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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at MSU chapter.

With mental health being a large issue that many people have been facing recently, the need to practice self-care has been increasing. Self-care does not need to be expensive, in fact, it can be very simple. Here are a few ways to practice self-care to improve your mental health.

Spend time with family and friends

Spending time with the people you love and trust can do tremendous things for your mental health. Creating an environment where you are happy and feel safe is essential for good mental health. Do some fun activities with your friends and family and take this time to enjoy your life outside the stress of school or work.

Take “mental vacations”

With the stress of school, work, and your daily life, it is easy to forget about taking a break for your mental health and enjoyment. Taking a “mental vacation” is a great way to get away from the stress of your life and focus on yourself. During these “mental vacations” try not to think about your daily life and only focus on enjoying the pleasures of life and taking time to do things that you didn’t have time to do in the past.

Meditate

As I mentioned in my article about “5 Tips for Mastering Meditation”, meditation is a great practice to adopt to help relieve stress and focus on your body. It allows your body and mind to actually relax and allows you to take a step away from your busy and stressful life. It doesn’t take long to meditate, you can even just meditate for 20 minutes a day. Adding this small practice into your day could do wonders for your mental and physical health.

Do something you love

Taking the time to do something you love seems like something that everyone should be doing every day, but in reality, many people forget to do what they love such as pursuing hobbies as they don’t have the time to take out from their busy schedules. However, simply practicing a hobby such as painting, dancing, singing, writing, etc could be a great way to practice self-care. It is important to prioritize self-care in doing what you love and not forgetting the hobbies that make you happy.

Organize your thoughts and your environment

I have always followed the saying that organizing your environment could help you organize your thoughts and mind. Organizing your environment can not only give you time to think and organize your thoughts, but it will also definitely help you keep your house or environment clean. With your thoughts always running through your mind, organization could be very beneficial for you to figure out things that you have been stressing about for a long time.

Overall, self-care is something that more people should treat as a priority. It is not something that is wanted, but something that is necessary to lead a healthy life. Hopefully, these practices can help you prioritize self-care in your life.

I am a freshman at Michigan State University with a major in Human Biology. I plan to go to Michigan State University's medical school through the Osteopathic Medical Scholars Program to pursue a career in OBGYN. I love to dance, sing and play tennis. In my free time, I like to watch Netflix and take long naps. I am a Friends enthusiast and am fluent in Friends quotes.
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