Mental wellness challenge: 31 ways to improve your mental health

Arm day, leg day, and . . . brain day? Yes! Total health and wellness include taking care of your body and your mind. Because May is Mental Health Awareness Month, we want to take advantage of the chance to focus on improving and strengthening mental health via self-care.

Why is mental health important?

Mental health plays a crucial role in a person’s overall health—it affects our actions, thoughts, feelings, relationships and even our physical health. When your mental health is in a good place, you will be able to better manage the trials that enter your life.

What is self-care?

When we talk about self-care, it’s easy to imagine bubble baths and spa days. The truth is that self-care is a lot more like maintaining a car—small, consistent actions taken to keep things running smoothly. It’s the practice of taking action to preserve or improve one’s own health.

With that definition, it’s easy to see why self-care is so important! While spa days are a great way to splurge, preserving our long-term health and happiness is even more important.

How does the self-care challenge work?

It’s simple: Do one task for each day of the month. It’s okay if you don’t begin on the first day; just begin with the task that correlates with the day you are on or start from the beginning and go through each day until you complete the list!

This challenge isn’t only for May. Repeat it any time of the year when you need a mentally healing boost.

Remember that while we hope these tasks can help you find more joy in everyday life, they are not a cure for mental illness. If you are struggling with your mental health, please reach out to a mental health care professional.

31 days of self-care calendar challenge

Check out our printable calendar full of helpful suggestions and challenges to guide your mental health and self-care journey this month. The calendar covers nearly every aspect of your life, including how you interact with yourself and the world around you.

Starting your journey is easy! Simply download the calendar and follow along as we complete each day’s objective.

Prep day:

Day 1: Reflect on last month’s accomplishments and create this month’s goals. Begin this challenge with a prep day to reflect on the accomplishments you made last month, big or small. Maybe you spent a little extra time focusing on yourself or you hit a job goal. Take some time to ponder on the accomplishments of last month and create this month’s goals.

Week 1: Self

As you go throughout this week, focus on yourself and your needs. Allow each task to help you develop a more positive outlook.

Day 2: Practice mindful breathing. Grab one of your favourite essential oils and place a drop in your palm, diluting as needed. Rub your palms together, bring to your nose and breathe deeply. Inhale and exhale slowly at least 10 times. Then massage the oil behind your ears, on your wrists, and on the bottoms of your feet. As you massage, continue to breathe deeply and think positive thoughts.

Day 3: Meditate while diffusing inspiring essential oils like Frankincense, Vetiver or Highest Potential™. Think about one of your happiest memories. Meditate about why it was the happiest and find ways you can create similar moments in your life moving forward.

Day 4: Journal and reflect on your thoughts from the previous day’s meditation.

Day 5: List 10 things you love about yourself. If you are struggling with this task, spend extra time working on it. Need a little inspiration? A couple questions you can ask to inspire your list are:

• What do you see as your best qualities?
• What talents do you have that are unique to you?
• What have you done in the past that you are proud of?

Day 6: Connect with nature. Spending time in nature can help elevate your mood. Get outside and explore the world around you in whatever way makes you most happy. Go for a walk, relax in a hammock, go outdoor rock climbing or spend time gazing at the clouds. Do something outside that brings you joy.

Day 7: Create a gratitude list. Write about 5–10 things that you are grateful for in this moment. This list doesn’t need to be super profound—it can be as simple or as complex as you’d like!

Day 8: Schedule alone time. Take a break from the business of the world and spend some time alone doing anything you’d like.

Week 2: Relationships

As you work on improving the relationships in your life, your social wellness will benefit. Developing social connections can raise your self-esteem, help you trust others and increase the number of people in your circle who will be there for you when you need a pick-me-up.

Day 9: Call or text an old friend. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in our personal lives that we forget to take moments to catch up with the people who are important to us.

Day 10: Give an anonymous gift or note.

Day 11: Be fully present in conversation and offer undivided attention.

Day 12: Serve someone else. Acts of service don’t need to be expensive or drastic. Do something small to improve someone else’s day and you’ll surely feel a boost of happiness in yours.

Day 13: Tell someone why you’re grateful for them.

Day 14: Learn about a loved one’s interest.

Day 15: Smile at others. You never know the impact that a simple smile can have on someone’s day.

Week 3: Health

Your physical and mental health are directly linked. Physical health problems can lead to an increased risk of mental health problems, and vice versa. As you work on taking care of your physical needs, mental wellness will follow.

Day 16: Prep healthy snacks for the week. Need some ideas? Our Wolfberry Crisp Bar makes a great addition to fresh fruit for a snack And if you’re in the mood for a sweet treat, coconut lime sugar cookies are nutritious treats to power your day.

Day 17: Get a full night’s sleep, 7–8 hours. If you struggle with the bedtime Make bedtime the best time with these relaxing, tips:

• Dilute and apply 1-2 drops of Lavender to the bottoms of your feet.
• In a glass spray bottle, combine 5-10 drops of Lavender for every one cup of distilled water and spritz your linens before you lie down.

Day 18: Exercise in a new way or just move your body in a way that brings you joy.

Day 19: Eat a healthy breakfast, complete with NingXia Red. Spice up your daily NingXia intake by creating NingXia Red shots infused with fresh fruit juice.

Day 20: Drink an extra glass of water today.

Day 21: Get up and move for at least a minute every hour.

Day 22: Create a meal plan for next week. Having your meals planned out can make cooking time more enjoyable, because you won’t be scrambling to figure out what to make for each meal.

Week 4: Try new things

It’s not always easy to step out of your comfort zone; however, as you work on doing small tasks that are out of your norm, you will feel a sense of excitement and newness in your life.

Day 23: Initiate a new friendship or connection.

Day 24: Take a different route while driving. You might find a hidden gem that you wouldn’t normally see.

Day 25: Try a new recipe or restaurant.

Day 26: Experiment with a new skill or hobby. Learn how to do something you’ve always wanted to try but felt like you didn’t have enough time for.

Day 27: Pick a new book to read.

Day 28: Create a new outfit or clothing combination in your closet.

Day 29: Find new music for your playlists.

Week 5

Day 30: Find an inspirational quote and put it somewhere you’ll see it.

Day 31: Plan next month’s goals. Your progress doesn’t need to stop once the month is through! We’re extending the extra challenge to spend next month focusing on the goals that will help you most. Come up with your own personalised daily tasks to help you take care of yourself. Use our blank printable calendar to organize your thoughts!

As you go through each of these daily tasks, be very intentional with your focus on taking care of yourself and your mental health. You will begin to feel more joy as you make yourself and your health a priority.

Looking for more ways to boost your brain? Read about 5 wellness hacks to empower your journey or start a new supplement routine.

Which of these tasks are you most excited to try?