Mental Training

“Use it or lose it!” A phrase that we are probably all familiar with in terms of physical training. We have probably all experienced hitting a physical goal or achievement and then losing the fitness or skill again once we stop practicing. 

This week I had an insightful chat with a client who is currently studying various therapy techniques. We laughed about how awkward or uncomfortable some of them seemed, analysed why some work for some people and not others, and made some generally sound correlations between our physical and mental well-being.

As a society, we tend to applaud physical fitness. People proudly talk about their sporting achievements or how many gym sessions they attend a week. When they come back from a holiday, they might say that they have “fallen off the wagon” and almost dread that first session back as they know the DOMS is going to hit them hard. 

However, while awareness is growing, the same level of free-flowing conversation around mental health is not even close to where physical health is. Instead, we often shy away from admitting something feels overwhelming, challenging or simply “off”. And we often oversee that mental health needs the same consistent training that physical health needs. Go to 1x therapy session, and it more than likely that you will leave with a lot more questions than answers. Much like if you went to 1x PT session. 

Mental health is not a box tick; it’s an ongoing and evolving part of us. Any given day, much like our physical health, it can take a knock. Also, just like our physical health, the more work on it, the more diverse the range of tools we have access to when needed. So, do not box it away.