6 minute read
Looking after your mental health when
By Claire Willsher LOOKING AFTER YOUR MENTAL HEALTH WHEN WORKING FROM HOME
Life in the world as we know it has changed dramatically in the last couple of years. Covid-19 transformed the way we live and has, unfortunately, had negative outcomes for many. That said, there have been some positives to have come out of this pandemic, especially for military spouses who move regularly.
Working from home is now widely recognised. No longer will people with military connections have to give up dream jobs when their spouses announce their next postings. This “new normal” way of working has huge benefits. However, no job is ever perfect and, as such, working in isolation from the comfort of your home office can take its toll.
Mental health impacts every area of our lives by controlling how we think, feel, and act. The good news is there are small things you can introduce into your everyday life to help optimise your mental health. This article is going to outline strategies you can implement to improve your mental wellbeing and see you thrive, both personally and professionally.
ROUTINE
The human body loves routine. It works cyclically on a system called the circadian rhythm. We tend to feel tired, hungry, and thirsty at roughly the same time each day. Therefore, to optimise your health, it is important to try to stick to routines. To make this happen, you could: • Get up and go to bed at roughly the same time every day • Expose yourself to morning sunshine by getting outside first thing (a walk or morning coffee/stroll in the garden will suffice) • Allow yourself regular breaks away from work every hour to give your mind a rest (even if it is just 5 minutes doing something you enjoy) • Block out meal times in your schedule to ensure you get away from the computer
MOVEMENT
Our bodies have been designed to move. The World Health Organization recommends we do 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week, which works out at roughly 22 minutes per day. The endorphins released when we move make us feel good, happy, and positive. Exercise helps improve our body image and makes us both mentally and physically fitter and stronger.
To achieve this, you could: • Carry out exercise ‘snacking’ throughout the day – short bursts of exercise done at regular intervals (whilst waiting for the kettle to boil, for example) • Set an alarm to make sure you get up and move your body every hour • Find an accountability partner to exercise with you • Move more whilst cleaning or gardening – you don’t always need to put your sports kit on
EAT WELL AND HYDRATE
A recent SMILES trial 1 showed that individuals who ate a fresh Mediterranean diet were less likely to become clinically depressed and anxious than those who didn’t focus on eating healthily. Food and water can provide us with energy, immunity, and enhanced productivity.
Perhaps you could: • Be organised and plan your meals – have the appropriate ingredients accessible for cooking healthy recipes • Eat a plant-based (fruit, vegetable, nut, seed, legume) rainbow every day – that means a portion of food of each colour: red, yellow, orange, blue/ purple, green, and white • Drink at least 1.2 litres of water every day
NATURE
Getting out in nature has been scientifically proven to help improve mood and reduce stress, anger, and frustration. Our cavemen ancestors spent 99% of their time outside. Now, the average human spends only 10% of their time outside.
Exposure to fresh air, vitamin D, and nature has tremendous healing powers. Getting into nature helps to solve problems and put things into perspective.
To get these benefits, you could: • Take a brisk walk during your coffee break/lunch time • Have ‘walk and talk’ meetings when you don’t need to be in front of the computer
DAILY CONNECTIONS
Working from home can get lonely as we are creatures with tribal ancestry. Loneliness can be as detrimental to our health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. As such, we need to surround ourselves with positive people, ideally in person but virtually or a non-work conversations on the phone will help too.
To find daily connection, perhaps you could: • Join a military co-working hub to connect and work alongside other like-minded people: www.militarycoworking.uk • Link up with MILSPO® for regular networking opportunities with other military spouses, partners, and other-halves who are also building their dream businesses: www.milspo.co.uk
SLEEP
The body and brain work much more effectively when we have had enough sleep. A rested person is much more able to focus, concentrate, and produce higher quality work than someone who is tired. To make sure you are working to your full potential, you could: • Set a ‘go to bed’ alarm if you find yourself getting distracted at night • Make your bedroom a calm place for sleep (make it a tech-free zone) • Keep bright lights to a minimum in the evening to allow yourself to feel sleepy • Limit your caffeine intake after midday
OTHER RESOURCES
Mental health has come under the spotlight in recent years. As a result, there are many free resources that the military offer to help improve your mental wellbeing, here are a few:
Head Fit offers online resources to help stay mentally fit and on top of your game: www.headfit.org
The Headspace app is available for spouses and partners: • RAF families through the RAF Benevolent fund: www.rafbf.org • RN and RM Families through their serving family member. More information can be found here: www.nff.org.uk/headspace
Strengthening Families – a programme for serving RN/RM families that aims to provide you with the right support, at the right time. www.rnrmc.org.uk/how-wehelp/families-and-relationships
Thrive workshops for partners of RAF personnel looking to improve their wellbeing. Fill out the updates form to find the next available courses: www.rafbf.org
Finding it tough – The Royal Air Forces Association offers free training through an online mental wellbeing course: www.findingittough.rafa.org.uk
Royal Navy Families can also gain support via the RN FPS Portal: 0800 145 6088, 02392 728777 or email: navypeople-psrnfpsportal@mod.gov.uk
The Royal Navy Forum also provides links to supporting organisations and offers peer-to-peer support too: https://forum.royalnavy.mod.uk
Army families may also be able to seek support through the Army Welfare Service (AWS) and can contact the Intake and Assessment Team (IAT) directly on 01904 882053 or 882054 or email AWS-HQ-IAT@mod.uk • Combat Stress have a serving personnel and families’ helpline: 0800 323 4444 www.combatstress.org.uk/helpline • Recently, the Bounce Forward initiative has been launched: www.bounceforward.com/buildingresilience-with-military-famili • All Army mental health resources and support are kept up to date on the AFF website here: www.aff. org.uk/advice/health-and-add/mental-health
Start with small steps that help make change achievable. Once you’ve built these new habits into your daily life, you can add progression. The most important thing is to be kind to yourself and give yourself permission to focus on becoming mentally strong. Both your personal and professional lives will benefit; it really is a win-win.
About the author Claire Willsher, Health and Additional Needs Policy Advisor, RAF Families Federation
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
RAF Families Federation: www.raf-ff.org.uk
Naval Families Federation: www.nff.org.uk
Army Families Federation: www.aff.org.uk
A few mental health resources specific to Army families include: • Togetherall: www.togetherall.com/en-gb/mentalhealth-support-for-all-uk-armed-forces-veterans (this does include free access to all Service family members 16 years or over)
1 Jacka et al. 2017
