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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

What’s the one single change you made that most benefited your health?

366 replies

ethelfleda · 27/10/2019 21:26

I feel rubbish all the time lately. Lethargic and wound up etc. I’m sure I need more sleep, more exercise, less sugar and less caffeine etc but I’m not feeling particularly motivated!
What is the one single thing you’ve done that has made the biggest positive impact on your health or wellbeing?

OP posts:
Puta · 27/10/2019 22:22

Get outdoors. Stay outdoors.

We're animals, and spending daylight hours in boxes fucks us up

holidays987 · 27/10/2019 22:23

Eating red meat. I feel a lot better after years of being vegetarian. No more horrid iron supplements either.

Nettleskeins · 27/10/2019 22:24

There is no vitamin d in the daylight in the winter in UK. (even if the autumn leaves are very pretty)

Vitamin D Vitamin D Vitamin D for anxiety. Please please take some and don't fixate on the coffee. i love my coffee

MargotB7 · 27/10/2019 22:24

ethelfleda

I read it's really good for your liver.

OverByYer · 27/10/2019 22:26

Another vote for vit D.
I don’t smoke and I exercise but was feeling tired and down, to the point where I didn’t want to wake up in the mornings.
Vit D is really helping me

Eleanorbellanor · 27/10/2019 22:26

Drinking 2.5 litres of water a day

InsertFunnyUsername · 27/10/2019 22:27

Taking iron supplements. I do eat iron rich food but was always tired and had no energy. I thought that was just me as a person but mentioned it to my doctor had tests etc. I haven't been on them long and have got so much done already where I'm not looking for a 10 min snooze Blush

WalkAwaySugarbear · 27/10/2019 22:28

Stopped smoking
Cut down drinking, I'll have a glass 1-2 a month as opposed to 3 glasses every Friday and Saturday. Switched from Red wine to Rose, much lighter and no hangover.
Drink loads more water, I have a big bottle nearby it's like a big sippy cup, the straw bit helps.
Early nights, going to bed 9-10pm rather than 11-12.
Less coffee, I have a large double shot coffee first thing then tea or water for the rest of then day.
Cut down on portion sizes, this is recent due to the slim people thread but I feel less bloated already.

Jaffacakebeast · 27/10/2019 22:29

Quit caffeine, after a few days I felt so much better

Jacksback · 27/10/2019 22:30

I could have written this post
Work has been overwhelming and I’m feeling burnt out , tired but can’t sleep , low level sick and just generally meh
Watching and taking notes

InsertFunnyUsername · 27/10/2019 22:30

Also understand about the anxiety OP it's not nice for you.

Mine used to wake me up in my sleep with a random "What if I fell down the stairs holding DD" and I would have to calm down. No advice on that front but you're not abnormal. Tell the thoughts to piss off and try to ignore them Flowers

Dita73 · 27/10/2019 22:31

I lost 8 stone and it’s helped my mental health massively

SunshineAngel · 27/10/2019 22:34

Drinking lots of water, exercising more, and getting up and going to bed at a regular time (to get enough sleep). I work from home, so could quite easily get up at lunchtime every day if I wanted, so long as I still get the work done.

They aren't easy habits to get into, but it feels amazing when you're in a better routine.

ssd · 27/10/2019 22:37

For everyone saying Vit D supplements, I take a multi vitamin, it has vit D in it, is that enough?

Yestermo · 27/10/2019 22:37

Acupuncture helped me hugely. It massively relieved my long term pain. And stopped my awful migraines.

Nettleskeins · 27/10/2019 22:43

a multivitamin usually has the "older"RDA of Vitamin D or even slightly more. But that is actually very low compared to what we need (usually 1000iu or 25mcg a day, or at very least 10mcg a day)if we haven't had enough over the summer. I think it depends what sort of lifestyle you have, winter sun opportunities, your weight (when you are older and fatter vitamin d is not made so efficiently from sunlight) and how much sunscreen you wear in the summer during hours of 11-3. NHS guidelines state how much Vitamin D they recommend for everyone, you can google it.

LellyMcKelly · 27/10/2019 22:43

I stopped being ambitious. I stopped hunting for the bigger and better job. I started focusing on what I was really good at (I’m an academic) and realised I didn’t want promoted to the point where I would have to manage people And largely stop doing the job I liked doing. I’m an excellent teacher (I’ve won awards) and I have the flexibility to do the research I want to do. My job is still hard work (Ok - I’m not working down mines, or making life or death decisions) but I actively enjoy it. The teaching and marking workloads can be punishing, but by choosing not to go into a management role I still have the autonomy and flexibility I need for my family. That took a lot of weight off my shoulders.

apple0pie · 27/10/2019 22:49

Running - i hate to excercise but took up running and felt the best I had ever felt in my whole life

ExcitedForFuture · 27/10/2019 22:53

I find I have so much more energy the day after eating steak, protein seems to be very good for me, as does eating plenty of fruit throughout the day and drinking water (as well as tea and coffee). I also like going out for a good walk. Routine seems to help too.

DameofDarts · 28/10/2019 01:26

Excellent thread. Am the same OP. A huge problem is I’m a night owl (note time of this post Blush) and I seem to sleep much more soundly and easily from 4am-1pm.

I’ve heard magnesium is great for sleep so going to try that.

annie987 · 28/10/2019 01:38

I gave up the artificial sweetener aspartame - found in most fizzy drinks and lots of other stuff.
Changed my life.
Chronic headaches gone, Terrible anxiety practically non existent. It’s just incredible!

Tavannach · 28/10/2019 01:49

Taking a good multivitamin should help the lethargy.
If yo're walking for an hour a day or more that should help.
Also, try lying on the floor, feet apart a little wider than your hips, arms away from your sides by a few inches and just relax into the floor. Banish any niggling worries and just relax.

earlydoors42 · 28/10/2019 06:38

I cut out caffeine on the advice of a counsellor. It hurts your head a lot when you stop but I feel much better for it. I used to be jittery and on edge and anxious and that reduced a lot.

Sunnysidegold · 28/10/2019 06:54

I gave up alcohol completely in January and it has really helped my mental health and confidence. I now don't need to have had a drink to get on a dancefloor or go to an event where I know no one. I appreciate people perhaps don't have the same low self esteem I had and can do these things without a glass of wine to steady their nerves.

This has been a very interesting read, thanks for starting this thread op, it's given me ideas for changes I can make.

I used to be excellent at drinking enough water and can see that this is something I should refocus on.

Regarding those intrusive thoughts, they were a part of my anxiety disorder. Once I got over that the thoughts went away. I now see thoughts like that as a warning I'm too anxious. The explanation I read was that you find these ideas abhorrent so you would never do them, but they can be scary thoughts to have.

My other tip is getting outdoors, especially in winter. I might now up my vitamin d from reading this.

MsJaneAusten · 28/10/2019 07:14

Running. I did the couch to 5k simply because I wanted to be able to run after the kids, but the impact on my mental and physical health has been immense.