It’s that time of year again, when we list our healthy New Year’s resolutions. The most common New Year’s resolutions revolve around eating better and exercising more, but we often forget to make mental health resolutions, not realizing the impact mental well-being has on physical well-being.
The importance of making mental health New Year’s resolutions
Mental health is your psychological, emotional, and social well-being. In simpler words, it refers to how you think, feel, and act.
Living healthy and aging well does depend greatly on a good diet and plenty of physical activity, but it is also widely understood that many chronic diseases are worsened by mental stress. Looking after your mental health is, therefore, just as important as taking care of your physical health.
Benefits of good mental health
Good mental health is when you are — not necessarily 24/7, but for the most part — happy and relaxed. This translates into positive energy that seems to come out of nowhere. You are more productive, use your skills and capabilities better, and have healthier relationships because your head is in the right space.
Effects of poor mental health
Poor mental health can have terrible effects on a person. You feel tired and listless, struggle to complete routine tasks, your relationships may suffer, and you find it impossible to manage all the stressful situations that are part and parcel of life.
5 mental health New Year’s resolutions to make this year
“Lose weight”, “quit smoking”, and “drink less” are some of the most common New Year’s resolutions, and you may have been making them for years. If you’re stuck for ideas on how to make mental health resolutions, here are some New Year resolution examples.
- Eat a nourishing breakfast every day
In the 1960s, nutritionist Adelle Davis famously said, “Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper.”
While experts are divided on the necessity for a Hollywood-worthy feast on the table at 7am, eating something after waking up is generally considered to be a very good idea.
Recent statistics show that 1 in 4 senior adults skips breakfast regularly. This is not good, because eating breakfast can have a significant impact on improving your mood and mental health. It improves brain function and concentration, reduces anxiety, and stabilizes cortisol levels.
Breakfast doesn’t have to be complicated or complex. The goal is to get something in your stomach after the 8-10 hour fast while you were asleep. While the ideal breakfast includes a portion each of fruit and vegetables, whole grains, healthy proteins, and fats, something as simple as a handful of berries in a cup of unsweetened, low-fat yogurt will do well enough.
- Harness the power of your smile
A smile is a physical reaction to pleasing sensory stimulus: hearing a kind word, smelling a freshly baked pie, seeing a gurgling baby — all of these generally make people smile.
A smile is also a pleasing stimulus in itself: research shows that smiling makes people look more attractive, intelligent, and trustworthy. So, when you smile at someone, they will most probably smile back because they have subconsciously assumed that you are likeable.
The positive reactions and validations gained from smiling boost your self-esteem, make your body produce more of the happy hormone dopamine, and motivate you to perform better.
Smiling also helps you manage stress. In one psychological research study, participants performed stress-inducing activities while either smiling or holding a neutral expression. The smilers reported lower heart rates, indicating that they had coped better.
Making a habit of smiling is quite possibly the easiest New Year health resolution you can make. Start your day by smiling at yourself in the mirror. Smile at people you meet. Smile when your favorite character appears on TV. Smile every time you type ‘LOL’ on your phone.
Don’t feel like smiling? Fake it. It will still work!
- Connect with people
Human beings are social creatures and need the company of others. Even introverts require social contact, perhaps even more than their more extrovert counterparts.
‘Connecting’ doesn’t always have to be on a deep, profound level. It can be as simple as going to the park and watching other people enjoy a day out. Join a game of street/park chess.
Volunteer at a local shelter, or even just check in on your next-door neighbor. If going out and about is difficult, join an online community of people who share your interests.
For 2025, make a mental health New Year’s resolution to reconnect and catch up with a friend, relative, or acquaintance you haven’t spoken to in a while. Ask what’s new with them, share your own news. You can even prepare ahead with a list of 5 or 6 questions or write down topics to talk about.
And while you’re working on building your connections with people…
- End toxic relationships and friendships
In her 1925 (that’s exactly 100 years ago!) book ‘The Game of Life and How to Play it’, artist and metaphysical author Florence Scovel Shinn writes, “I have a friend who often says on the ‘phone, ‘Do come to see me and have a nice old-fashioned chat.’ This ‘old-fashioned chat’ means an hour of about five hundred to a thousand destructive words, the principal topics being loss, lack, failure, and sickness.
“I reply: ‘No, I thank you. I’ve had enough old-fashioned chats in my life … but I will be glad to have a new-fashioned chat, and talk about what we want, not what we don’t want.’”
We all know someone who brings us down with their negative energy. “But they’re a friend going through a hard time,” you say. “They’re just venting.”
Occasional venting is one thing, habitual complaining is something else entirely. And while the complainer revels in having a concerned audience (you), listening to them may ultimately destroy your confidence.
That’s because most people are inherently wired to help others. If someone comes to you with a problem, you look for ways to solve it, or give them a patient, understanding ear.
Habitual complainers aren’t looking for solutions, nor is this a one-time venting session. As a result, no matter what you do, you will never be able to help them. You may thus end up feeling useless, or as though you have failed. Dealing with constant negativity also speeds up cognitive decline and increases your risk of dementia.
For the sake of your own mental health, one of your healthy New Year’s resolutions should be to stop accommodating negative and pessimistic complainers, whether they are family, friends, neighbors, or colleagues. Sure, you’ll feel a bit guilty at first, but the long-term positive effect on your mental well-being will be worth it.
- Practice gratitude
It’s tempting to dismiss practicing gratitude as some New Age nonsense, but plenty of scientific research supports the mental and physical health benefits of practicing gratitude.
Many forms of depression and anxiety arise from worrying about things you don’t have. This causes stress, which in turn increases the amount of cortisol, the primary stress hormone, in your blood.
Expressing appreciation for what you have, or being thankful for what you get, has the opposite effect. Practicing gratitude is strongly associated with greater happiness because it compels you to focus on the good in your life, which makes your brain release dopamine and serotonin.
Starting January 1, 2025, get into the habit of practicing gratitude by saying something positive about the things you use every day. For example, “I’m so grateful for my eyes that help me see”, or “I’m so grateful for my coffee machine that gives a perfect cup of coffee every time”.
Keep this up for a few weeks, and you may be able to see lasting effects on your mental health.
Talk to your doctor
Mental health is a serious health issue that can worsen with age. Thankfully, the stigma associated with mental illnesses is disappearing by the day, and more than half of all Americans are comfortable talking about it with a friend or care provider.
If you feel your mental well-being it not at its best, make sure to bring up any concerns with your doctor at your next Medicare Annual Wellness Visit to get the help you deserve.