Activism: maintaining mental health

Maintaining mental health is important to be an effective activist.  Pushing one's self to the point of burnout is counterproductive.

1: Get proper sleep.  Try to sleep at night if possible, and work during the day.  Ambient light can disturb sleep quality.  Don't leave lights on; use curtains to block out street lights.  Napping during the day can be helpful to fight daytime fatigue.  Naps should be between 10-30 minutes; naps longer than 30 mins can throw-off nighttime sleep patterns.  Sleeping too much, and napping too much can trigger depression.

2: Eat, get proper nutrition.  3 meals a day is typical; 2000 calories is an average daily requirement.  Starting the day with breakfast is beneficial. Avoid excess sugar and excess salt; enjoy both in moderation.  Avoid fad diets and fad fasting trends.  Eat fresh fruit, fresh vegetables.  Don't eat too much processed meats.  Eat a variety of protein sources.  Not everyone can go vegetarian, as some people have health issues that prevent abstaining from meat.

3: Have hobbies.  Take time off from serious work, and serious issues.  Make time for art, music, hiking, cooking, sports, comedy, gardening, etc.

4: Find people to be emotionally honest with.  Bottling up feelings of sadness, anxiety or frustration is not healthy.  Anger or frustration in particular are best vented in controlled and comfortable settings with a trusted person.  When a lid is kept on anger/frustration those emotions can boil over.

6. Nicotine is a depressant; avoid smoking tobacco.  Alcohol cam be a problem for people with mental issues.  Alcohol can trigger depression or anxiety.  Avoid hard drugs: meth, heroin, cocaine, etc.  Marijuana is helpful for many people.  For some people it is not helpful, and can cause anxiety.  The effects of psychedelics vary from person to person; for some people they can be therapeutic,  while for others they can cause depression or anxiety.

7. Set reasonable goals for activism.  Nobody is Superman.  Understand that different people have different limitations.  Find people to work with to manage more complicated tasks.  Don't get overwhelmed on the bigger picture; think globally but act locally - work in a series of smaller, manageable projects.