Staying mentally healthy is important for lots of different aspects of your health, including your sexual health and performance.
Conditions such as anxiety can cause increased heart rate, blood pressure issues, and fatigue. This, in turn, can affect your sexual performance. In fact, anxiety is one of the most common psychological causes of ED and PE.
Below, our resident doctor, Dr Chopra, has put together some top tips on maintaining your mental health and some useful resources.
Try to get plenty of sleep
Getting your 8 hours is important for your physical, mental, and sexual health to ensure you are well rested and ready to start the day. Try creating a sleep routine, such as going to bed and waking up at the same time each day and have a wind down routine before bed – like reading a book or meditation.
Give yourself some time outside
Especially if you work inside all day, it can be beneficial to get some fresh air outside and take a break. Even just a walk around the block can help to clear your mind, relax, and boost productivity.
Exercise
There’s a strong link between exercise and improved mood. This happens as ‘feel good’ chemicals called endorphins are released from the brain. Not only is it great for wellbeing, but it can also help to keep your weight under control and improve cardiovascular health. If you’re not sure where to start, start off with going for walks around your neighborhood, incorporating walking meetings at work or engaging in team sports with friends.
Set small goals
Setting small goals you can work towards can help you to stay motivated and on track towards improving your mental health. Maybe you want to set a goal that you will get eight hours of sleep each night and exercise twice a week and build up from there. It’s important your goals are realistic and attainable, so you can stay on track and continue to improve your mental health.
Practice mindfulness and meditation
Research has shown that practicing mindfulness and meditation can have a positive impact on your brain function. Thankfully there are lots of apps and videos online that can guide you through exercises like taking note of breathing, body scanning meditation, practicing gratitude and much more. A great resource is headspace where you can find guided meditations and exercises to help stress, anxiety, sleep, focusing and moving.
Eat well
Nutritious foods can improve your mood and energy levels, research has found. Try limiting your intake of salty, sugary, and saturated fat foods, as well as caffeine and alcohol and instead focus on the five food groups, healthy meal planning, discovering new recipes and new foods.
