SUCCESS
Looking after your mental health
There are many ways to look after your mental health and wellbeing. Different things work for different people.
Look after your physical health
Exercise, eating well and sleeping can improve your mood. When you feel good, you are also less likely to get sick. Here are a few things you can do to stay physically and emotionally healthy:
Exercise – It’s not only helpful in managing your kidney disease. Exercise reduces stress and can improve your mood. See the Physical Activity section for tips. For more information on exercise and mental health press here.
Eat well – A good diet can increase your energy and help you strengthen your immune system. See the Diet section for tips. For more information on diet and mental health press here.
Sleep – Getting a good night’s sleep gives your body the chance to restore. Sleep can often be difficult for people living with Kidney Disease. See the sections on Sleep and Fatigue below.
Relax - Using mindfulness apps such as Smiling Mind can help to relax you during the day and before bed. See the Mindfulness and relaxation section below.
Fatigue
Fatigue is feeling constantly tired or weak, most likely caused by your kidney disease. It may also be caused by your lifestyle, poor emotional wellbeing and stress.
Here are a few thigns you can do to treat fatigue:
Exercise and eat well
Manage your emotional wellbeing
Get enough sleep
Relax
If your fatigue lasts for more than two weeks, contact your healthcare team.
Sleep
It can be difficult to fall and stay asleep with chronic kidney disease.
The quality of your sleep is more important than the amount of hours you spend sleeping. You should feel well-rested when you wake up.
Here are a few things you can try to improve the quality of your sleep:
Have a regular sleep schedule. You can train your body to fall asleep and wake up at around the same time every day. Including weekends!
Nap right. If you feel the need to nap, try 15 to 20 minutes in the early afternoon. Too short? Try napping for a full 90 minutes. This is the length of a full sleep cycle.
Wind down. Let your body know it’s time to sleep with a bedtime routine. This is completely up to you. You could have a hot shower an hour before bed, or you could read a book or meditate.
Create a sleep environment. A dark, quiet and cool room should improve the quality of your sleep.
Avoid screens. Try not to use electronics or screens before bed. They keep your mind busy. You can write down your worries on a piece of paper and deal with them tomorrow.
Keep a diary. Try recording your sleep patterns. How long did you sleep? How often did you wake up during the night? What did you do before you went to bed?
Talk to your dialysis team. If you struggle with pain, talk to your dialysis team about what medicine you can take to help you
Mindfulness and relaxation
Mindfulness techniques can help us stay present instead of worrying about the future. They can be useful in reducing stress, managing pain and improving sleep. They help us to feel relaxed, which is better for our physical and mental health.
Like any skill, mindfulness takes practice. Many mindfulness exercises get you to focus on one thing such as your breathing. Here is a short meditation you can try.
There are more mindfulness apps to try in the Learn more section.
Focus exercise
Another way to practice mindfulness is to focus on one task at a time. This exercise will help you complete your daily tasks by breaking them down into small steps.
Make a list of all the things you would like to do today.
Circle the tasks you can complete in the next five minutes. Do these first.
Highlight the three tasks that you are most interested in or are the most urgent.
Choose one task and break it down into 5 smaller steps.
Work through these 5 steps.
Then work through the other tasks in a similar way.