Psychologies DOSSIER With you in mind
Mental fitness is the ability to cope with whatever life throws at you. It’s key to being more productive and reaching your potential. Heidi Scrimgeour discovers ways to strengthen and improve it…
Heidi Scrimgeour
Five months ago, I embarked on a health kick. Before you turn the page in search of amore meaningful read, let me explain. I’m several pounds (okay, a stone or three…) overweight, and I have hypothyroidism. This means I find exercise challenging and that my efforts don’t really pay off in any discernible way. So why bother? Because I feel a million times better when I exercise compared to when I don’t – everything from my mood to my sleep improves.
So, what of it? This week, I secured what the gym bunnies call a personal best. My torture device of choice is a contraption called an assault bike. As the speedometer crept past the point where it usually gets stuck, I was awash with pride. After spending Christmas feeling frumpy and unfit, I was determined to make a change to my physical fitness. Now, I had persevered with an exercise regime long enough to achieve a PB. The inner glow of accomplishment felt electrifying.
Later that same day, I collected anti-anxiety medication, prescribed two years ago following my dad’s death. I’ve found mental-health medication profoundly helpful twice in my life, but my continued reliance on it now that the intensity of early grief has lifted makes little sense. Why am I working so hard on my physical fitness but popping a pill when it comes to my mental wellbeing?
According to the World Health Organisation, go
