Even the most strong people are challenged by the busy pace of life in the big city. It has the effect of consuming positive feelings, increasing stress levels, contributing to depression, and bringing about other mental health issues. It should come as no surprise that many people either give in to hopelessness and drown it in alcohol or other narcotics, seek help from psychiatrists to find a solution, or, more often, spit on their broken mental health.
You can do numerous things to improve your life or, at the very least, find some peace and tune into a positive wave. Most of these strategies will take you less than an hour to complete and won’t cost you a dime to execute.
8 ways to improve your life quality
1. Doing something you like, such as listening to music
According to several studies, one’s ability to manage stress and even reduce the negative effects of depression may be improved by listening to music that is meaningful to them. Additionally, it has been shown to increase cognitive ability and memory. There is some evidence that music may even assist in treating speech disorders.
In addition to the benefits mentioned above, research has shown that listening to light music may help you consume fewer calories overall. Additionally, listening to music, you like before bed might help you sleep better. As can be seen, this approach is almost a cure-all for the negative consequences of stress. And all that is required is ten to thirty minutes of your time to listen to a few of your favourite songs, and you will notice a difference for the better.
2. Meditation
Meditation is a discipline loaded with dispute and seems to be nothing more than a sedative. Nevertheless, even scientific research has shown that meditating has a physical impact on the body. For instance, research was carried out in which participants were given the option of either leading a more mindful life and meditating for ten minutes every day or taking a class on how to nourish their bodies instead of properly. Subjects reclined on couches in a circle and focused on anything, such as their breathing, a particular flavour, or noises.
According to the research findings, the group that engaged in daily mindfulness training and meditation for ten minutes benefited from improved working memory and focus. Participants in the study reported having fewer thoughts that were irrelevant to the activities at hand.
3. Staying away from social media platforms
We have said several times that the modern version of social media is detrimental to one’s mental health. Studies have shown that even a little reduction in the amount of time spent on social media—just twenty minutes—can significantly increase an individual’s overall sense of psychological well-being. According to these researchers, the stress level has been dramatically reduced.
To test their hypothesis, the researchers recruited roughly two hundred members from the well-known social network who logged at least one hour every day on the platform and then split them into two groups. In one of the groups, the participants stayed on the site for the whole hour given to them, whereas in the other group, they were only there for forty minutes. After the course of the research had been carried out for three months, it was discovered that participants who decreased the amount of time they spent participating in social networking felt less depressed and, generally, better about themselves.
4. Video games on computers
It is a common belief that playing video games is ethically wrong and unhealthy for the mind; however, this is not the case in reality. Researchers are now exploring whether or not playing video games on a computer might have a favourable impact on Alzheimer’s disease patients.
To participate in the research, participants had to play for a total of one month and for a total of thirty minutes each day. The participants ranged in age from 60 to 80. The participants were split up into two groups, with one group playing Angry Birds in a two-dimensional environment. In contrast, the other group played Super Mario World in a three-dimensional environment. After the research project, both groups showed an increase in their cognitive function; however, those who had played Super Mario World significantly improved. They also have a superior capacity for remembering.
Researchers keep their mouths shut for the time being as they continue investigating how playing video games might benefit one’s brain. The findings, however, indicate that the progression of some disorders, such as senile dementia, may be slowed down with frequent resting at computer games. This does not imply that you must play for an indefinite time, and to a certain extent, anything may be beneficial.
5. Relaxing over board games
Even in our modern age, when electronic games have mostly replaced board games, the latter is still significant, at least insofar as they contribute to the development of cognitive capacities. According to the findings of recent studies, children who participate in intellectual board games for 120 minutes each week for two hours each demonstrate significant growth in both their nonverbal intelligence and cognitive speed. In addition, arithmetic abilities may be improved by playing math games such as Monopoly.
Adults may benefit from using these similar ideas, but the rate at which their cognitive capacities develop is far slower. For instance, research conducted by experts has shown that playing intellectual board games strengthens working memory, which in turn enables quicker decision-making.
6. Reading books
An increase in lifespan is being discussed here, contrary to the previous points, which focused on a rise in the user’s psychological well-being or IQ. If you like reading books, you have reason to celebrate: not only will you become more knowledgeable, but you also have a greater chance of living longer than others who are not interested in such an activity.
Reading for only thirty minutes daily has been shown to add two years to a person’s life expectancy. This research was conducted with over 3,600 adults aged 50 and older. However, it is important to point out that we are not talking about any reading but rather about books. According to the research findings, a person’s chance of passing away at an early age is reduced by 23 percent if they read more than 3.5 hours per week, whereas the risk was reduced by 17 percent for those who read less than 3.5 hours per week. Reading has been shown to boost one’s cognitive abilities, so the mind is clearer for longer.
7. Put your negative thoughts on paper
People living in today’s world sometimes see keeping a diary as archaic and unneeded. This may be the case, but there is a beneficial impact to this activity that scientists cannot explain in its entirety at this time. In a study that was carried out on a select group of healthy individuals ranging in age from 64 to 97 years old, the researchers created tiny wounds on the patient’s hands. After that, they split them up into two groups: in one of the groups, the persons maintained a journal in which they detailed traumatic experiences from their past. In contrast, the other group documented ordinary occurrences in their lives. Every day, each group recorded their thoughts in a diary for twenty minutes.
It was shown that 76% of the individuals who wrote about bad things in the journal recovered their wounds after 11 days, but just 42% of the group who described ordinary occurrences healed in the same amount of time.
8. Physical activity
The value of the physical activity is often discussed, but the importance of this factor really cannot be understated. We know that physical activity lowers stress levels and helps us feel more alert and confident. But very few people are aware that even just ten minutes of physical activity on a daily basis may save tens of thousands of lives yearly.
According to recent research findings, if persons over the age of 40 dedicated only ten minutes each day to physical activity, it would help bring the annual number of deaths. The study also showed that increasing the amount of time spent being physically active to 20 or 30 minutes each day would help save the lives of tens of thousands of additional people.