Hajja Salesjana

Photo by Javier Allege Barrios on Unsplash.com and events of the day, it gives you a way to cope with any problems you may be experiencing. It’s also beneficial to others. By calling someone you haven’t spoken to in a while, you could just help them feel more connected and less vulnerable – especially if they live alone. “Older people may experience isolation and loneliness while children and adolescents may feel alienated and distressed,” Guterres explains. 2. Get moving Whether you exercise every day for an hour or simply commit to a 20-minute stroll through the local park, all activity will benefit your overall wellbeing. How? When you exercise, endorphins are released into the body and interact with the receptors in your brain, triggering a sense of feeling good. The more active you are, the more likely you’ll feel better about yourself, therefore boosting your self-esteem and self-worth while also improving cognitive function. 3. Eat the rainbow It’s neither new nor groundbreaking, but it’s definitely something that gets overlooked when life gets busy. Healthy eating plays a number of roles in sustaining optimal wellbeing. To start with, if you eat a well-balanced diet, you are less likely to experience mood fluctuations, which means you have a greater ability to focus. Good mood foods include fatty fish (like salmon), fermented foods, bananas, oats, berries and even dark chocolate. 4. Avoid alcohol It can be really tempting to have a glass of wine or beer to lift your spirits after a stressful day, but the effects are only temporary. Once the alcohol wears off, you will often feel worse due to how your body processes the chemicals. Try swapping your usual drink of choice with a non-alcoholic version – the market is bursting with options that don’t compromise flavour, and will leave you feeling better for it. 5. Change it up While it’s been hard to do with varying travel restrictions, one of the best ways to hit refresh is with a change of scenery. Take a midweek break and explore your local neighbourhood, take a different route to work, sit in a different part of the office for your working day, wear something new, eat lunch at a different cafe or even escape the country for a week and visit somewhere entirely different. Just a small change can do you a world of good. 6. Try something new From learning a new language to picking up a new hobby, trying your hand at a new activity is shown to boost your self- confidence and add a sense of purpose to your life. 32 Jannar-Marzu 2023 hajja