The Five Ways to Well-being
The ‘Five Ways to Well-being’ offer key suggestions to boost your physical and mental well-being. The idea is that we build the five actions into our day-to-day lives.
Importantly, they’re not virtual hugs or wishy-washy anything; paramount to well-being, they’re inspired by a review of the most up-to-date evidence in the area and are used at Mind and throughout the NHS.
They are:
- Connect: With the people around you. With family, friends, colleagues and neighbours. At home, work, school or in your local community. Think of these as the cornerstones of your life and invest time in developing them. Building these connections will support and enrich you every day.
- Be active: Go for a walk or run. Step outside. Cycle. Play a game. Garden. Dance. Exercising makes you feel good. Most importantly, discover a physical activity you enjoy; one that suits your level of mobility and fitness.
- Take notice: Be curious. Catch sight of the beautiful. Remark on the unusual. Notice the changing seasons. Savour the moment, whether you are on a train, eating lunch or talking to friends. Be aware of the world around you and what you are feeling. Reflecting on your experiences will help you appreciate what matters to you.
- Keep learning: Try something new. Rediscover an old interest. Sign up for that course. Fix a bike. Set a challenge you will enjoy achieving. Learning new things will make you more confident, as well as being fun to do.
- Give: Do something nice for a friend, or a stranger. Thank someone. Smile. Volunteer your time. Join a community group. Seeing yourself, and your happiness, linked to the wider community can be incredibly rewarding and will create connections with the people around you.
Each action doesn’t need to be practiced in isolation. For example, your coaching sessions offer people the chance to learn something new, whilst being active and meeting new people.