Ways to Live a Better & Happier Life

I realize that everyone's experiences in life are different. I also realize that my experiences may not work for some people, but I do hope that me speaking on a topic as general as this will be helpful in some way because I do believe we're all deserving of a life well lived.

1. Enjoy the little moments. Whether if it's a moment inside your car as you're rolling down the windows to let in that fresh air or listening to your favorite type of music... whether if it's being with your family, friends or loved ones... Even if it's just getting out of bed and enjoying every minute of your morning routine. There's always a silver lining that you could keep your focus and attention on for as little as one minute. Find out which little moments in life spark the most joy in you, and that'll help to boost your mood.

2. Time out breaths. If you find those voices or demons in your head coming up to the surface, stop them in their tracks immediately and just breathe. Breathe in those positive mantras that you're wanting to keep in your mind, and breathe out that negativity. Breathe in and focus on nothing but the oxygen around you (even better if it's oxygen from the outdoors), and breathe out whatever thoughts are threatening to hold you back. The more you can practice this one simple routine, the better you'll feel about yourself. 

3. Talk to a counselor or therapist. With the way technology is now, there's really no excuse to not get help if all else fails. If you're already signed up with a counselor/therapist in your area, then that's great. If not, you could either go the traditional route or get that help online. Whatever it is you decide to do, please remember that this option is always open, and there's no shame in taking this route. We all need it sometimes whether if we're open to admitting that or not.

4. Develop Healthier Habits. It's one thing to make your mental health a priority, but our well-being is more than just that alone. However, it takes discipline and effort to maintain a more balanced life. You have to want these changes bad enough in order to start somewhere with your physical health. If there's any easy starting point that I could give you, it would be to get more fruits, vegetables and sustainable proteins in your diet. And when it comes to exercise, the easiest thing you could do is sit less and move more. Take a walk whenever you have time to spare- and if you don't, then you need to make time. You could start as low as 10 or 15 minutes a day, and for as little as once a week if you don't know how or where to start. And while this last pointer is most obvious, I know it's something I myself sometimes struggle with as well: SLEEP. Your body's ability to function is highly dependent on how many hours of sleep you get. I myself try to get 8 or 9 hours of sleep a night, and I try to go to bed at the same time every night as well. I also try to get up at the same time every morning unless I know I don't have be anywhere for the day.

I know that this is a lot of information to take in, but I can promise you that these tips that I've learned can help you. If you have any questions, feel free to post them in the comments and I'll do the best I can to offer my advice. I'm not a professional by any means, but I do feel like our lives are worth the care and effort that we should put into ourselves. Everything I've experienced in the last year or two has been hard, so a lot of these pointers come from my own personal experiences as well as inspiration from others. Dealing with life's ups and downs can be challenging at times; I know and understand this. I hope that this post can help inspire you in some way.