Improving your mental health isn't about reaching a finish line; it's a journey. This is a path you will need to walk every single day. However, don’t let that discourage you. While we often look for quick fixes, the truth is that sustainable well-being is built through small, consistent actions and a mindset that embraces progress over perfection. The key is to find practical tips for good mental health that resonate with this continuous process and are backed by experts in the mental health field.

Here are some expert-backed strategies to help you build resilience and self-awareness over time.

Tips For Good Mental Health

1. Develop a Toolkit of Coping Mechanisms

Life is full of unexpected bumps in the road, and how you handle them makes all the difference. A crucial part of good mental health is having a diverse toolkit of healthy coping strategies to turn to when things get tough.

Practice Mindfulness and Breathing: When your mind feels like it's racing a million miles an hour, mindful breathing is your secret weapon. It’s a simple but powerful way to hit the brakes on a spiral of anxious thoughts and bring yourself back to a state of calm. By focusing on the rhythm of your breath. For example, focus on the slow inhale, the gentle pause, and the full exhale. This will help you create a quiet anchor in the present moment, grounding you and quieting the noise in your mind.
Box breathing exercise:
Inhale for four counts
Hold for four counts
Exhale for four counts
Repeat
Engage Your Senses: When your mind is racing and you feel disconnected, engaging your senses can be a powerful way to ground yourself in the present. This simple practice helps pull your focus away from anxious thoughts and back into your body. Whether it's the feel of cool air on your skin, the scent of a cup of coffee, or the sound of the world around you, these small sensory details can anchor you in reality and help you find a sense of calm.
Listening to music
Taking a walk in nature
Enjoying a warm cup of tea.
The goal isn't to eliminate stress, but to build your capacity to handle it without being overwhelmed.

2. Practice Self-Compassion, Not Self-Criticism

Many of us are our own harshest critics. Building resilience isn't just about toughing it out; it's about giving yourself grace.

Challenge Your Inner Critic: Negative thoughts can feel like a vicious cycle, pulling you into a downward spiral of increasing negativity. It's true that if you can't find a way to change that thought process, you'll feel stuck. But the good news is, you have the power to break that cycle. With a little practice, you can learn to shift your perspective and guide your mind toward a healthier, more positive place.
When a negative thought appears, ask yourself: "Would I say this to a friend?" If the answer is no, reframe the thought with kindness.
Implement mindfulness techniques from dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) to restructure the way your inner monologue speaks to yourself.
Acknowledge Your Humanity: We all strive for perfection, but the truth is, a perfect life or a perfect self doesn't exist. Accepting that you are imperfect is one of the kindest things you can do for yourself. It’s about letting go of the pressure to be flawless and embracing your authentic, human self, flaws and all. This practice frees up a tremendous amount of mental energy that you can use to grow, learn, and simply be yourself without constant self-criticism.
Place a reminder notecard on your mirror to always try your best, but it’s okay to make mistakes.
Make a list of mistakes you’ve made in the past, and for each one, associate something good that came out of it. For example, if you are a waitress and you messed up your tables' order today at work, say that it helped you learn to be quick on your feet and ensure you are communicating effectively with customers.
Self-compassion is a powerful act of self-care that builds a strong, healthy relationship with yourself. It's the practice of treating yourself with the same kindness and understanding you would offer a trusted friend. Instead of dwelling on mistakes or failures, self-compassion allows you to acknowledge your struggles without judgment, recognizing that imperfection is simply part of being human. This mindset frees you from the exhausting cycle of self-criticism, enabling you to learn, grow, and move forward with greater resilience.