Beyond the Gym: 5 Mental Health Resolutions for 2026
Happy New Year! As the calendar flips to 2026, the pressure to "level up" can feel overwhelming. We’re often told to focus on how we look or what we produce, but the most vital part of our well-being—our mental health—usually gets pushed to the bottom of the list. This year, let’s focus on how to have a more peaceful, more intentional, or more mentally healthy year. Making your mental health your New Year’s resolution can set your year off to a good start. In this post, we’ll explore 5 ways you can prioritize your mental health this year.
Refocus on Your Values
The day-to-day problems of life take up so much of our attention that it’s easy to forget the things that matter most to us. Take a minute, right now as you read this post, to step back from today’s problems. Take a deep breath. I want you to envision yourself living a life worth living. Exactly what that means will differ from person to person, and that’s ok. I want you to tune in to what a life worth living would look like for you. Spend some time writing down what you envision and put those notes somewhere you can find them. Refer back to them during the year to help you stay focused on your values.
Set Expectations, but Speak Kindly
It’s difficult to balance self-improvement with self-care. Many of us tend to lean more to one side than another, either finding ourselves with too many goals and a lot of self-criticism, or with positive thinking but a lack of direction. Try to think not only about the goals you have for the year, but how you set those goals and how you talk to yourself along the way. It’s ok to set high expectations. It’s important to feel challenged and purposeful. But you should also expect failures along the way, meaning those high expectations must also come with self-care, self-compassion, and kindness.
Connect to Your relationships
Humans are an inherently social species, yet the pandemic made us more isolated than ever before. Many of my clients spend almost every moment in their homes and they feel incredibly lonely. Be intentional about connecting with your community. Who are the people that bring you joy, comfort, good advice, or great stories? If many of your friends are long-distance, where can you connect with others in your community? A church, a class at the community center, a local club or organization, a volunteer opportunity? Put yourself out there – you never know who you might meet.
Tune Up Your Physical Health
Your physical health and your mental health are strongly connected. If you are sleep-deprived, using too much alcohol/ marijuana, or over-dieting/ over-exercising, you will probably not feel well emotionally. Make sure to get a good night’s rest (7-9 hours for adults), learn about sleep hygiene, cut back on substance use, and be careful with any efforts to diet that you are eating sufficient calories and nutrients. This will set you up for better success with any mental health goals you have this year.
Seek Out Professional Therapy
If you’re wanting to improve your mental health, professional therapy can play an important role. A therapist can work with you to build an individualized treatment plan so you can make progress on your mental health goals. A therapist can also help with mental health challenges, like trauma, attachment issues, depression, and anxiety. Please keep in mind that neither following a therapist on social media nor talking to an AI chatbot are a replacement for therapy. If you are looking for mental health help, consider reaching out to a therapist. If you’re in Clovis, CA or open to telehealth in California, I’d love to help. Learn more about therapy and take the first step toward healing today.
