6 Ways to Mentally Detox and Support Your Wellbeing
Your brain isn’t designed to multi-task, juggle competing duties, or keep multiple mental lists going at the same time. Research shows that multi-tasking actually hurts our brain power, performance and productivity, and can increase stress.1,2 Nevertheless, with endless to-do lists and responsibilities to manage, this is how many of us spend our days.
This can lead to serious mental overload and burn out.
That’s why taking the time to give yourself a “mental detox” is so important to recharge your brain, quiet your mental chatter, and reduce stress levels. This can free up extra energy and brain power, and support your overall health and wellness.
Here are 6 expert tips to help you clear your mind and give your brain a break from multitasking, overthinking, and habitual anxiety.
Mental Detox Tips
Take a Technology Break
Taking a much needed technology break or putting your phone down is one of the top tips for giving your brain a break. Our devices, like phones, iPads or tablets, computers and TV, demand our attention and focus, and can distract us with constant notifications, alerts, messages, and more. Experts call this “info-mania”, and it can take a toll on our mental, emotional and physical health. Plan to take regular technology breaks whenever possible, and if needed, let your close contacts know you’re stepping away from your devices.
Make a Worry List
Psychologists recommend writing down your worries as a way to stop the cycle of anxious thoughts. The idea is that a lot of our general anxiety comes from the fear we’ll forget something important. Listing your worries on paper can help clarify which ones are valid concerns, and which ones can be let go. It also helps organize a plan to address concerns using concrete solutions.
Practice Simple Meditation
Even just ten minutes a day of simple meditation practice can help us quiet our minds, reduce anxious thoughts, and promote greater brain power and resilience to stress. Find a quiet place to sit comfortably and focus your attention on your breathing. As you inhale and exhale, visualize breathing in nourishment and energy, and breathing out stress and anxiety. This simple practice can be a profound way to improve your health on every level—physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.
Spend Time in Nature
Taking a walk in nature is shown to reduce stress levels and improve key markers in health. There’s even a term for it: Forest Bathing. The results, either alone or combined with simple meditation, can help you clear your mind and support optimal mental and physical health.
Practice Journaling
When you feel wound up, free-writing your thoughts and anxieties in a journal can help clear your head and reduce stress. It’s a great way to acknowledge what’s going on in your mind, release mental tension, and help you see the bigger picture more clearly.
Improve Sleep
During sleep, your body performs numerous repair tasks. One of these is a brain detox, where toxins that can fuel neuroinflammation are flushed from the brain through a specialized network. This is important for reducing mental stress. Getting at least 7-8 hours of healthy sleep each night is key for supporting mental and emotional, as well as physical health.
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Taking the time to mentally detox is an essential self-care strategy for performing and feeling your best. With these strategies, you can relax your mind and body, and achieve greater health, energy and wellbeing, naturally.
Sources:
- Rosen, Christine. “The Myth of Multitasking.” The New Atlantis, no. 20, Center for the Study of Technology and Society, 2008, pp. 105–10, http://www.jstor.org/stable/43152412.
- Mark, Gloria & Gudith, Daniela & Klocke, Ulrich. (2008). The cost of interrupted work: More speed and stress. Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - Proceedings. 107-110. 10.1145/1357054.1357072.