Looking after your mental health when you’re feeling poorly

Have you ever noticed that when you’re physically under the weather, your mental health suffers too? Maybe you feel low, sad or more worried than usual, or you notice yourself being overly self-critical. There are different reasons why feeling poorly can affect your mood, but ultimately, it’s because our physical and mental health are linked.  

The way that we behave when we’re feeling poorly can also take a toll on our mood, too. For instance, staying indoors and away from other people can make us feel low or isolated. We might find ourselves staring at a screen or scrolling social media all day, which can add to the mental health dip. Similarly, if a cold or the flu is making it hard for us to sleep, we’ll probably feel tired and irritable.  

Not only does physical health affect our mental health, but it goes both ways. When we’re stressed, our body produces the hormone, cortisol. Cortisol is fine in small doses, but when we’re stressed for long periods of time, high levels of cortisol can weaken our immune system so that we’re more susceptible to getting physically ill.  

Also, people with long-term physical illnesses and chronic conditions are more likely to experience mental health issues (we’ve written about that here), but even short-term illnesses, like a cold or the flu can affect your mood. When our bodies are fighting an infection, our immune system produces inflammatory proteins; while these help us to feel better, they can also make us tired and more likely to feel low or anxious.

Although you’re never going to feel your best when you’re poorly, doing things to take care of your mental health can have a big impact on our overall wellbeing.  

Here are some things that we recommend…

1. Give yourself permission to rest

Life can be chaotic; there’s always so much to do and so little time. This can make it difficult to listen to our body and rest when we need to. However, if we don’t stop and take time to recover, the chances are that we’ll feel worse, for longer.  

It’s important to carve out time to rest physically, but we should also do things that make our minds feel calm and relaxed. Put down your work or your to-do list and do something that will help you to switch off. You could read a book, watch TV or try a relaxation technique, like mindfulness or breathing exercises.

Here’s a simple breathing exercise to try: breathe in slowly and deeply through your nose, then breathe out slowly and deeply through your mouth. It can be helpful to count from 1-5 on each breath.

2. Get some fresh air

Spending time outdoors is good for our mental health. When you’re poorly, it’s natural to want to stay in bed, but getting up and nipping outside for a short while can improve your mood. Wrap up and sit in your garden or go for a small walk in nature - it will help you to get out of your head and feel more connected.  

3. Stick to a routine

Sometimes when we’re poorly, routine goes out the window; we might be off work, sleeping at odd times and eating less due to a loss of appetite. However, not having a routine can actually make us feel more stressed. Where possible, we should try to stick to our normal routine by sleeping at bedtime, showering, eating balanced meals, staying hydrated and making time for self-care.  

If you’re struggling with a mental health issue, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) with ieso can help. We treat a number of common mental health issues, including anxiety and depression. Our service is completely online, with typed sessions and video calls in some areas. Find out more about what we do.

‍