Try These 4 Practices to Create a More Flexible Mind
Good mental health may seem like a matter of luck. Or like something that’s only possible once we’ve healed all our personal wounds, found a fulfilling relationship, and engaged in meaningful work. But developing resilience and emotional well-being doesn’t require that we have everything else sorted out first. It is more often built, brick by brick, by our daily choices and habits.
I’d like to share the behavioral practices I prescribe most often to my patients; they happen to be the same ones I practice myself. I know from experience that these work. And there’s robust research to support them all.
While most of us have a sense of what kinds of habits support mental health, practicing them regularly is a different matter. I get it — routine sounds boring, especially to someone like me who loves variety.
But the need for structure is woven into our physiology. Daily habits give our bodies the regularity they crave. They align us with the rhythms of nature, which include circadian rhythms — our 24-hour internal clocks — and ultradian rhythms, shorter cycles within each day that we often overlook. Tending to ultradian rhythms can support focus as well as productivity.
Finally, for anyone dealing with anxiety or mood problems, the repetition of healthy practices is both grounding and calming. That repetition can be one of the most important aspects of healing.
Now for my behavioral prescription.
Practice #1
SLEEP: THE LYNCHPIN OF MENTAL HEALTH
If you had to pick one area of focus that eases all things related to mind and body, choose sleep. Put this one at the top of your priority list, especially if you sleep poorly. These simple changes can help get your sleep back on track:
- Avoid caffeine after noon.
- Don’t drink alcohol after dinner.
- Dim the lights for the last two hours before bed.
- Stay away from screens for the last hour before bed.
- Get up within an hour of the same time every day.
Practice #2
EXERCISE: BETTER THAN MEDICATION
Exercise is more than a healthy habit — it’s a bona fide treatment. I know of nothing else that can so easily lift mood within minutes, treat and prevent depression, lower stress and anxiety, and improve sleep. When researchers put exercise up against antidepressants in a 2022 study, the treatments elicited similar results. This is my ultrasimple prescription for exercise that supports mental health:
- Spend 45 minutes doing moderate-intensity cardio activity four or five days per week.
- Do more as you’re able.
Practice #3
SOCIAL CONNECTION: THE MOTHER OF ALL HABITS
Depression and anxiety can make it difficult to connect with other people, but healthy social connection has been shown to stimulate the production of new brain cells, improve longevity, and prevent depression — so it’s worth the effort. Here’s how to make it a habit:
- Go for quality over quantity. You don’t need that many close friends — one or two will do. Three to five is even better.
- Embrace small interactions. Microconnections can measurably improve your baseline mood. That could be an upbeat conversation while waiting in line, a compliment to a coworker, or a quick voice note to an old college friend.
- Be patient. Routine connection is a practice, and you might be a little rusty. Don’t give up if it doesn’t come easily at first; it gets easier after a little repetition.
Practice #4
SAVOR: TAKE THE EFFORT OUT OF MOTIVATION
Simply knowing that something is good for us is not usually enough to keep us motivated. We have to experience that it’s good for us if we’re going to stay engaged. That means learning to notice the good parts.
So, here’s a fourth practice: savoring. This is the art of paying attention to something you enjoy.
- Practice savoring your experience in situations that already offer casual pleasure. Linger over a good meal, for example.
- Take a slow nature walk while attending to all the sounds and smells.
- Spend some unstructured time with friends or family, and really enjoy each other’s company.
After a while, you can use those savoring skills for more challenging activities, like exercise, where you may feel some resistance. When you start savoring how regular exercise gives you more energy, better concentration, and easier sleep, you may find it’s easier to clear your motivational hurdles.
This article, written by Henry Emmons, MD, an integrative psychiatrist, originally appeared as “Behavioral RX for Mental Health” in the January/February 2026 issue of Experience Life.
