5 Strategies to Be Mentally Healthy That Your Therapist Won’t Teach You
When we think about mental health, we often turn to therapy, self-care routines, or mindfulness practices. While those are valuable tools, there are some unconventional strategies that many therapists don’t typically emphasize, but they can be game-changers for your mental well-being. Here are five surprising ways to boost your mental health.
1. Challenge Your Own Thoughts (Like a Lawyer Would)
Therapy often teaches us to reframe negative thoughts, but what if you went a step further and interrogated them like a lawyer cross-examining a witness? Instead of just replacing “I’m not good enough” with “I am worthy,” ask yourself:
Where is the actual evidence for this belief?
Would I say this to a friend?
Is there an alternative explanation?
By rigorously questioning your thoughts rather than just soothing them, you build resilience and a sharper sense of reality.
2. Upgrade Your Social Circle (Audit Your Influences)
You’ve probably heard that social connections are important for mental health, but few people take an intentional approach to curating their social environment. Try this:
Identify the five people you spend the most time with. Do they lift you up or drain your energy?
Follow people online who inspire you rather than make you feel inadequate.
Seek out communities that align with your growth, whether that’s a mastermind group, a hobby club, or a faith-based gathering.
The people around you shape your mindset more than you realize—be strategic about who gets access to your energy.
3. Embrace Strategic Discomfort
Most mental health advice focuses on comfort—reducing stress, self-care, and relaxation. But real growth comes from stepping into discomfort in a controlled way. Try:
Cold showers or intense workouts to train your body to handle stress.
Purposefully putting yourself in social situations that make you a little nervous.
Learning a skill that frustrates you at first (like playing an instrument or public speaking).
By voluntarily exposing yourself to discomfort, you build mental toughness and reduce overall anxiety.
4. Use Dopamine to Your Advantage
Most people unknowingly sabotage their mental health with poor dopamine management. Scrolling social media, binge-watching TV, and overeating spike your dopamine levels but leave you feeling drained. Instead:
Save your dopamine hits for things that genuinely improve your life (like completing a workout or achieving a goal).
Use a “dopamine detox” day—avoid artificial dopamine spikes and reset your brain’s reward system.
Stack enjoyable activities with productive ones (listen to music while exercising) to reinforce healthy habits.
When you control your dopamine, you control your motivation and mood.
5. Redefine Success on Your Terms
One of the biggest mental health traps is chasing goals that don’t actually fulfill you. Instead of blindly following society’s definition of success, ask yourself:
What does success actually mean to me?
If no one could judge me, what would I choose to do?
Am I living in alignment with what truly matters to me?
By letting go of external validation and focusing on what you value, you’ll reduce anxiety and increase your overall satisfaction in life.
Final Thoughts
Mental health isn’t just about coping, it’s about thriving. By challenging your thoughts, curating your influences, embracing discomfort, mastering dopamine, and redefining success, you can elevate your mental well-being in ways most people overlook. Which of these strategies will you try first?
