Wellbeing expert Sharon Kinder has created a special journal to help men with their mental health – and has published five top tips to tackle anxiety.

Sharon, of Fenay Bridge, has worked closely with organisations for over 25 years, helping to improve the mental wellbeing of staff for hundreds of businesses.

Sharon’s first book, The Wellness Journal, which was launched in October 2022, has been met with praise and huge success, with over 500 copies being sold within six months of its release.

Despite the success of her Wellness Journal, Sharon knew that more needed to be done to specifically help men with their mental health. In June she is set to publish The MENtal Health & Wellness Journal, and pre-orders are open now.

With practical strategies and guided insights to help men improve their mental health, wellness expert Sharon has created a wellbeing journal that provides them with the tools needed to realise, understand and deal with behaviours, moods and relationships that affect them the most.

Based on recent studies, over 77% of men have felt feelings of poor mental health. Feelings like stress, depression and anxiety are common, however talking about it is less common with 40% admitting to hiding their feelings from others.

Sharon said: “Identifying external factors that affect moods and behaviours is one of the first steps to improving mental health. When you pair the realisation of these aspects with the tools to deal with them, we can start to build towards improved mental health.”

With Mental Health Awareness week approaching on May 15, it is the perfect opportunity to get men talking and finding resources to help reduce feelings of stress, anxiety and depression.

This year’s Mental Health Awareness Week campaign focuses on ‘anxiety’ and how to deal with feelings of anxiousness. Currently, in the UK, over eight million people are experiencing an anxiety disorder at any one time.

Sharon’s top five ways to deal with anxiety are:

  1. Get moving – by becoming more active you can improve the feelings of anxiety. It doesn’t have to be vigorous, just doing some simple stretches or going for a short walk will help;
  2. Eat well – often, overly processed or unhealthy foods can leave us feeling low, heavy and lethargic, which can all contribute to increased anxiety. By swapping unhealthy foods for vitamin rich fruits and vegetables, we can reduce negative moods;
  3. Write down your feelings – by being aware of factors that affect your levels of anxiety and writing them down, you can feel more proactive to situations rather than reactive. By visibly seeing your plans for overcoming situations, you are more likely to overcome feelings that are holding you back;
  4. Reach out to others – by talking about how you’re feeling, you may be surprised to see that you are not alone. By sharing your worries, others will be able to help make considerations for how you deal with situations and also share their own experiences with you;
  5. Set goals – if anxiety is stopping you from the things you used to enjoy most, try setting yourself realistic goals to achieve. Again, they don’t have to be big, something that seems small to others may feel huge for you and that’s absolutely fine. Setting a goal to see one friend a week is a great place to start.

Sharon added: “Remember, you are not alone and it’s OK to not be OK. It’s taking action that is important.”

The MENtal Health & Wellness Journal can be pre-ordered HERE.