Transforming Languishing Mental Health
As the country slowly worked its way through COVID-19, a gradual instead of a swift end to the pandemic led to continual mental health problems This state of not quite feeling back to normal and missing life pre-pandemic was given the term languishing.
In some ways, 2022 has been better, but the virus is still with us and may be for the long-term. While we can get back to many of the things we enjoyed prior to 2020, that same feeling may never quite return.
With that in mind, experts say we can return to flourishing.
- Identify Your Feeling
Languishing came from the self-realization that many people weren’t feeling depression or burnout but knew that things weren’t quite right. Whether you are looking to take steps to help yourself feel better or are seeking professional help, being able to identify how you’re feeling is the first crucial step in the process.
- Give Your Mental Illness a Name
After identifying your feeling, give it a name. Instead of calling it something clinical like depression or anxiety, giving it a first name to make it feel more like a person or a silly name to make it feel like it’s something you can overcome can help lighten the mood.
- Determine Meaning and Purpose
Finding meaning and purpose can make all the difference, even if it’s in smaller activities. If you’re getting up to clean a room of the house, do some yardwork, or jog or ride your bike for 10 minutes, you achieved something you weren’t doing before, and that can be a stepping stone to even more activity and accomplishment.
- Mindfully Meditate
Give your brain a break by resetting it when you’re feeling your negative emotions. Many smartphones and smartwatches have apps to guide you through a minute or two of meditation, and sometimes, that’s all it takes to clear your head.
