Five top tips to help health professionals look after their mental health


8 April 2020

The impact of the coronavirus on our collective mental health can not be underestimated. However, for health professionals working on the frontline of the pandemic, looking after your mental health is absolutely vital.  We asked MS specialist nurse Sue Tibbles to give her five top tips for taking care of your mental wellbeing during this crisis.

Talking things through and sharing problems really does help. Don't be alone.

Sue

  1. My absolute number 1 top tip for looking after mental health has to be meditation. A regular, if possible, daily meditation practice is probably the most effective way of managing stress and ensuring good mental health. The 3 minute breathing space is a great meditation that can be used during the working day when things get a bit much! You can even do this whilst sat on the loo!!
  2. In these difficult times I believe it is so important to not look ahead and catastrophize about the future. The best outlook is to keep everything in the day and just attend to the current problems in the day. We cannot solve future problems that haven't actually occurred as yet. However this is not to suggest for a minute that we don't plan ahead. A top tip from our consultant when asked this question was, ‘Plan for today without forgetting or ignoring the future'.
  3. It is important to make sure that you take regular breaks, taking yourself away from your work area. Take a walk, outside if possible, refrain from talking about work if you're with your colleagues during these breaks.
  4. Make sure you eat healthily and are well hydrated and ensure adequate rest and sleep.
  5. Ensure good communication with colleagues and your line manager if you are feeling overwhelmed or concerned. Talking things through and sharing problems really does help. Don't be alone.

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