You must take care of self

Between juggling school, going to work and the day-to-day happenings of life, keeping a healthy mind, body and soul may seem impossible — but it is not.

The world needs you and what you have to offer, so your all-around health should always come first. Here are some natural, inexpensive ways to deal with anxiety, depression and trouble sleeping.

Anxiety:

•  Chamomile tea in the morning and before bed: Drinking green tea because it has L theanine in it and works very well with reducing heart rate, blood pressure and anxiety.
•  Urban outfitters lavender mist, or anything lavender scented, 30 minutes before tests I spritz a little on my face along with doing some breathing exercises, and it helps me a lot.

Sleep remedies:

• Valerian tea is really good but a bit addicting — in a good way. I drink it every night and recommend drinking it an hour before you actually want to go to sleep.

Passionflower vitamins

• The magic blanket is also a great investment for your health. It is a weighted blanket, that applies pressure which relaxes the nervous system.
• According to lifehack.org, “Psychiatric, trauma, geriatric, and pediatric hospital units use weighted blankets to calm a patient’s anxiety and promote deep, restful sleep.”
• When pressure is gently applied to the body, it encourages serotonin production, which lifts your mood. When serotonin naturally converts to melatonin, your body takes the cue to rest.

Depression:

• Eating more fruits and colorful veggies
• Omega 3-s
• And for those of you who want to take care of yourself on the go, here are some apps for mental health:
• 3-minute mindfulness
• stop, breathe and think
• the calm

T’Ericka Stelivan can be reached at [email protected].