The ‘Stupid Mental Health’ Walk Trend
The Nystrom & Associates provider consulted for this article is Dr. Karin Ryan, PsyD, LP, Clinic Director, Outpatient Therapist.
The 'stupid mental health' social media trend is highlighting something we’ve all done at one point or another: knowing something is good for us, but begrudgingly doing it.
What Is the Stupid Mental Health Trend?
The "stupid walk" for mental health trend started with a video on TikTok where a girl is angrily going for a walk in the snow while listening to a peppy soundtrack. The caption read, “going on a stupid walk for my stupid mental health.” The video has amassed 8.4 million views and over 900,000 likes. It's also led to a trend using the hashtag #stupidwalkchallenge. The idea is that people know walks are good for your health (physical and mental), but it’s hard to find the motivation to do the task. To see the trending video watch Dr. Karin Ryan, Clinic Director and Outpatient Therapist at Nystrom & Associates, on Twin Cities Live below. Related: How Mental Health Affects Physical HealthNystrom & Associates on Twin Cities Live
Why Did It Go Viral?
The trend taps into how we really feel when we know it's time to focus on our mental health. It highlights that when we are down, annoyed, tired, or stressed doing these things feels annoying. However, that is okay; we can let these things be annoying or inconvenient, but still commit to bettering our mental health. Even if we are stubborn about doing these things, they will still help us. Dr. Karin Ryan lists some of the benefits of doing the activities we know are good for us:- The walk gives us fresh air, and the oxygen directly improves brain functioning, Vitamin D levels, exercises our heart and lungs, and reduces stress.
- Yoga, even when done with annoyance, still provides our bodies good stretching, muscle movement, strengthening, and more mindful breathing.
- We can be cursing about having to start another zoom call, and still end up benefitting from social interaction and productivity.
Work With the Resistance
Instead of working against the resistance, work with it. As Dr. Karin Ryan states, it's okay if it sounds like: I am only walking for 10 minutes, or I will go to the store, but I am only getting those 5 things we need. “Right now, my number one encouragement is for you to just get out of the house, as many times a week as you can. The boredom, lack of anything remotely exciting, and monotony are so hard on our mental health.” So, that might look like doing simple activities, such as:- Going to Target, the library, or getting a coffee
- Walking around the mall for 30 minutes or so
- Going to a craft store and getting one activity to complete
