TOMS for Mental Health

Many studies have shown that listening to music can lower your blood pressure and your heart rate (both spike when you're stressed), and even lower stress hormones in your body.

Here is a playlist of songs that make us feel good.

Clutter can make it hard to focus and cause decision fatigue and stress. Plus knowing that your preloved items can find a new home rather than end up in a landfill should help boost your mood.

Get started with a thredUP clean out kit and earn credit to TOMS.com

You don't have to be Picasso, simply grab a piece of paper and create something. Coloring promotes mindfulness and is a fun way to relieve some stress.

Here is a printable coloring page to get you started.

We come from different histories, triumphs and losses, and our existence is weaved into a larger fabric of community, isolation and identity.

Write a letter to a stranger, with TOMS Impact Partner Letters to Strangers' guidelines and sample letters as guides, and share what your background means to you and what you want to pass on to the future.

Notice what drains your energy and keeps you from feeling your best and fill in the blank of this journal prompt from BEAM.

I will name _________ as my boundary.

Black Emotional & Mental Health Collective (BEAM) is an organization dedicated to creating a world where there are no barriers to Black healing.

Learn how to support a friend who is grieving with these 5 steps from TOMS Impact Partner, The Dinner Party.

1. Acts of care: Small gestures can mean a lot. Write a card, take tasks off their plate, clean their kitchen, take their kids out for the morning.
2. Be their champion: Advocate for better policies in your workplace, and push back when that friend, family member or coworker pressures them into engaging in social gatherings they might not have bandwidth for.
3. Offer choice: Share specific ideas, but give them flexibility and agency. Offering choice also means giving them room to share — or not — whatever they wish: Leave room for their own story and ask good questions.
4. Instill confidence: Loss can sometimes leave us feeling overwhelmed, powerless and damaged (and no: a broken heart does not mean that you are broken). Affirm what they name, and celebrate wins, however small.
5. Stay consistent: Grief doesn't operate on a calendar, and the impact of a loss doesn't have an end-point. Set reminders to check in, long after the flowers and casseroles have all vanished—around holidays, death anniversaries and ordinary days.

In the meantime, connect with those around you IRL.

Getting dressed in the morning can play a role in your mood throughout the day and lead to further productivity, optimism, motivation and an overall improved mood.

TOMS Impact Partner ProjectQ knows the power of a hairstyle that reflects who you are. They help LGBTQ+ youth navigate a world that perpetually tries to diminish them through gender-affirming haircuts and self-empowerment workshops.

1. Create connections by sharing your personal lived experiences - helping others to feel less alone.
2. Educate yourself to better understand what you are feeling and listen to perspectives of those around you. Try to put yourself in their shoes.
3. Don't be afraid to be different. Shifting perspectives starts with you.

Que Paso Latinx is on a mission to destigmatize mental health through their 3 pillars: Conversations, Community and Culture.

And don't forget, nourishing ourselves is not just about what you eat, but whom you eat it with, and the care that went into making it.

Asking someone if they are thinking about suicide doesn't introduce the topic into their head - but it could save their life.

TOMS Impact Partner Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services shares these 5 steps to take if you suspect someone may be considering suicide.

1. Ask
2. Keep them safe
3. Be there
4. Help them connect
5. Follow up

Learn more here.

Sleep can have a major impact on our mental well-being. Research suggests naps help improve emotional regulation, including increasing your ability to tolerate frustration and reducing your tendency to be impulsive.

1. Slow down and connect with your body.
2. Slowly breathe out and in.
3. Slowly press your feet into the floor.
4. Slowly stretch.
5. Refocus and engage with the world: What can you see? What can you hear? What can you smell?
6. Touch something and notice what it feels like under your fingers.
7. Notice where you are, who is with you and what you're doing.

Please visit our Impact Partner, International Medical Corps' website for more resources including some audio grounding exercises.

Everyone makes mistakes. Trying to be perfect can lead to depression and anxiety.

A negative outlook on life can lead to stress, anxiety and depression. To break that cycle, focus on the positive.

There are many different types of breathing exercises that can help you feel more centered and in control. One technique is box breathing.

Step 1: Breathe in counting to 4 slowly. Feel the air enter your lungs.

Step 2: Hold your breath for 4 seconds. Try to avoid inhaling or exhaling for 4 seconds.

Step 3: Slowly exhale through your mouth for 4 seconds.

Step 4: Repeat steps 1 to 3 until you feel re-centered.

Friendships can be an important aspect of protecting our mental health. Our friends can keep us grounded and help us get things in perspective.

Take up embroidery or learn how to code. The positive and healthy stimulation will promote mental health and wellness.

“I need love and approval from those around me” --> I have what I need. I am good. I am enough.

“I have to achieve everything that I set out to do to be valuable” --> If I give my best efforts and learn from my mistakes, that is what is most important.

“I avoid rather than face my problems and responsibilities.” --> I can have hard conversations and do hard things.

“I am defined by my past and it is a determinant to my present and future.” --> I am in control of how I grow and evolve.

When you help someone or give back, your brain secretes “feel good chemicals” such as: serotonin, dopamine and oxytocin.

In a moment of mental health crisis, it can be hard to think clearly about the strength you have within to stabilize.

Take a few minutes to write about any of the following: What have you done in the past to help you get through a tough time? What personal strengths and resources did you draw on?

If you are currently experiencing a mental health crisis - call or text 988 for free access to a trained counselor.

1. Put your computer on sleep mode
2. Look away from your screen / close your eyes at least once every 30 minutes
3. Breathe like you're in a yoga class
4. Declutter your desk
5. Make a post work plan

1. Think about what your goals are
2. Ask questions and explore your options - databases, schools and human resources often have a list of resources available
3. Don't be afraid to ask for help
4. Not all services will be the right fit - don't lose hope if the first thing you try doesn't work out