Do you ever feel a general sense of a lack of well-being? Maybe you are not sleeping as well as you would like, but don’t feel your problem is serious insomnia. Perhaps you wish you were happier, but don’t believe that you are depressed. Maybe you wish you had more energy or just felt better in general. The way we have managed to organize our society doesn’t always allow us to take time to rest, allow ourselves to sleep as much as we need to, or spend the money and time creating nutritious, tasty meals. We often feel we are always on-the-go, grabbing a bite here and there, trying to squeeze 8 hours of sleep out of 6 hours of time, and never having quite as much time as we’d like with our family.
What would it take to slow down, cut out unnecessary obligations, and really allow ourselves to engage in self-care? Perhaps just the realization that we are worth it; that our pace of life isn’t healthy or sustainable, and simply, we deserve to live a more relaxed, connected, satisfied life.
The United Methodist General Board of Church and Society points us to the Live Your Life Well website, launched in anticipation of Mental Health Month in May.
Live Your Life Well is a national public education campaign dedicated to helping people better cope with stress and enhancing their well-being. Stress can take a huge toll on a person’s health, mood, productivity and relationships, but specific, evidence-based tools can help counterbalance these effects, according to Mental Health America.
The site suggests 10 guidelines to live your life well:
- connect with others,
- stay positive,
- get physically active,
- help others,
- get enough sleep,
- create joy and satisfaction,
- eat well,
- take care of your spirit,
- deal better with hard times, and
- get professional help if you need it.
The website gives more information about each of these ten and suggestions for implementing them in our daily life. It also provides wonderful resources for managing stress. For more information, check out the Live Your Life Well website or the Mental Health Awareness Month website.
