Last week, I explored “E” for exercise. I talked a little about the movement of the body. The first sign of the disease is fatigue. We must move our bodies and get needed exercise to keep the energy flowing within the body. If we have energy, we work towards mental wellness; if we have fatigue, we work towards mental illness.
This brings me to “S” for socialize. I think this is crucial as well, and it nicely completes the seven strategies to developing a mental wellness plan. For many people, we assume socializing is going out with friends, partying until early morning, or having things to do and people to see. The “S” in socialize is about relationships, interpersonal relationships, i.e., relationships with others, but the most important relationship is one with yourself.
I will encourage you to develop a deep and intimate relationship with yourself. To get to know yourself and the growth you made over the last year. I am talking about a deeply authentic and compassionate understanding of you and your purpose in life.
So how do you socialize with yourself? A great place to start is participating in psychotherapy. Within the therapeutic process, especially if you work with a relational-based clinician, is to get you to dive into this type of work. Psychotherapy will provide space to explore your understanding of the world through your eyes. You will examine parental relationships, sexual and intimate relationships, parent-child relationships, supervisor-employee relationships, teacher-student relationships; all of this is to help you understand your thinking and behavioral patterns. This beautiful experience is called “insight,” and it opens doors for you when it happens. It opens doors for you to do
Comments