Wellbeing Wednesdays: daily habits to start now to easily improve your overall wellbeing

Many people often believe wellbeing activities require major life changes and lots of time and effort – this not always the case. Starting your wellbeing journey can certainly be daunting, but there are ways to incorporate small acts into your everyday life to boost your wellbeing. Studies have shown that incremental steps actually contribute more to long-term wellness rather than big changes. Small changes in your daily life are easy to implement and can transform your overall wellness without too much pressure or expectation. Below are some small habits I suggest incorporating into your day.

Waking up in a positive mindset is the perfect starting point. It is believed that the first moments in the morning greatly impact the attitude you will carry through the rest of the day. So, what can you do to improve your wellbeing as soon as you wake up? Firstly, start with a full body stretch to awaken your body and let it catch up to your mind. Then, have a self-check-in before you get up. This could involve checking how you feel – are there any aches or pains in your body or any worries on your mind? And importantly, this time gives space for you to combat any worries, and decide whether there is anything specific you would like to achieve that day. This ensures you are not rushing in the morning and are taking time to catch up with your feelings.

It is important to set time away from the screen and especially to disconnect from social media for a few hours

Following on from the morning, try setting yourself up with what tasks you need to complete in the day by making a quick to-do list. This helps to plan your day, relieve stress, and focus on priority tasks for the day. It can help you feel motivated for the day ahead.

Limiting your daily screen time also has positive mental health benefits. It decreases stress, increases focus, and enhances emotional wellbeing. In this day and age, it is certainly difficult to get time away from the screen, particularly if you work on a laptop. However, it is important to set time away from the screen and to disconnect from social media for a few hours each day. It can also allow you to have more time to incorporate wellbeing activities into your day rather than doom-scrolling.

With the temperature dropping, it is not appealing to get some fresh air outside. However, adding this into your daily routine can boost your mood, and it gets your body moving, which ultimately adds to a positive mindset. This doesn’t necessarily need to be a big run or a long walk, but just sitting on a bench and spending 20 minutes in the fresh air is good enough and very easy to do. You can even catch up with a friend whilst doing this.

Having a good bedtime routine, allowing your mind to relax away from the screen

Practising gratitude is a great way to finish the day. Robert Emmons said: “Gratitude blocks toxic emotions, such as envy, resentment, regret, and depression, which can destroy our happiness.” All you need is a few moments to think about what you are grateful for that day and how it has positively impacted you. This can take just a few minutes and requires nothing but yourself. But if you did want to go a step further and try writing a list, then I would definitely recommend it as you can look back on it at times when you are feeling down.

Last, but by no means least, the best habit to focus on, in my opinion, is prioritising sleep. It allows your body and your mind to have a complete rest from the stresses of the day. It also sets you up nicely for the next day ahead. Having a good bedtime routine, allowing your mind to relax away from the screen, and ensuring you have eight hours of sleep are some habits you can try to meet this goal.

Hopefully, you can take at least a couple of these small habits and start adding them to your daily routines to improve your wellbeing. They are all habits that will eventually become a part of your life very easily without having to think too much about completing them. They are a great starting point if you are just beginning your wellbeing journey. Happy wellbeing Wednesday and good luck with your daily habits!