Emotional health: 7 tips to improve it

Emotional health is an important part of our overall well-being, which also includes our physical and social health. In our day, much is said about emotional health and happiness, but... what exactly is emotional health? How can we improve it? In this article I will talk about this concept and I will give you some tips to enjoy greater psychological well-being.

• Related article: "Health Psychology: history, definition and fields of application"

What is emotional health

For a long time it was claimed that general health equaled the absence of disease; however, in 1947 the WHO defined this concept as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being." That is, to enjoy good general health, we must have good physical health, enjoy psychological well-being and enjoy social well-being, which includes not only a good quality in interpersonal relationships and friendships, but also a decent job, a stable economic situation, etc.

When we talk about mental well-being, we are referring to emotional health

, a complex concept that refers to feeling good about oneself and being aligned with goals and motivations. It is a feeling of satisfaction, in which the future is perceived with optimism and hope. People in good emotional health feel that life has great meaning and purpose, they are able to cope with adversity and cope with stress, enjoy a balance between work, rest and leisure, are self-confident and have a High self-steem.

• You may be interested: "The 8 benefits of going to psychological therapy"

Tips to improve emotional health

Enjoying good emotional health has a lot to do with how we perceive the world around us and with the fact of carrying out healthy habits. That is why you can follow a series of strategies that will help you enjoy greater emotional health.

1. Take an emotional intelligence workshop

Emotional intelligence is one of the most important constructs in psychology today, since the emotionally intelligent people enjoy greater well-being, have greater self-knowledge, drink better decisions, manage stress better, communicate better, have healthier interpersonal relationships, among other virtues that you can see in the article: "The 10 benefits of emotional intelligence”

Fortunately, it is possible to improve emotional intelligence and the ability to understand and regulate emotions. There are many workshops that help you become an emotionally intelligent person.

2. Do sports

General well-being, as I have mentioned, is made up of three main areas: physical, mental and social health. These vital areas are interrelated, so enjoying good physical health has a positive impact on our mental well-being.

In this sense, physical exercise becomes essential, as we explained in our article "The 10 psychological benefits of practicing physical exercise." Doing sports not only helps us to enjoy greater cardiovascular health and a good body, but also allows us to release endorphins, serotonin, noradrenaline and other neurotransmitters they cause us pleasant sensations and improve our mood.

3. Practice activities that you enjoy

Much of psychological well-being and emotional health has to do with enjoying our own life. Knowing what we like to do and what makes us enter a "state of flow" is the first step to enjoy a full life. An important part of social well-being is having a decent job and being well financially, which influences our emotional health, but not everything in life should be that.

Do you like to paint or play the guitar in your spare time? Do you feel a sensation of ecstasy when you dance? Whatever makes you happy include these activities in your weekly routine to enjoy greater emotional health.

4. Fight for your personal growth

There are many studies that affirm that having vital goals favors our mental well-being and keeps us motivated. In fact, not knowing what we want in life or where we are going can lead us to a state of existential crisis and depression. So that it is important to define what our concerns are and where we would like to be in the future. Whether in relation to studies, work and any area of ​​our life.

And it is that when we connect with our vital goals and with what we really want and, of course, we fight for it, our journey towards personal development becomes something exciting, something that gives us life and that allows us to enjoy great health emotional.

Related article: "Personal Development: 5 reasons for self-reflection”

5. Set realistic goals for yourself

As you have seen in the previous point, having vital goals is key to our well-being. Now, unrealistic goals have a negative effect on us, since they cause us frustration and can affect our self-esteem.

When setting goals, it is always necessary to take into account what our resources are. Likewise, the objectives must be challenging, but also achievable. You can know 10 tips to achieve your goals by clicking on this link.

6. Boost positive relationships

There are several studies that affirm that positive interpersonal relationships positively influence our emotional health. Not only that! They also influence our general health, including physical health.

One of these studies is the one carried out by the scientist Yang together with his collaborators, who, after analyzing the health of people with interpersonal relationships healthy and those that were isolated, he found that the former enjoyed greater general health: good blood pressure, lower body mass index, etc. The research was published in Journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

7. Live in the present and practice acceptance

Scientific studies also affirm that people who practice Mindfulness, that is, who develop a mental state in those who focus their attention on the here and now, with an attitude of compassion and non-judgment, enjoy better health emotional. If you still don't know what Mindfulness is, the psychiatrist Javier García Campayo explains it to you in the following interview: Javier García Campayo: "Mindfulness has come to stay, because it has enormous scientific evidence"