We all know the importance of fuelling ourselves adequately for optical physical health. Our health professionals advise us that a healthy and balanced meal consists of protein, carbohydrates, fats, vegetables and fruit. This way we get all the vitamins and nutrients we need to function effectively.
While we understand the ingredients for a healthy body, what about the ingredients for a healthy mind? In 2011, Dr Rock and Dr Spiegel created the Healthy Mind Platter. They suggested 7 key ingredients needed for optimal mental health. These ingredients are 7 mental activities that we should be doing daily. Let’s have a look at what they are:
Sleep Time
Time for the brain to rest and recover
Physical Time
Time to move our bodies
Focus Time
Time to focus on tasks in a goal-oriented way
Time In
Time to quietly and internally reflect on thoughts, feelings, sensations and images.
Down Time
Time to simply relax and let the mind wander in a non-focused way without any specific goal
Play Time
Time to be spontaneous and creative
Connecting Time
Time to connect with others
The developers of this recipe for a healthy mind do not suggest specific amounts of each time needed daily, rather they acknowledge each individual has unique needs that can change over time. The key is to have balance. Just like we don’t only eat ice cream every day for weeks on end, we shouldn’t only have focus time with no attention to down time. Like a balanced diet, there may be different combinations that can work well. With practice and effort, we can become more aware of the necessary ingredients and make sure that each day we are spending at least a little bit of time in each.
A helpful exercise can be to draw a platter of a typical day and map out the amounts of time you tend to spend in each mental activity. Perhaps you might notice some essential ingredients are missing. This is a wonderful opportunity to think about how you might fit in some of the missing ingredients to make your platter more balanced.
This blog was written and prepared by Hannah Gersh – Psychologist at Melbourne Wellbeing Group.