Headlines By James Munro, Deputy Headteacher 11th December 2020
for their mind was to take 30 minutes of aerobic exercise every day.
“Our mental strength is a big factor in our recent victories” said Eddie Jones England's head coach in a recent post match interview. If you aren’t aware, the England men’s rugby team following on from their recent six nations triumph won their second trophy in short succession namely the Autumn Nations Cup and have shown great resilience in doing so. This was highlighted by last Sunday having come from behind at the interval to beat France. Jones has spent hours with his staff developing player awareness of the importance of maintaining a positive mind set. Are there things that you could, or should not do, in order to keep your mind healthy and build your mental strength? Many scientists would say yes. During these unprecedented times I know personally I have had to manage my emotions and stay positive. Back in the summer term when trying to complete my own work and manage homeschooling for my child this was a real challenge as I'm sure many other parents can relate too. My mental strength and emotions were certainly tested during such times. Health can be described as mental, social and physical well-being and not merely the absence of disease. The Mental Health Foundation notes that a good diet is important for mental health. It also suggests that diet can play a role in the development, management and prevention of several specific conditions, including depression and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Clearly diet cannot control these conditions, and other treatments should not be stopped in favour of a particular diet, however, diet may play a role. You are more likely to be healthy if you consume a balanced diet, with the correct balance of fats, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, minerals, fibre and water for you. By considering what you are eating you can stay healthy. David Linden, Professor of Neuroscience at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, suggested in an interview that the most helpful thing that anyone could do
He explained that doing puzzles uses only a small part of your brain, and does not do anything for the rest. Aerobic exercise, by contrast, causes all the blood vessels in the body, including in your brain, to dilate. This changes the metabolic capacity of the brain. Exercise also makes the brain secrete certain chemicals, serotonin for one, which help keep neurons healthy and able to change. All this sounds like a very good thing for the brain and the body and resounding scientific evidence highlights that regular exercise leads to increased selfesteem. The mind is shaped by all the experiences, thoughts and ideas to which it is exposed. You can choose what you ‘feed’ your mind, just as you can choose what you feed your body. What you choose to consume for your mind can be described as your ‘mind diet’ (mind-set). Your ‘mind diet’ can make your mind more or less ‘healthy’. It is worth considering your ‘mind diet’ from time to time, reflecting on the following: How good is my mind diet? Is it balanced? Do I tend to focus more on negative things and need to think more positively? A good technique could be to write down something that happened during the day that went well. Am I eating healthy foods to feed a positive mind diet? As much as you may want to eat a diet of chocolate, this daily would have its pitfalls and eating broccoli although maybe less tasty is a good thing to do. Am I taking part in regular physical activity? Do I kick my slippers off and get off the sofa and engage in physical activity? It may be that a walk is a time for clearing your mind of negative thoughts and thinking positively. What effect is my mind diet having on me? You might need to ask close friends to give you honest reflection. Our C10 and C11 learners have had the opportunity this week to access additional support from 'Head Room' an organisation specialising in mental well-being. They set up a well-being tent on the school site which learners could access should they have wished to do so. Contd….