We have far more impact on our own mental wellness than we may have been told. Every day, we can make choices to create who we want to become.

H/T to Dr. Nicole LePera for these reminders of ways to cultivate mental wellness:

• Place boundaries, honor your limits, say “no” to things that cause resentment.
• Keep one small promise to yourself every day.
• Practice meditation + deep belly breathing.
• Write notes to your future self in a journal.
• Move your body every day in whatever way feels best for you.
• Connect with like-minded people/create community. 
• Address your gut health/microbiome. 
• Become aware of unresolved trauma + the behavior/patterns it’s created in your adult life.
• Honor your inner child: create, play, do something just for you.
• Practice ego work: become aware of your ego + the stories it creates around your life experience that keep you repeating your familiar past.

Remember, the brain can change throughout life. New neural pathways can be created with consistent practice. Our genes are not fixed, they’re responding to the environment around us. The body/nervous system can heal.

A great book to take this topic deeper: “The Body Keeps the Score – Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma” by Bessel Van Der Kolk, M. D.

Be well, everyone.

Lisa Wellington is a Certified Mindfulness Teacher who writes about integrative practices that downshift stress, increase insight, and jumpstart joy.

She is best known for her work with law enforcement professionals as well as those challenged by housing instability and addiction. Trained in the Fine Arts at Washington State University, she specializes in group training that engages participants’ inherent creativity.

If she is not under a stack of books about psychology and spirituality, she can be found at a Puget Sound beach or nearby trail, always searching for the absurd, which is her superpower.