Mental Health Awareness Week 2024

Mental Health Awareness Week 2024 - Daily Blog

For those of us who have previously, or are currently experiencing mental health issues, Mental Health Awareness Week (MHAW) is a valuable time to reflect. The theme for this year's MHAW is 'movement for mental health', based on the evidence that physical activity can improve mental health. Of course, it must also be acknowledged that for some people both mental health difficulties and, sometimes, mental health medicines can act as barriers to getting physically active.

I'd like to share my experiences of movement in different forms, my experiences of them in terms of mental health, and those that I would use in different contexts for different purposes. I have found that one type of movement as a part of one's routine is often not enough, one has days where a bike ride or a run just don't seem feasible, and other days where they feel exactly the opposite.

Tai Chi is an ancient Chinese martial art, sometimes called “shadow boxing” or “meditation in motion”. It’s a series of different postures that flow into each other in slow movements. And because Tai Chi is a mix of exercise and meditation, your brain gets a work out too – leading to better brain function. It improves heart health, and has even been shown to boost your immune system. Michael Mosely discusses the benefits of Tai Chi with BBC Radio 4 here. This can be a great type of movement if something heavy on the cardio just seems too much. YouTube has a plethora of easy to follow videos, and local community groups often offer Tai Chi classes which are a great way to feel part of a community.

For many people, lacing up their running shoes is fundamental to their mental health. Studies have shown that people often run to look after their mental wellbeing. Neuroscientists have been studying the power of running for mental health, and their findings confirm what many runners know from their own experience: we can use running as a tool to improve the way we think and feel. And we are now learning precisely why running can return focus, vanquish stress and improve mood. Couch to 5k is an app which has had great success for many, and was my way into feeling confident with running. It requires no previous experience, and you get a friendly voice encouraging and instructing you.

Walking can help relieve stress. Walking gives you time to think, as well as time to get away from stressors. Getting out of the stressful environment, breathing the air, and feeling your body move is natural stress-relief.

According to the American Psychological Association, if you want to boost your mental health, take a walk. Forest bathing is the practice of immersing yourself in nature in a mindful way, using your senses to derive a whole range of benefits for your physical, mental, emotional, and social health. Forest Bathing (or shinrin-yoku) surfaced in Japan in the 1980s as both a treatment for burned-out technology workers and a way to reconnect the population with the country’s extensive network of forests. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it turns out that immersing yourself in nature and mindfully using all five senses – touch, sight, hearing, smell, and taste – has many health benefits. Shinrin-yoku closely follows earlier principles gained from other meditative practices that continue to guide the mindfulness movement.

There’s something very therapeutic and calming about being in or near water. It helps to boost our sense of wellbeing and happiness. According to studies, swimming releases 'feel good' hormones, boosts brain health, soothes your mind, reduces anxiety and encourages socialising. You can access communities of swimmers locally by visiting the Mental Health Swims, Dips Not Distance website. To learn more about the communities that can form as part of wild swimming, the film Wild Water gives an interesting insight into the relationships that can form.

With its emphasis on breathing practices and meditation — both of which help calm and centre the mind — it's hardly surprising that yoga also brings mental benefits, such as reduced anxiety and depression. What may be more surprising is that it actually makes your brain work better. Yoga classes are common nowadays in local community settings, and if you prefer to practice in your own home, you can find plenty of free videos online.

Dancing is fun and can be a great way to celebrate, but evidence also suggests it can be a powerful tool for boosting mental health and well-being. Researchers have found that dancing can improve mood, combat depression, boost brain function, foster happiness, and even improve relationships. It can also improve psychological coping and overall well-being.

It has been demonstrated that, on their own, both exercise and stimulation from the environment can improve cognitive function and well-being in older adults.  It is not just the physical activity component of cycling that is having an influence. Both pedal cycles and e-bikes can enable increased physical activity and engagement with the outdoor environment with e-bikes potentially providing greater benefits.

Whatever your chosen forms of movement, the most important thing I would say, is to do something that you enjoy and makes you feel good. Gone are the days of using movement to punish ourselves, try to think of movement as one of life's great joys. Try something new for a month, and see how you feel, move as vigorously or as gently as you feel.

Written by Kirsten Brown (Mental Health and Wellbeing Practitioner & PPN-SE Practitioner Fellow)