If your new year’s resolutions for 2024 include something vague along the lines of ‘sort out mental health’, give yourself a pat on the back. It’s always a good time to make your mental wellbeing a priority, and doing that should be applauded. 

But we know that when it comes to making resolutions actually happen, they need to be a touch more specific. How are you going to look after your mental health this year? What exactly are you going to do? 

We’re here to help, with 52 tips we’ve picked up from the last year of creating our mental health series Frame Of Mind and chatting to experts for One Good Thing. That’s one a week, but don’t view this list too prescriptively: you can pick and choose whichever you think will work for you, leave out any you don’t fancy, or go wild and do all 52 over the course of a month.

The idea here is not to tell you what you have to do, because that sort of ‘just get out of bed’, ‘just go for a run’ lecturing when your mental health takes a dip is deeply unhelpful. Instead, think of this as a menu, where you can take your pick of nourishing treats depending on what you’re in the mood for. 

Ready? Let’s dig in. 

1. Create an emoji shorthand for when you need extra support

We’re big fans of this idea from author and journalist Kate Lucey: come up with an emoji that you can use to communicate to friends and family that you need support. “During a time when you’re not hanging out at Rock Bottom, consider how you feel and what you need when you have your darker times,” Lucey explains. “Do you often need to be left alone to yourself so you can cry? Do you need distraction with someone’s company and some conversation? Do you need a project or a problem to solve? Do you need someone to send you memes or videos of cats being fluffy little idiots? 

“Whatever it is that you find yourself needing, find an emoji for it. Mine, for example, is the raincloud emoji, which I use when I can’t leave the house and need to stay in the dark because I feel so, so low.

“Then, let Your People know what you’re doing (send them the link to this article, why don’t ya) and what the emoji means. Something like this can work: ‘When I’m feeling super-depressed, I can’t really get into it in the moment. If I send you a raincloud emoji instead of properly replying, it means I’m in the storm and I’ll be back to you when I’m out of it.’”

2. Go on an awe walk

Over the past year there’s been a lot of chat (and multiple proper scientific studies) about the benefits of cultivating awe. Dr Carly Wood, lecturer in sport and exercise science at the University of Essex and consultant at the Columbia Hike Society, advises an awe walk, which she describes as “the practice of immersing yourself in your walking environment to experience feelings of awe”. It’s simple: go out for a walk in nature, and take a pause to marvel at something you find amazing, whether that’s the crunch of leaves beneath your walking boots, the crispness of the cold air or some nice sheep you’ve spotted.

3. Talk to your doctor about medication

You might benefit from taking medication to treat mental illness. If you suspect that might be the case, make 2024 the year you ditch any shame and make that appointment. 

4. Do a brain dump before bed

“Every night, before bed, I write a brain dump in my journal,” says activist, speaker and author Ellie Middleton. Grab a pen and a notepad and for five minutes before bed, write down whatever’s on your mind: your to-do list for the next day, worries, regrets, ideas, things that happened today that deserve appreciation – whatever comes up. You’ll notice reduced anxiety and better sleep, simply by getting it all out on paper. 

5. Try the AAA method

Created by Dr Meg Arroll, a chartered psychologist, scientist and author, the AAA method is a way to take us out of autopilot mode and help us process ’tiny t’ traumas. It stands for Awareness, Acceptance and Action, and the ‘how to’ is what it says on the tin: before you charge into action, take the time to become aware of an issue and accept that it has happened and had an impact. Only then can you move forward. 

6. Make some rubbish crafts 

Grab the glue and glitter. It’s time to get crafty. 

“For me, shitty crafts are a silly, low-stakes way to be creative and give my brain a much-needed break from my full-time job of overthinking every moment of my life,” explains Sam Reece, author of Shitty Craft Club: A Guide To Gluing Beads To Trash, Talking About Our Feelings, And Making Silly Things. “Shitty crafts help me work through my big three: anxiety, burnout and perfectionism.”

7. Think of your energy like a phone battery 

Not to sound like those old school anti-piracy ads, but… you wouldn’t go about your day with your phone on 4%, so why would you allow yourself to be totally drained? 

“Draw a parallel between your energy levels and your phone battery,” psychotherapist and author Anna Mathur recommends. “When you rest, imagine plugging yourself into the wall as you do your phone. If you’re depleted and tired, don’t dismiss the opportunity to quickly sit down and do a round of breathing or close your eyes for a moment.”

8. Look out for glimmers

Glimmers are essentially the opposite of triggers. They’re little things that bring us comfort and soothe our nervous systems. “They tell our brain and body that we are safe and it’s OK,” Dr Sophie Mort notes. “In a fast-paced and stressful world, we can all benefit from spotting glimmers, particularly as we have a natural tendency to look for and remember the bad.”

Keep an eye out for glimmers, and take the time to consciously notice and appreciate any that appear. Writing a glimmer journal, where you take note of a glimmer each day, is a great shout. 

9. Write for 6 minutes a day 

The benefits of journalling are well known, but the concept of keeping a diary can feel like too much effort. Make the whole thing more doable by limiting your writing to just six minutes a day, recommends writing coach and author Alison Jones. 

“Set a timer for six minutes, ask yourself a question and write in response to that with a pen or pencil on a scruffy pad of paper without stopping,” she suggests. “Usually when you’re writing you’re performing, trying to influence or inform or impress the reader. This kind of free-wheeling, speed-of-thought, private writing is the exact opposite: instead of trying to communicate what you know as convincingly as possible, you’re giving yourself a safe space to explore what you don’t know.”

10. Take a cold shower

Studies suggest that cold water exposure can reduce depression symptoms. Does a cold shower sound terrible? That’s kind of the point. In her book Dopamine Nation, psychiatrist Dr Anna Lembke explains that doing something uncomfortable – such as a cold shower, or you could go for a run, have a difficult conversation, or do an errand you’re not particularly keen to do – is a way to trigger your body’s healing mechanisms and thus release feelgood hormones such as dopamine and serotonin. 

11. Make space for ‘true’ fun

We tend to think of ‘fun’ as anything that’s not work, so we count social media scrolling and watching trashy TV. But these things aren’t true fun. For that, you need three things, according to expert Catherine Price: playfulness, social connection and flow. Find activities that will deliver all three and make space to do them. 

12. Get comfortable with discomfort

A simple fact: life can’t always be plain-sailing. There will be inevitable bumps in the road (or waves in the sea, if you want to continue the sailing metaphor). Accepting that things will go wrong can reduce our stress levels, while embracing the discomfort of new, unexpected experiences will ensure we approach any issues head on, rather than worsening a situation by attempting to ignore it (which, FYI, does not make a problem go away). 

13. Prioritise sleep

“Good quality sleep is definitely the best thing everyone can aim for to improve their mental health,” says Lindsay Percival, psychotherapist and spokesperson for the UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP). 

14. Schedule in free time

Cassie Holmes is a professor of marketing and behavioural decision-making at UCLA Anderson School of Management and the author of Happier Hour, which is all about how to make the most of our time. She’s a big believer in deliberately scheduling in free time. 

“My research shows that having too little free time makes people feel low levels of happiness and satisfaction in life,” she notes. “With too little time, we feel heightened levels of stress and, over time, this leaves us feeling exhausted and overwhelmed, and we eventually burn out. Free time is time available to do what you want to do, rather than time filled with what you have to do. It is time spent on something that isn’t (or doesn’t feel like) a task on your to-do list.”

But the problem with free time not being on your to-do list is it often doesn’t get done. So, note it down as a priority, with a clear timeslot allocated. 

15. Sing like no one’s listening

Next time you’re home alone, blast the music and sing along. You can even do the whole ‘hairbrush as a microphone’ thing. “On a physiological level, when we sing it regulates our breathing and heart rate and it calms the body’s nervous system,” Kate Valentine, a registered nurse and the founder and director of Singing Mamas, tells us. “Our bodies produce oxytocin (which is known as the ‘love hormone’) and cortisol (the stress hormone) levels are reduced.”

16. And dance like no one’s watching

Chuck in some dance moves, too. Ecstatic dancing (essentially when you let your body move however you feel, rather than worrying about how your dancing looks to anyone else) has benefits including stress reduction and nervous system regulation. Plus, it’s fun.

17.  Relax your to-do list

Don’t worry, we’re not urging you to chuck out your to-do list entirely. You keep hold of it if it works for you… but perhaps loosen your grip just a touch. Madeleine Dore, author of I Didn’t Do The Thing Today, reckons this is an essential route to tackling productivity guilt. 

“In place of aspirational routines, elaborate schedules or exhaustive to-do lists that are difficult to stick to, try creating a flexible checklist of small good things for your own mental health – for example, exercise, reading, learning something, cooking or connecting with someone,” she says. “The key is that those tasks don’t have to follow a particular order, nor do they always happen, but when they do, it’s a good day.”

18. Commit to a daily meditation practice

“Decades of research show concrete benefits of a daily meditation practice, ranging from a better gut microbiome to becoming calmer and concentrating more easily,” says author, psychologist and science journalist Daniel Goleman. 

19. Embrace the ‘feel, deal, heal’ technique

Gaur Gopal Das, the author of Energize Your Mind: A Monk’s Guide To Mindful Living, recommended the ‘feel, deal, heal’ technique as his One Good Thing. “The first step towards dealing effectively with our emotions is to understand what they are,” he says. “Psychologists call this labelling, which is the process of identifying exactly what we are feeling. Then, after we have correctly identified our emotions, we need to find appropriate ways to deal with them.”

Only after you allow yourself to explore your emotions by feeling them and naming them will you be able to deal with them, and only after that can you properly heal. 

20. Go on a gratitude walk

Going for a walk out in nature is always a great idea, but you can double up on the mental health benefits by making it a gratitude walk. “A gratitude walk simply requires going for a walk (ideally somewhere peaceful near nature but anywhere outdoors will do) and, as you walk, thinking about what you’re grateful for,” Cheryl Rickman, a positive psychology practitioner and author of You Can Flourish, shares. 

21. Make the first moments of your morning joyful

What’s the first thing you do once you open your eyes each morning? If the answer is going on your phone and looking at all the bad news in the world, you’re certainly not the only one, but make this the year you do things a little differently. 

“Wake up and orient to the joy in your day,” advises Dr Elissa Epel, a professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco. “You can remind yourself there is joy in your day, and it is of great benefit to simply be open to seeing and feeling it. Then do one thing that increases your positive mood and outlook on the day.

“Morning is a sacred time. If we can take a few minutes, we can change our mood, our biology and thus the trajectory of our day. When you wake up, try one of these. Or make it a triple.

• Take some slow breaths and let yourself feel at ease in your body.
• Think of something you are looking forward to or something you appreciate right now.
• Move your body – this is a great time for a few minutes of gentle yoga. Use music if that lifts your mood.

It’s simple but powerful.”

23. Embrace saying ‘I don’t know’

“If you want a bigger life without constraints, see that you don’t know,” says Dr Amy Johnson. “You don’t know anything for sure. In this I-don’t-know space, we’re discovering rather than confirming. Anything can show up at any moment. You get to be surprised!”

24. Look into different types of therapy

You don’t have to navigate the complicated journey of feeling better alone. Talk to your GP to see what therapy options are open to you, self-refer, or explore private therapy options if you can afford to do so. 

Bear in mind that if one style of therapy hasn’t worked for you previously or just doesn’t appeal, you have other options. CBT, psychodynamic therapy, EMDR, art therapy… the list goes on. 

25. Get into birdwatching

In a piece for Processing, writer Jennifer Sizeland described how birdwatching helps her manage OCD and anxiety attacks. The science backs up this experience. One study found that seeing or hearing birds improved mental wellbeing in people with and without depression for hours after the initial bird-spotting moment. 

26. Or gardening

Another hobby well worth trialling in the new year? Gardening. Research suggests digging up dirt and planting seeds can reduce stress and anxiety. 

27. Appreciate microjoys

Happiness doesn’t lie only in the massive milestones of getting a great job or seeing a great wonder of the world. “Notice microjoys: the easily accessible moments of joy that exist around (and within) us regardless of our current circumstances,” says Cyndie Spiegel, a consultant and the author of Microjoys: Finding Hope (Especially) When Life Is Not Okay. “Because microjoys are nearly always present and available, we can access joy when we are struggling but also within the mundanity of our daily lives.”

Think: a really good cup of tea, spotting some bluebells on your cycle to work, listening to your cat purring on your lap. 

28. Write yourself a letter

“When we write a letter to ourselves, we can practise treating ourselves with more kindness and empathy,” explains Jodie Cariss, therapist and founder of high street therapy service Self Space. “This can be especially important for people who struggle with self-criticism, self-blame or have a loud inner shitty committee.”

29. Savour

“The idea of savouring, from a psychological perspective, refers to the practice of intentionally paying attention to and fully enjoying positive experiences, thoughts, feelings and sensations,” explains chartered psychotherapist Dr Louise Goddard-Crawley. It’s easy to do: just immerse yourself mentally in something – past or present – and pause to really soak in the positive feelings. 

An important note: savouring is really not something you can multi-task. 

30. Do a social media audit 

You’re probably following some accounts that make you miserable. Quit that. The same goes for sites and apps that you come away from feeling angry, irritated or upset. Ditch the mindless scrolling and dedicate your time and mental space only to what you actually need or what makes you feel good. 

31. Become curious about your emotions

One thing psychotherapist Annie Zimmerman often recommends to her patients is to get curious. “Rather than searching for solutions, it’s much more helpful to take a step back, get curious and ask yourself what might be going on underneath,” she advises. “Really, our feelings and behaviours are our teachers; they are communicating something to us that we need to listen to in order to understand the deeper problem at play.”

32. Set yourself a daily self-appreciation challenge

“Nurture self-appreciation,” says Dr Rachel Taylor. “Every day, write down three things that you’ve done to raise your value, as that is what appreciation is. They can be really simple things, like ‘I drank enough water’ or ‘I maintained boundaries when I was too tired to deal with drama’, right the way through to ‘I hit that goal I had worked towards’.

“The more we can recognise and celebrate the good things we do for ourselves, the more motivation we have to do good things. It sets off a dopamine/serotonin mechanism deep within our reward and motivation circuitry in the brain.

“So every day, just think: ‘How have I appreciated myself today?’ And celebrate what you have done. That’s a really good behavioural habit to get into.”

33. Create a ‘depression support list’

When you live with depression, there will be times when you desperately need help from your loved ones. But what does that help actually look like? It can be tricky for someone else to know what you need, and when you’re feeling low you’re not exactly in the best headspace to come up with suggestions. 

A ‘depression support list’ could be handy. When you’re in an OK mindset, create a list of what might help the next time you have a dip. That might be as simple as a distraction or it could be the number of your psychiatrist. The more items on the list, the better. Then, hand over that list to anyone you trust to be there for you when you need them. You’re not ordering them to quit their jobs and do everything on that piece of paper, to be clear, but instead offering some ideas for when people want to help but aren’t clear on how to do so. 

34. Move your body

We don’t need to bang on about the mental health benefits of exercise. You know all that already, and when your mind is keeping you rotting away in bed, the suggestion of popping out for a nice pilates session seems preposterous. So, we’re not going to suggest that, but what we will say is that some form of movement, whatever you can manage, can help you feel a little bit better. Do some stretches while you’re on the sofa, shake out the tension from your body, walk to get coffee rather than getting it delivered. It really doesn’t need to be anything more than that unless you feel up to it. 

35. Try art therapy 

Proper art therapy with a licensed therapist can be hugely beneficial, but the good news is that it’s easy to dip your toe in first by simply creating some art at home. Grab pens, paints, collage materials – whatever – and get stuck in. 

36. Check on your vitamin D levels 

The UK is a dark and gloomy place and thus you’re likely to be low in vitamin D, which can affect your mood. Ask to have your levels tested by your GP, then consider vitamin D supplements, SAD lamps and increased time outdoors to up your exposure. 

37. Cosy up

There’s an interesting phenomenon whereby when we feel sad and lonely, we perceive the temperature to be lower. Some psychologists think that because of this mental association, the reverse might be true: if we’re chilly, we could feel sadder and lonelier. Let this be your reminder to bundle up warm. Whatever you’re doing could likely be improved by the addition of a blanket. 

38. Do a random act of kindness

Yes, letting your neighbour use your wifi or complimenting a stranger’s coat are things you should probably do simply because they’re nice, but it might help to know there could be an unexpected benefit for the giver of kindness, not just the recipient. Research has found that being kind to others may reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety, lower levels of stress and increase life satisfaction. Not a bad reward for making your coworker a cup of tea.  

39. Try the ‘trust adjust’ exercise

“My ‘trust adjust’ technique is a technique that offers a chance to explore what’s behind our anxiety rather than being floored by the discomfort of the feeling,” says hypnotherapist Jessica Boston.  “When you start to feel a sense of anxiety building, listen to what the body is struggling to trust. Try placing your hand where you feel [the anxiety] and ask out loud: what don’t you trust? Then listen for information. It might be a word, a picture, a symbol… but once you have that information, you can begin to make adjustments to your relationship with your experience, either removing it from your life or making adjustments over time so that relationship becomes more dependable. 

“When you begin to do this you can see over time how this relationship came to be untrustworthy and what it will take to heal it.”

40. Breathe better

Breathwork is a free and easy way to access calm. Take your pick from a whole bunch of techniques (we’re fans of box breathing) and keep your favourite in your metaphorical back pocket for the next time overwhelm hits. 

41. Practise self-compassion (especially when you mess up)

“Establish a consistent practice of self-compassion,” recommends Dr Sarah Boss, clinical director at The Balance rehab facility. “I regularly find ways to incorporate this into the lives of my patients. This means actively extending kindness towards oneself during moments of pain or failure, rather than ignoring our pain or criticising ourselves.

“In my work as a psychologist, I’ve witnessed countless individuals who are very hard on themselves, which often exacerbates feelings of depression, anxiety, and stress. Self-compassion, on the other hand, acknowledges our common humanity – the fact that everyone experiences hardship and makes mistakes.”

42. Read something 

Who doesn’t love curling up with a good book? Carving out time away from our screens and getting lost in reading always feels good. It doesn’t matter if you go for cosy crime fiction or the latest buzzy self-help guide, the simple act of slowing down and taking the time to read can do wonders. So do it more this year. 

43. Find flow in a challenge 

Sometimes what you really need is a distraction; something you can focus on so deeply that there’s no space for your mind to wander to unhelpful areas. Doing something that’s a bit tricky works far better than attempting to mindlessly switch off or sliding into meditation, which anxious types can find difficult. Personally, I’m a fan of woodworking (when I’m sawing wood, I’m so preoccupied by trying not to cut off my fingers that my depression and OCD can’t get a word in), but perhaps for you this might be doing a puzzle, or lifting weights or completing a crossword. Aim for something that’s sufficiently tricky but not impossible, so you don’t get bored or give up. 

44. Go to a museum or art gallery

“Visiting museums and engaging with the arts can help you feel more connected, happier and even healthier,” argues Claire Fitzsimmons, co-founder of mental wellbeing company If Lost Start Here. 

45. Reach out to a friend

No woman is an island, which is a cliched way of saying that we all need social connection and emotional support. Get in touch with someone you care about. Don’t worry about the how or the when, and don’t feel like you have to do a long phone call if that’s just not your style. 

“Reach out to someone – through a phone message, a voice note, a phone call, an email or even something in the mail,” suggests Lisa Bruton, psychotherapist and spokesperson for the UK Council for Psychotherapy. “It is a rapid and low-effort/high-reward gesture that we can easily build into our daily lives and feel better in the process. We feel better when we connect with other people.”

46. Test out the ‘six healing sounds’

According to the ancient art of qigong, there are six sounds help to relax our minds and bodies. These are: Ssssss, Chooooo, Whooooo, Sshhhhh, Haaaaa and Heeeeee. Take a seat, inhale, and when you exhale, make one of these sounds. Work your way through all six and see how much more chilled out you feel. Perhaps do this in a private space, so strangers don’t think you’re hissing and laughing at them. 

47. Make yourself a nourishing meal

There are specific foods that are linked to mental health benefits, but also, simply making yourself a meal can be a powerful act of self-love. When you create a tasty, nourishing dish, you remind yourself that you are deserving of care. 

48. Challenge the way you talk to yourself

Many of us have inner voices that are pretty nasty. If you’re existing with an overly negative inner critic, make 2024 the time you give it the boot. The way to do this? Consciously challenge that voice each time it pipes up. Notice the voice (it can be helpful to name it) and offer up an alternative view. So, if your mind tells you you’re rubbish and about to get sacked, chip in with evidence that that’s not the case – actually, you’re quite good at your job, you know this because your manager gave you great feedback the other week. 

Sadly this is not a one-and-done process. It’ll take time and effort to get your inner voice to stop being mean. But do it enough and it’ll get a little bit easier – and know that nudging your inner voice towards kindness is well worth doing. 

49. Take yourself on a date

Giselle La Pompe-Moore, an author, speaker and slow-living advocate, is a big proponent for self-dating, which is just what it sounds like: taking yourself out on solo dates. “Regardless of the season of life you’re in and if you’re single or in a relationship, date yourself,” she says. “When we intentionally set out to romance ourselves, we aren’t waiting for anyone else before we can gift ourselves that time. We are making a statement that we are deserving of giving ourselves the same energy and treatment that we so often extend to others, or others extend to us.”

50. Enrol in Yale’s ‘science of wellbeing’ course

The science of wellbeing is a 10-week course from Laurie Santos at Yale University. It’s free and online (you don’t need to travel to New Haven), and pairs education about the true routes to happiness with practical ‘homework’ tasks to boost your mood. Ideal if you’re someone who thrives with some structure or miss those uni days when all you had to do was learn. 

51. Try to go outside

You’ll notice a lot of the activities recommended above – gardening, birdwatching, gratitude walking – take place outdoors. That’s deliberate. Getting outside is good for your mental health not only because sunlight ups our vitamin D levels, but because being in nature creates more opportunities for awe, gratitude, savouring and so on. Putting on your coat and shoes and leaving the house also makes you feel accomplished, right? 

You don’t need to go on a lengthy hike or do anything especially outdoorsy if you hate it, promise. Even taking your laptop out to the park rather than staying on your sofa is a good plan. Can’t manage that right now? Just open a window instead and get some fresh air. 

52. Make time to stop doing and just ‘be’

“Balance out your energy of constantly ‘doing’ with the energy of ‘being’,” says life coach Susanna Kenyon-Muir. “Take time to just be – to connect with yourself, your emotions, your intuition and what your body is craving. Especially if you are feeling overwhelmed and anxious, it’s important to slow down and reconnect with the part of yourself that’s asking you to listen to your body, mind and soul.”

Frame Of Mind is Stylist’s home for all things mental health and the mind. From expert advice on the small changes you can make to improve your wellbeing to first-person essays and features on topics ranging from autism to antidepressants, we’ll be exploring mental health in all its forms. You can check out the series home page to get started.

Images: Getty; Stylist