8 Things You Can Do to Improve Your Mental Health Today
Improve your mental health today with 8 tips based on the mismatch between modern life and our brain’s design.
There are many things traveling has taught me, but one of its most important lessons is appreciation.
We tend to so easily forget the daily luxuries we have in our lives. Clean clothes, a shower, food, water, the internet, a bed, a safe place to live … simple luxuries that surround us every day.
Precisely because they surround us every day, we tend to forget them all too quickly. They are part of the standard scheme of things, part of our lives.
It’s only when we lose what we had, that we truly come to appreciate it.
It is through traveling that I learned that.
On my journeys backpacking around the world, I’ve gotten myself into quite a few situations where I came to truly understand how lucky I should call myself for having those daily luxuries.
Knowing and realizing that many people in the world are not fortunate enough to have them.
While backpacking in Australia, I took part in a warrior program – or in other words, an extreme survival training program.
For eight days, I had no shower, no toothbrush, no internet, no phone, no bed, no fresh clothes.
I only had the basics: a limited supply of food, some water and a shelter I made myself.
When I had finished the program, I can vividly remember sitting on the train that would take me back into civilization.
Dirty as hell I sat there just holding and looking at my phone.
It felt so strange and unusual; I just looked at it for several minutes entirely amazed to be carrying a phone. It was a funny feeling.
It was odd to text my friends to tell them that I was still alive; it was funny to receive a message back, and it was equally amusing to see everyone else on the train on their phones – entirely not amazed.
I think no one was thinking or even understanding how lucky we should feel that we can communicate so quickly with the whole world.
When I was in the hostel later that day, finally under the shower, I started laughing. It felt amazing to feel the warm water, it felt terrific to brush my teeth afterward, and it felt amazing to put on new and freshly washed clothes.
I was incredibly grateful for the food I cooked – spaghetti with no sauce.
I enjoyed every single bite and was filled with simple, pure and unadulterated gratitude for being able to eat it. When I finally lay in my bed, I thought, we should all lose these daily luxuries for a short time.
To be reminded. To be reminded that we shouldn’t complain as much, but appreciate more what we do have in life.
We aren’t taught by our parents or in school or the jobs we have that precious lesson. None of them give us one of the most important lessons that anyone can learn in this life: sincere appreciation for what we have.
Traveling, however, teaches us this very well. Each time I travel, I lose something for a while and learn to appreciate it at a much deeper level once I get it back again.
From freezing in my tent in the German Alps; having no clean clothes for ten days in Hawaii; hitchhiking through all manner of countries; not having food for one full day during a 4-day hike in New Zealand; hearing someone gets shot in South Africa; … and countless other moments.
We need these moments in life.
It’s extremely good and healthy to be put into these situations, where we are forced to deal with it. It’s terrific and healthy to travel for many many reasons, but appreciation is a big one.
Working on yourself can be scary, overwhelming, confusing, messy, challenging, and lonely. On this podcast, hosted by Jellis Vaes, an aspiring clinical psychologist who once battled severe emotional struggles, you’ll gain valuable insights from experts in psychology, neuroscience, and relationships, as well as people like you and me, to support you on your mental health journey, help you feel less alone, and untangle some of the complexity of mental health.
For more support, visit Inner Path Seekers.
Show notes can be found here:https://theipsproject.com/2026/04/reason-we-stay-addicted-kevin-cornelius/
Addiction is complex, deeply human, and often misunderstood.
In this episode, we take a grounded and practical look at what addiction really is and how it can be treated effectively.
I’m joined by Kevin Cornelius, a licensed marriage and family therapist and clinical director at the Feeling Good Institute Silicon Valley.
Kevin specializes in TEAM-CBT, a powerful and evolving therapeutic approach developed by psychiatrist David Burns.
What I am hoping you get out of this episode, besides learning some of the reasons why people stay addicted, is that you will learn some practical techniques to start taking a small step toward freeing yourself from whichever addiction you might be struggling with.
If, after this episode, you’d like to learn more about the effects addiction has on the brain, do have a listen to the episode I did with Dr. Grisel, titled The Brain on Addiction.
📚The IPS Academy📚
If you feel that you’ve gained some insights and lessons from this video, and you are curious to see what else we offer at The IPS Project, check out The IPS Academy, where we offer online courses taught by guests here on the podcast.
Simply go to https://theipsproject.com/academy. Each course has a few lessons to try for free, so you get a taste of what the course is like. We have countless reviews from other students so you can see what others think, and there is a 30-day money-back guarantee if you end up not liking the course.
Again, check them out at https://theipsproject.com/academy
Improve your mental health today with 8 tips based on the mismatch between modern life and our brain’s design.
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