What’s your biggest concern at this very moment? Now imagine your best friend in your shoes. What advice would you give them? Maybe you would tell them to take a deep breath and get a little perspective. When they see that this will pass, calm often takes over.
Why not show yourself the same compassion?
According to Mercedes Timko, MD, a doctor in Penn Medicine’s Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine Department, many people have trouble embracing self-compassion, even though it’s central to our emotional health.
“Without self-compassion, it’s difficult to foster any kind of mental emotional wellness,” Dr. Timko says.
She offers these tips for improving your self-compassion and enhancing your emotional health.
Factors that Affect Emotional Well Being and How to Take Control
Eating a balanced diet, exercising regularly, and getting enough sleep isn’t just good for our bodies, it also helps balance our moods. “When we eat fast food and try to get by on a few hours of sleep, it will enhance our negative stress response, leaving us feeling especially sensitive,” Dr. Timko says.
Another essential piece of the puzzle is stress management. There are so many ways for stress to creep into our lives. We need to be proactive about how we cope with it. Dr. Timko suggests meditation.
“Apps like Calm and Headspace have reshaped the conversations around meditation and made it much more accessible,” she says. “And you can benefit from doing it just a few minutes a day.”
Why Social Support is Important and How to Find Comfort
Being able to talk openly with a sibling, parent, or close friend reminds us, in urgent moments and everyday ones, that we’re not alone. That can go a long way in grounding us.
But your support system doesn’t need to be limited to loved ones, Dr. Timko says. Fill it with anything that comforts you: a pet, a podcast you listen to religiously, a sketchbook.
“I’m a big believer in growth through connection,” Dr. Timko says. “But we’ve learned during the pandemic that, short of an interpersonal connection, lots of other things can lift our mood.”