Four Strategies to Improve Your Emotional Health
Each fall, the International Council on Active Aging celebrates Active Aging Week, highlighting seven pillars of wellness. The first of those may surprise you – it’s Emotional Wellbeing.
Human beings are designed to emote. It’s a reaction that we really don’t have any control over. What we do have control over is what we say or do with that emotion.
Emotional well-being is what gets us through life’s ups and downs. It centers us and grounds us. Learning to embrace our entire spectrum of emotions, from joy and excitement to stress, anxiety, and grief creates balance in our lives and helps us learn from our experiences.
Here are four strategies to improve your emotional health:
1. Practice Gratitude
When we learn to focus more on what we have and less on what we lack, our entire world can change. According to the CDC, adults who practice gratitude experience less stress, more happiness, stronger relationships, better sleep, and improved physical health.
2. Learn to Slow Down
It’s about being present, in the moment, doing one thing at a time. Life can move at a seemingly unstoppable pace at times. Even as we age, the hustle and bustle of daily life can add stress, increase thoughts of frustration and despair, and impair our emotional well-being.
A great way to calm the mind and center our thoughts on our emotions is to literally “stop and smell the roses.” This idea has rapidly grown in popularity, leading to what has been called the “Slow Movement.” When we learn to live life instead of racing through it, we have more time to process what we are feeling in the moment and can act on our emotions instead of ignoring them and letting them build up inside.
3. Talk with Someone
Share your happy times with others. Love more, laugh more, and share your goodness with the world. And in tough times, don’t hide from pain. Talk to someone and share your journey. We can strengthen our emotional well-being when we lean on our support systems for help, and when we offer help back to those we love.
4. Embrace an Emotional Outlet
The emotional spectrum can be overwhelming. Whether it’s pain and grief, or even an overflow of excitement from an unexpected happy event, we all can benefit from an activity that serves as an emotional outlet. When faced with overwhelming feelings, having a hobby like writing, painting, singing, playing sports, and crafting can alleviate stress. These activities help us get out of our heads and connect physically, increasing our endorphin levels and allowing us time to process intense emotions until they pass.
Emotional well-being can have an immense impact on extending our health span. Emotional resilience comes from the perspective and wisdom gained from life experience. It is a journey worth traveling and sharing with others as we embrace active aging.
For more on Active Aging Week, visit our friends at Growing Bolder.
By Stacey Himler, Owner, Caring Transitions of Southern Delaware
Get in touch: SHimler@caringtransitions.com
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