Meet Jen. Jen is a 30 year old mom of two children and an accountant. She has always "had it together" but recently work has been really busy and the kids have been sick non-stop since school started. Though her husband helps her with basic household chores and managing the children, she has been feeling overwhelmed lately and hasn't gotten a good night of sleep in weeks. Every night when the kids are finally in bed and toys are still scattered all over the house, she plops onto the couch with a bag of potato chips and scrolls through social media until she falls asleep right there on the couch. Usually around 2AM, she finally drags herself off to bed, pushing the clean laundry off the bed and onto the floor so she can get a few hours of sleep before her 5AM alarm. Jen is feeling depressed and isn't sure what to do, so she seeks out therapy.
Our mental health is closely tied to what I call "The Basics." In my "The Basics" blog series, I talk about the importance of four foundational areas of our lives: sleep, movement, nutrition, and external environment. When one or more of these areas is off, our mental health can suffer. You can see this play out very clearly in the example with Jen. Her lack of sleep, movement, proper nutrition and messy environment make Jen feel even more overwhelmed and depressed. While Jen's behavior is completely understandable (and maybe even relatable for many), working on improving these four basic areas will allow her the mental space and energy to focus on skills to help her feel less overhwmed with life stressors. Read through "The Basics" series to discover what areas you might make improvements in.
If this post contained information on topics you'd like to work on in your own life, reach out and schedule your free consultation session today at (561) 420-9473!
** Disclaimer: This blog is not medical advice. Every individual's circumstances are unique and this post contains general information that may not pertain to everyone. If you have any questions or would like to set up an intake to discuss your situation, please contact me at palmbeachpsych@icloud.com or (561) 420-9473.
Comments