The Mind Garden: Tending To Our Mental Health - Choosing What to Grow

Episode 1: Choosing what to plant

Choosing what to plant in your garden can be a fun and exciting process, but it can also be overwhelming if you don’t know where to start – just like looking after your mental health.

Here are some factors to consider when deciding what to plant in your mind garden:

1. Growing conditions: Plants are adapted to different soil types, levels of sunlight, temperature, and water conditions. When you plant a species that is well-suited to the conditions in your garden, it will be more likely to thrive and grow healthily. Likewise, if we focus on cultivating mental wellbeing practices that suit our own specific circumstances, they’re more likely to flourish.

An example of this could be choosing activities that you can do alone if you are a more introverted person, such as mindfulness or breathing exercises. Alternatively if you’re more extroverted, a sports team or club could be a good way to clear your mind, build a sense of community and get an endorphin rush.

Ultimately, you wouldn’t plant a cactus in a pond and expect it to work, so don’t try and force yourself to do something if it doesn’t work for your specific circumstances.

2. Purpose and goals: Think about the purpose of your garden and what you hope to achieve with it. Are you looking to grow your own food, create a beautiful landscape, or attract wildlife to your yard? Your goals can help guide your plant selection. In the same way, thinking about what we want to change or develop with regards to our mental health can help us work out how to do so. For example, if you’re looking clear some space in your mind and worry less, then practising CBT can be an effective way of managing this symptom of anxiety. Alternatively, if you want to become more in touch with your feelings, investing time in to journalling could help work towards this. Start with what you want to achieve, and then find activities that work towards this specifical goal.