Mental wellbeing during Ramadan

Sharing, caring and giving. We transform those core teachings of ramadan into actions by sharing time with our family, iftar with our neighbours and helping the needy. These rituals have a positive impact on our mental wellbeing especially in this pandemic period when worries about the uncertain future keep us on edge. How do we keep our mind off that edge?  

Tawhida Shiropa, founder and CEO of Moner Bondhu, shared her tips with The Business Standard on how to maintain our mental wellbeing by taking full advantage of this year's Ramadan blessings. 

Spending quality time with family: Family is a space for calm and composure. It's usually our safety net. This Ramadan, we are at home together yet detached via screens due to work, study and boredom from physical inactivity. Despite the seemingly difficult cons, it is important to bring everyone together and strengthen the relationships. 

The family members whom you cannot visit can be a part of your life using technology. Once in a while, have one meal together either physically or in case of people far away, virtually. Holding a virtual iftar can provide a little mindfulness and help you feel secure instead of lonely, isolated and afraid about the current situation.

Sharing is caring: Ramadan is all about sharing. We share iftar with our Muslim and non-Muslim neighbours. Nonetheless, it is not safe to visit the neighbours or throw any iftar parties for those we care. How about this sharing with those that really need the support? 

Shiropa suggested donating money to different organizations which work with deprived people. In this month of Ramadan, such little gestures can help us to achieve wellbeing by creating a sense of purpose. 

Getting sound sleep: To keep a soothing mind, having an eight hour long sound sleep is important. As people are mostly active online because of work and this pandemic centric lifestyle, one must ensure enough rest to eyes, brain and mind. Hence, a tight sleep at night is required.

Night sleep cannot be replaced by power naps. Rather, Shiropa suggested fixing a sleeping routine during Ramadan. She recommended wrapping up dinner earlier. Sleep can affect mood, energy, concentration level, relationships and also our work competency during the day. Adequate sleep helps recover from mental and physical exertion. 

Following a healthy diet: Iftar platters at home are usually a wide assortment of delectable food items. Sadly, most of those are unhealthy, sugary and processed foods which often lead to mood disorders such as anxiety and depression.

However, it is not easy to curb the urge when the temptation is right in front of you. Experts suggest a coping mechanism which is balancing each unhealthy food with a healthy item. It is like rewarding yourself for following a healthy diet chart. As additional advantages, it helps to control one's Binge Eating Disorder and enhance self-control power. 

Actively practising mindfulness: In this month of Ramadan, along with prayer, one can practice yoga, meditation or breathing exercises to improve mindfulness. A little exercise after iftar can help too. If you are not into any sort of workout activities, the least you can do for yourself is taking a walk. Schedule workouts or light walking after iftar so that you do not become thirsty and dehydrated from exertion. 

Spending time with thyself: Last but not the least, spending time with yourself can bring gratitude in your life. Make a little time after Sehri to spend your 'me time'. Once you make it a habit, you will be inviting positivity and enhancing your tolerance. Nothing can be more pleasant than practicing 'Sabr' (meaning endurance) in the month of Ramadan.