Emma Thompson Shares Advice for Improving Your Mental Health

Millions of people struggle with their mental health every day – nearly a quarter of the world’s population, according to the World Health Organization. As a way to help those who might currently be battling depression or other mental illnesses, Emma Thompson (Sybill Trelawney) recently shared her advice for everyday strategies to improve mental health with the Sunday Times.

This article follows a recent op-ed about taking action on climate change, and perhaps the two are meant to be read in order: One of Thompson’s mental health tips involves not dwelling so much on the bad stuff that it gets in the way of your current happiness.

Avoid drama about what is wrong with the world … and anything likely to make you feel anxious or that you are not doing enough.

Thompson has personal experience in working on her mental health; in the past, she has opened up about her own ongoing battle with depression. These strategies, she writes, have helped her appreciate the “truly extraordinary gift” of being alive, a feeling that can be incredibly difficult to access when one is struggling with their mental health.

You can read Thompson’s full list of 20 suggestions on the Sunday Times‘ website or as one of several essays in the anthology It’s Not OK to Feel Blue, edited by Scarlett Curtis, out on October 3.

Tell us what strategies you find most useful for working on your mental health!