This week is Mental Health Awareness week and the theme for this year is KINDNESS.
Kindness is such an important part of our lives and sadly something that gets overlooked all too often.
We wanted to focus on thinking about kindness and how we can be kind to both ourselves and others around us.
Did you know that kindness and well-being are intrinsically linked?
Research suggests that acts of kindness can bring about an increase in serotonin levels, for both the giver and receiver. This helps to regulate your mood and aid your body’s healing system! It seems that these benefits from little acts of kindness are then reestablished when either party remembers the kind gesture, making it doubly beneficial!
TAKE SOME TIME FOR YOURSELF
Be kind to yourself! This can even mean just cutting yourself some slack, especially during these times, 'whatever you can manage today is good enough'.
Run yourself a nice bath, grab that book you brought and take a some time to read, perhaps do some yoga or meditation or pick up a simple knitting or crochet project and get a few rows in. Knitting and crocheting are great ways of relaxing and helping your brain to switch off after a busy day. Yarn therapy is a real thing - Therapists have been using knitting, crocheting and crafting for years as types of alternative therapy and for mindfulness.
How about knitting yourself some new yoga socks to wear whilst doing a wind-down yoga session? Or a cosy squishy blanket to keep you warm on those colder nights whilst reading that book?
SPREAD A LITTLE KINDNESS EACH & EVERYDAY
Spreading kindness can be much easier than you think. A simple smile to a stranger, a text to a friend asking how they are doing or a little surprise gift for an important person in your life. It is so easy to be kind and with each act of kindness, it inspires others to be kinder too.
We live in a time where being connected is so easy, or at least we think it is. We have most of our friends and family to hand, at the mere click of a button. However, the important things often get missed and not spoken about. Take some time to check in with the people you care about, asking them how they really are - we all need an ear to listen sometimes.
We would love to hear about the small acts of kindness you have witnessed recently! Tag us on Instagram @qingfibre @mentalhealthfoundation using the hashtags #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek #KindnessMatters
WOULD YOU LIKE TO READ MORE ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK AND ABOUT KINDNESS AND ITS BENEFITS?