6 Ways to Prioritise Your Health and Wellbeing In 2022

The good news for us all is that 2022 is quickly approaching, so it’s finally time to look ahead at all the possibilities of the year ahead. In the POPSUGAR Australia office, our priority is to look after our health and wellbeing next year — after all, haven’t we all just learned how important it is to look after ourselves? Without health, we have nothing, and that’s become increasingly obvious this year and last.

There are plenty of ways we can prioritise our health and wellbeing, and thankfully, with our old friend the internet, it’s easier than ever to find information on all the ways we can look after ourselves, both mind and body. Keep on reading for all the inspiration you need to feel happy and healthy in 2022.

1. Book a Stress-Free Holiday 

If there’s one thing we’ve all earned in 2022, it’s a no-fuss holiday. Bonus points if you book an all-inclusive that quite literally looks after all the details for you. Our pick is the range of Handpicked Holidays from IHG Hotels and Resorts because you’ll be staying anywhere from the InterContinental ​Fiji Golf Resort & Spa (yes, they have a kids club), Crowne Plaza ​Queenstown, and InterContinental Hayman Island Resort.

Plus, if you join their IHG Rewards program, you’ll receive a room upgrade, daily breakfast, late checkout, and some included activities that are unique to each property. If you’re still feeling apprehensive to hand over your money for a holiday when travel feels like a new and novel concept, IHG offers date changes, free of charge, up to 24-hours before check-in. 

2. Prioritise Self-Care

According to The Black Dog Institute (a leading mental health organisation), prioritising self-care is an important part of looking after your mental health. Self-care is one of the first things to go when we’re feeling stressed or out of control, but as the old in-flight cliche goes, you need to put your own oxygen mask on before you can help anyone else. 

There are plenty of ways we can incorporate self-care into our daily routines, like deep breathing, listening to music, exercising, or if you’re me, taking an extra minute to massage your cleansing oil into your skin before bed. By figuring out what our coping mechanisms are, what our barriers to self-care are, and creating a self-care plan, we’ll feel calmer day-to-day and will also build resilience when another stressful situation arises.  

3. Call In the Professionals

After the last two years, we’ve all had, prioritising your health and wellbeing might start with seeking professional help. When it comes to navigating your way through a tough time, a GP is always a great first port of call. For starters, they’re the medically-trained people with the safest and most up-to-date advice, but they can funnel you into the other, more specific modalities. 

For me, the past six months have seen me finally see a psychologist and also a physiotherapist for a sore shoulder I’ve been dealing with for years. Taking control can feel empowering, and we want that for you in 2021. 

4. Do Things That Empower You

Feeling empowered in your everyday life is one way to shed the weight of past experiences and walk into a healthy new year, not as a new you, but certainly a calmer and happy version of you. Creating space to feel empowered in your everyday life is all about fostering feelings of confidence and embracing positive energy. 

While you could make big changes in your life to take back control and feel empowered, like leaving a toxic relationship, you can also do little things every day. Wear clothes that make you feel comfortable and beautiful, even if they’re not “on-trend”, find a work environment that suits your needs, or complete a small task that’s been sitting on your to-do list for a while.

5. Stay True to Your Passions

Consider this your permission to dedicate time each week to exploring your passion spending time doing the things you love. According to the Harvard Business Review, it’s common for young people to confuse their passions with their work, and I’m not saying you can’t be passionate about your work, but finding things you love outside the 9-5 can only be a good thing. 

Firstly, it’s a huge privilege to be able to pursue a job that you’re passionate about, but it’s also quite well-researched that finding an activity that you enjoy can improve your mental health and wellbeing. “Research shows that people with hobbies are less likely to suffer from stress, low mood, and depression,” according to the government’s Head to Health website.
“Activities that get you out and about can make you feel happier and more relaxed.” All the better if you’re considering a group activity like a team sport, where you’re likely to build relationships at the same time.

6. Find Ways to Unplug 

Switching off your brain can feel impossible, but there are plenty of mental benefits from finding ways to unplug, even for a few minutes at a time. There’s research to show that having your phone nearby (even if it’s switched off) can divert your focus and we know that social media isn’t great for our mental health either — so leaving your phone in another room for stints throughout the day may be helpful. 

A few of our personal favourite ways to unplug are to spend time in nature (going for a walk counts!), read a good book, write our feelings down to get them out of our heads, and to settle in to binge-watch a new TV show.

If the first step for you to prioritise your health and wellbeing in 2022 is to book a holiday (we support this, 100%) then we suggest you check out the Handpicked Holidays from IHG Hotels and Resorts.