like?

What does a person with bipolar disorder look like? We can even broaden this out to: What does a person with mental illness really look like?.

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Most Popular HealthyPlace Articles Shared by Facebook Fans

Here are the top 3 mental health articles HealthyPlace Facebook fans are recommending you read:

1. Finding Comfort in Depression Is Difficult, Not Impossible
2. Tips For Partners Living with Dissociative Identity Disorder
3. How to Approve of Yourself Unconditionally

If you're not already, I hope you'll join us/like us on Facebook too. There are a lot of wonderful, supportive people there.

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Mental Health Quote

"This is one of the most frustrating things about having an anxiety disorder; knowing as you're freaking out that there's no reason to be freaked out. But lacking the ability to shut the emotion down.

Read more anxiety quotes.

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That's it for now. If you know of anyone who can benefit from this newsletter or the HealthyPlace.com site, I hope you'll pass this onto them. You can also share the newsletter on any social network (like facebook, stumbleupon, or google+) you belong to by clicking the links below. For updates throughout the week, circle HealthyPlace on Google+, follow HealthyPlace on Twitter or become a fan of HealthyPlace on Facebook. Also, check out HealthyPlace on Pinterest and share your mental health pins on our Share Your Mental Health Experiences board.

back to: HealthyPlace.com Mental-Health Newsletter Index