Want to know the essential steps to recover from a mental breakdown? Here are 5 steps to get you back to feeling on top of the world.

If you?ve suffered from a mental breakdown you?ll most likely identify with one or more of the following. Anxiousness, stress, fatigue, withdrawing from friends and family, feeling helpless, irritable and a loss of confidence.

I?m going to give you 5 essential steps to help you recover from a mental breakdown.

By the end of reading this post you will know how to move forward and successfully regain your confidence, health and wellbeing. You will be able to regain your freedom instead of feeling trapped in a cycle of stress.

Firstly what is a mental breakdown? A mental breakdown can also be named a nervous breakdown. Mental breakdown signs and symptoms can include but not limited to:
? Feeling stressed
? Anxiousness
? Feeling depressed
? Low self-esteem
? Losing interest in activities that you would normally enjoy
? Feeling angry
? Feeling helpless
? Changes in appetite
? Lack of sleep
? Panic attacks
? Trouble with concentrating
? Fatigue
? Withdrawing from family and friends

You may be wondering what can cause a mental breakdown. Here are examples of what can cause a mental breakdown:
? Excessive stress at work
? Divorce/separation
? Financial problems
? Chronic pain or other health related issues
? Abuse
? A major life change
? Not enough sleep
? A trauma

We all have responsibilities and commitments in life but recognising that our health is our most valuable asset is important in recovering.

Here are 5 essential steps to help you recover from a mental breakdown and have you feeling on top of the world.

1. Fighting fatigue and insomnia

Insomnia and fatigue can be a common issue when we?re feeling stressed and anxious. Often when we have a mental breakdown one of the biggest issues we face is not getting enough quality sleep.

Sleep deprivation effects are a vicious cycle. When we?re stressed we can?t sleep and when we can?t sleep we feel stressed. So let?s look at ways to overcome the fatigue and the lack of sleep.

Creating a proper sleep routine is vital in improving your quality of sleep and to eradicate insomnia. Establishing a healthy routine will train your body when to go to bed and when to wake up with it?s internal ?clock?.

If you find that after 30 minutes that you haven?t fallen asleep then try getting up and doing something relaxing such as reading or journaling. Avoid using your computer or phone as the stimulation can persuade you to being even more awake and feed the insomnia.

The environment that you?re sleeping in can have an effect on insomnia. Is it too hot or too cold? Are you comfortable? Do you need more pillows? Is your environment quiet and dark? Do you need sleep music?

To help starve of insomnia don?t engage in any drugs before bed time. The nicotine in cigarettes are a stimulant as is the caffeine in coffee. These will keep you awake. Alcohol may help you fall asleep but it can disturb your sleep patterns and you may find you don?t achieve quality sleep.

To help with fighting off insomnia make sure you?re exercising each day. Even just 30 minutes a day will help. But aim to do this exercise more than 2 hours prior to bed otherwise it may keep you awake.

Sleep is so important in recovering from a mental breakdown. It can be hard to slow down ? especially if you have many responsibilities and commitments. To suddenly jump off that treadmill can be challenging. But you health should be a priority in recovering from a mental breakdown.

2. Self Care

When we?re feeling overwhelmed it can be difficult to focus on our own self care. We?re so busy working long hours, putting the needs of others first, taking care of family and trying to be a perfectionist. But self care needs to be part of the plan to recover from a mental breakdown.

You could say that the mental breakdown is a sign or a wake up call to let you know that you need to make some lifestyle changes and re-evaluate your priorities. This may include looking at your job, relationships, your goals and your health.

So what does self care encompass? Self care compromises of looking after your mental health, physical health, spiritual wellbeing, hygiene and avoiding substance abuse.

Leading a healthy lifestyle can be possible but it does take commitment and self-awareness. Self care is certainly the foundation of recovering from a mental breakdown.

Think about how you can plan self-care activities for your mental health. Are there opportunities for you to be mentally stimulated? If not try learning something new or taking on a new hobby. Are you practicing self-love and self-compassion? Do you need to alter the inner dialogue that you?re telling yourself into something more positive?

Try massage therapy for self care. Massage therapy is a great way to relax and dispel some of the stress-hormone cortisol, that is pumping around your body. Instead you?ll enjoy the body?s release of endorphins which will enhance your mood and help your immunity become stronger.

Massage therapy can also help with mind/body connection. When we?re at the intersection of a mental breakdown it can be difficult to clear our minds and stop the intrusive thoughts. Massage therapy can help to calm our minds and relax the body.

Breathing exercises are another great idea for self care. If you have been feeling anxious and stressed for some time chances are you?re not getting enough oxygen. Instead you could be just taking shallow breaths.

Inhale through your nose for 4 seconds. Then hold your breath for 4 seconds. Then exhale for 6 seconds out your mouth. Repeat this cycle for at least 2 minutes and try to practice it a few times a day. Breathing exercises can help calm you and help recovery from a mental breakdown.

Grounding exercises can be another form of self care. Grounding exercises bring us from our thoughts back to the present moment. It?s a way of reconnecting our mind and body so they will work together. Grounding exercises can be really helpful when you?re feeling overwhelmed, having a panic attack or are triggered by something.

A grounding exercise that I recommend to clients is the 5,4,3,2,1, technique. This technique is an exercise that can be done when you?re out and about as it requires no materials.

Stop and closely look around you. Identify 5 things that you can see. Look for things that you?ve never noticed before. What are 4 things that you can feel? It may be an object that you can pick up or it may be clothing that you?re wearing. What are 3 things that you can hear? Can you hear birds chirping or the rustling of the wind in the trees? What are 2 things that you can smell? Can you smell a flower or the scent of perfume? What is 1 thing that you can taste? Pop a mint in your mouth and really take notice of the flavours.

Another thing you can do for self care and to recover from mental burnout is to declutter your environment. Having things disorganised and out of place can really drain your energy. A de-cluttered space is so much more calming than a cluttered space.

When everything has a place we tend to be more productive. We?re not wasting our time cleaning and finding a spot for everything. Clutter is a distraction and so getting rid of the excess can help you become more organised and to feel more house proud.

Having a decluttered home can relieve anxiety and calm our mind. Relationships can be stronger as you?re not arguing over space. Less to care for and clean gives you the free time to spend with loved ones. A decluttered environment can help you recover from a mental breakdown and reduce the risk of another mental breakdown.

Download Your Free 50 Ways to De-stress Ebook here.

3. Boosting your self-esteem

The definition of self-esteem is what value we place on ourselves. This can influenced by your environment, by comparing yourself to others and how much respect we have for ourselves.

Often in the midst of a mental breakdown and afterwards you can experience a low self esteem. You may lose confidence in your ability to complete tasks, your may fear rejection or you may feel worthless.

To boost your self esteem will mean increasing your self worth. One way to do this is through Cognitive Behavioural Therapy where you challenge your unhelpful thoughts. How we feel influences how we think and behave.

An example of this: you are asked to complete a first aid course for work. Your first thought may be ?I don?t want to do it as I know I?ll fail?. Which gives you the feeling of defeat and the behaviour of pretending you?re sick and so you don?t attend.

Or you could think ?I would love to learn something new?. Which gives you the feeling of excitement and the behaviour of turning up early for the first aid course. See how the exact same experience can be interpreted in two different ways. It?s all about your mindset and attitude.

Another way to boost your self esteem is through practising self-compassion. Self-compassion is about being kind to yourself and accepting of who you are. Self-compassion is not judging yourself but rather giving yourself the space to work through the challenging times. Remember that no one is perfect.

By helping others you have the ability to boost your self esteem. Connecting with others and being generous with your time naturally gives us the ?feel good? vibes. Instead of just focusing on ourselves we can shift our attention to someone else in need. Helping others can really help to build confidence and a positive mindset.

Download Your Free 30 Days of Gratitude Worksheet here.

4. Support

Support for a mental breakdown may come in the form of family, friends, a partner, doctor or a therapist. A therapist can help you recover from the mental breakdown and help you learn the skills to overcome stress to avoid a mental breakdown reoccurring.

A therapist may help you work out what lifestyle changes are needed to keep your energy levels up, to keep you healthy and to accomplish quality sleep. Having support around you can help keep you motivated and accountable for achieving the personal goals you have set.

The support people in your life can offer you empathy and guidance if you start to become overwhelmed with the whole process of recovery. People who have accessed support from a therapist often come out the other side more resilient than they were before.

5. Exercise

Apart from keeping you fit and healthy, exercise has many neurological benefits. Exercise can decrease our stress levels, reduce anxiety, improve our memory and blood circulation and decrease brain fog.

A mental breakdown leaves us feeling exhausted both physically and mentally. By exercising we can improve our mood, improve wellbeing and it helps us to become more productive as we feel so much better afterwards.

If you haven?t engaged in exercise for sometime then consulting a doctor beforehand can help you work out a regime specific to you.

A mental breakdown or nervous breakdown can take sometime to recover from. Finding the trigger for the breakdown will help you identify what changes need to made to your lifestyle. This can prevent you from hitting the breaking point in the future.

Thinking of stress management strategies such as building resilience, finding your favourite relaxation activities and being organised with your time management can help prevent further breakdowns.

In this post you have learnt about the 5 essential steps to recover from a mental breakdown. To receive more valuable self-help tools then please download my 30 days of gratitude worksheet and 50 ways to de-stress book These downloads are completely free.

Download Your Free 30 Days of Gratitude Worksheet here.

Download Your Free 50 Ways to De-stress Ebook here.

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