Servicewomen need to prioritize mental wellness and train for mental and emotional resilience. Daily habits can improve your skills and performance.
First, the basics
- Get enough sleep
- Eat healthy
- Exercise
- Stay hydrated
Next, create a specific goal or practice that helps support your mental wellness regularly.
Daily routines to improve mental wellness
- Practice meditation, yoga, deep breathing, exercise
- Attend therapy or support groups with a shared interest or hobby
- Practice gratitude — shift your mindset to what you are thankful for instead of what you are stressed about
- Add moments of mindfulness to your morning routine to prepare for the day
- Listen to music, journal, take walks, pet an animal
- Turn off screens before bed and read or do relaxation exercises instead
Support your mental health off base
- Take resilience workshops offered by nonprofits like the Red Cross
- Go to free, confidential counseling offered by Give an Hour
- Attend community support groups through your place of worship or local clubs
- Join social media or MeetUp groups and use local apps to get connected to people outside the military
- Go for walks on trails or in parks
- Visit coffee shops and libraries that showcase local events and information
- Use confidential mental health apps that can help with breathing, meditation, journaling, positive affirmations and relaxation
Support your mental health on base
- Attend women’s small groups through command or chaplains
- Request referrals to on-base counseling and MFLC (Military Family Life Counselor)
- Join fitness classes at the gym
- Take stress management and emotional wellness classes from the Family Center
- Make use of mental health services from the base medical facility
- Attend community events through MWR
- Find other service members to act as “accountability partners” for fitness goals
DoD programs for service members
- Real Warriors Campaign
- Psychological Health Resource Center
- InTransition Program
- Military Crisis Line
- Tricare mental health services
- Military OneSource counselors and wellness apps
When preparing for a deployment or PCS move
- Prepare ahead of time, plan for the unexpected — have a game plan in place before you even get orders
- Know who your contacts are to lean into during stressful events
- Recognize that during these times, mental wellness basics are even more essential, and take care of yourself first
- Remember that stress is embedded in the job, so other people have been through it before — you aren’t alone
