Updated December 20, 2014.

As the New Year begins and you are telling yourself that you will make it your best year yet, perhaps you are scratching your head about the best resolutions to make. This article shares five resolutions to make next year the best for your mental health.

1. Have a weekly date night with your significant other

A strong relationship is not only a solid foundation for your best mental health and can literally change your brain, but it is good for your physical health and other aspects of your life as well.


Need convincing? Add Love Sense: The Revolutionary New Science of Romantic Relationships to your reading list for the new year, and learn more about how powerful your romantic relationship really is.

One of the easiest ways to prioritize your relationship is by adding a date night with your significant other to the calendar. Make it your commitment to nurture your relationship by spending time together and you will likely feel more connected and more deeply in love.

If you feel like your relationship is in danger, get some help by learning about Emotionally Focused Therapy for couples or consider a weekend workshop to strengthen your foundation together.

2. Take care of your existing friendships or make new friends

One of the keys to keeping New Year's resolutions is to make them specific, so you can work out the details of exactly what must be done to take care of your existing friendships or make new friends. That may look like committing to seeing your friends every other week or making a new friend every other month.

By determining what you need to do to improve your social life, you are taking care of your mental health. The importance of strong social relationships cannot be overstated, so go nourish those friendships starting today.

3. Take care of your body

Everything is connected: A healthy body contributes to a healthy mind and vice versa. If taking care of your body means improving your diet, exercising more, taking fish oil, or doing all three of these activities and any others, they will all contribute to improved mental health. Get specific about what you need to do about taking care of your body, avoid the common pitfalls that people make when setting new year's resolutions, and look forward to improved physical health and better mental health as a result.

4. Befriend your emotions

We live in a culture that has historically valued our "thinking" brain over our "feeling" brain, despite emotions being extremely important. Many, as a result, get disconnected with their emotions and find themselves having emotional problems as a result. When you are more connected to and accepting of your emotions, they are less likely to fester and become problems. 

By implementing a practice such as mindfulness meditation, you will be able to have greater awareness and acceptance of your emotions. If a mindfulness practice is new to you, committing to even five minutes a day of mindfulness meditation can make a big difference when it comes to befriending your emotions.

5. Practice gratitude

Ample studies have demonstrated how much of a mood boost a simple gratitude practice can have. Check out this article on five ways to be more grateful to make next year the year of thanks, and feel better about your life as a result.