Action Plan for Mental Health Patients - Strategies to Relieve Feelings and Symptoms of Depression

Developing a Wellness Toolbox

To develop this plan, the only materials you need are a three-ring binder, a set of five tabs or dividers, and lined three-hole paper. Before you begin working with the tabbed sections, you will create a resource list to keep in the beginning of your binder. This section is called the Wellness Toolbox. In it you identify and list the things you use to help yourself feel better when you are having a hard time. Some of them are things you know you must do, like eating healthy meals and drinking plenty of water; others are things you could choose to do to help yourself feel better. You can also list things you would like to try using to keep yourself well or to help yourself feel better. You will refer to this list for ideas when you are developing the tabbed sections of your plan. Some ideas for your Wellness Toolbox might be—

• eating three healthy meals a day
• drinking plenty of water
• getting to bed by 10:00 p.m. (or at a good regular time for you)

  advertisement

• doing something you enjoy-like playing a musical instrument, watching a favorite TV show, knitting, or reading a good book
• exercising
• doing a relaxation exercise
• writing in your journal
• talking to a friend on the telephone
• taking medications
• taking vitamins and other food supplements

You can get more ideas for your Wellness Toolbox by noticing the good things you do as you go through your day, by asking your friends and family members for suggestions, and by looking into self-help resource books. Write down everything, from really easily accessible things, like taking deep breaths, to things you only do once in a while, like getting a massage. This is a resource list for you to refer back to when you are developing your plans. Your Wellness Toolbox works best for you if you have enough entries so you feel you have an abundance of choices. Just how many entries you have is up to you. If you feel positive and hopeful when you look at the list, then you have enough. You can continue to refine your Wellness Toolbox over time, adding to your list whenever you get an idea of something you'd like to try, and crossing things off your list if you find they no longer work for you.

Once you've gotten your Wellness Toolbox underway, insert it into your notebook. Then, insert your five tabbed dividers, with several sheets of paper after each tab and a supply of paper at the end of the notebook.

Daily Maintenance Plan

On the first tab write "Daily Maintenance Plan." If you haven't already done so, insert it in the binder along with several sheets of paper.

Feeling Well
On the first page, describe yourself when you are feeling all right. If you can't remember, or don't know how you feel when you are well, describe how you would like to feel. Make it easy. Make a list. Some descriptive words that others have used include: bright, talkative, outgoing, energetic, humorous, reasonable, argumentative. Now when you aren't feeling very well you can refer back to how you want to feel.

Dreams and Goals
Some people use their plans to make a list of their dreams and goals, too. If you think you would find it helpful, make a list of goals you could work toward. You can write down far-fetched goals or more easily achievable ones. It is really helpful to remember your goals and dreams so you always have something to look forward to. Then, you can identify steps to take to achieve them and incorporate these small steps into your daily maintenance plan.

Daily List
On the next pages, describe those things you need to do every day to maintain your wellness. Use your Wellness Toolbox for ideas. Writing these things down and reminding yourself daily to do them is an important step toward wellness. When you start to feel "out of sorts," you can often trace it back to "not doing" something on this list. Make sure you don't put so many things on this list that you couldn't possibly do them all. Remember, this is a list of things you must do, not things you would choose to do. Following is a sample daily maintenance list—

• eat three healthy meals and three healthy snacks that include whole grain foods, vegetables, and smaller portions of protein
• drink at least six 8-ounce glasses of water
• get exposure to outdoor light for at least 30 minutes
• take medications and vitamin supplements
• have 20 minutes of relaxation or meditation time or write in my journal for at least 15 minutes
• spend at least half an hour enjoying a fun, affirming, and/or creative activity
• check in with my partner for at least 10 minutes
• check in with myself: "how am I doing physically, emotionally, spiritually?"
• go to work if it's a workday