Everyday Ways to Stay Happy & Healthy

Your healthiness and happiness is all part of your mental health well-being. Life can get busy and stressful at times, and it’s important to be actively aware of how to make choices toward a more healthy and fulfilling life. This is a big part of your mental health wellness. People find happiness and fulfillment in different ways, so it’s important to find what works best for you. As a peer specialist, I educate others on wellness tools they can use in their everyday life to stay happy and healthy. Here are two effective tools I personally use and highly recommend:

The Virtual Hopebox

Virtual Hopebox is a free application created by The National Center for Telehealth and Technology to assist veterans in their mental health recovery. It has recently become available for the general public. You can simply download Virtual Hopebox on your smartphone or tablet. Research has proven it to be effective to reduce the symptoms of depression, anxiety, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and thoughts of suicide – and improve your overall happiness which, in turn, impacts your mental wellbeing.

How It Works

A hope box, as a wellness tool, is an actual box in which a person places items that:

• Give comfort
• Provide distraction
• Assist in changing mood

The Virtual Hopebox contains four main sections:

• Distract Me: games to play when you’re feeling down
• Relax Me: guided meditations
• Inspire Me: inspirational quotes to provide hope and encouragement
• Coping Tools: virtual cards to give you comfort

These sections can be personalized to include:

• Personal photographs
• Your favorite music
• Your favorite videos
• Personal recorded voice messages
• A list of your personal phone numbers to call for support

Why I Personally Recommend Virtual Hopebox

I use the Virtual Hopebox for my own mental health wellness. My favorite part is the personalization. It’s fun to see photos of my children and pets in the games and to hear the relaxing music that I have chosen in the guided meditation. The games are pretty easy to play and yet challenging enough to keep me interested. Virtual Hopebox is a helpful distraction to calm me and to alleviate anxiety. I would recommend it for its convenience and ease of use. Are you ready to create your own Virtual Hopebox? Just go to the Apple App Store if you’re using an Apple iPhone or iPad or Google Play if you’re using an Android device – it’s free!

Wellness Recovery Action Plans

The Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP) is an effective, evidence-based tool used to develop and assist in maintaining mental health wellness.

Developing Your WRAP Plan

WRAP plans are designed specifically for you and your needs. The plan is yours, so you are encouraged to develop it so that it works for you. The WRAP plan includes nine sections:

• The Key Concepts of WRAP
• The Wellness Toolbox
• Daily Maintenance Plan
• Triggers
• Early Warning Signs
• When Things are Breaking Down
• Crisis Planning
• Post Crisis Plan

WRAP Support Groups

WRAP support groups are facilitated by mental health peers who use the plan as a part of their own recovery. WRAP Plan development is the major focus of the group. Attending a WRAP group is a great way to get to know yourself better so that you can make more informed choices and be your own advocate. The atmosphere is inviting and supportive. You will be treated with dignity, compassion, mutual respect and unconditional high regard. You are welcome to share your own wellness tools or can come and just listen, whatever suits you.

My Personal WRAP

I am developing my own WRAP plan and I am a WRAP facilitator. I find WRAP to be very effective in my own mental health wellness journey. I use my plan daily and continue to change it as I become aware of the things that work for me. I feel that I know myself better and am able to make more informed choices for myself daily. The support from my co-facilitators and other group members assists me in continuing my personal plan and supporting others in their recovery. Your mental wellness is important to you, your family and friends.