The Best Mental Health Products and Tips for 2023

It's becoming more common to see mocktails that offer mental wellness benefits on the menu at trendy restaurants and juice bars. These alternatives to alcoholic beverages feature vitamins and antioxidants thought to reduce stress and anxiety.

Popular alcoholic drinks such as Moscow mules and Long Island iced teas often inspire the recipes for these tasty and brain-friendly beverages.

MoodMission is a mental health and wellness app that uses daily exercises to help users overcome the depression, anxiety, and other symptoms that often come with mental health disorders like obsessive-compulsive disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

This app is priced competitively, and while it doesn't offer direct contact with therapists like some of its competitors, it does provide customized tools inspired by customer feedback.

Spending time in the sunshine is a great mood booster, and as 2023 gets underway, expect to see more people hosting outdoor gatherings and activities. Studies have shown that a daily dose of fresh air can help improve mood, reduce stress, and alleviate feelings of depression or anxiety.

As an added benefit, exposure to vitamin D from the sun's rays has the potential to increase calcium absorption, which helps prevent conditions such as osteopenia and osteoporosis.

While older Millenials and Gen X are known for being generations that love to tie one on, Gen Z and younger Millenials are embracing sobriety, encouraging social drinkers of all ages to re-think the way they use alcohol.

Those who abstain from drinking tout the mental health benefits that come with avoiding alcohol, facts backed up by many studies.

Clutter is something that's common in homes all over America, but for years, most people didn't associate having too much stuff with increased stress and anxiety. Clutter in the home can actually represent what's happening internally, such as disorganized thoughts. Therefore, cleaning up is a good way to encourage a calmer mindset.

In 2023, expect more people to embrace the minimalist movement by decluttering their homes and reaping the associated mental health benefits.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced a lot of businesses to send workers home, sometimes giving their employees the opportunity to work remotely. For many, this is a practice that's expected to continue long after the pandemic ends.

When it comes to mental health, though remote work can blur the lines and make it hard to shut off, it also offers employees a chance at a better work-life balance, something that can promote a stronger sense of internal peace and help reduce the risk of burnout.

Even with more employees working remotely, burnout remains a very real risk for employees. Thankfully, more companies across the United States are beginning to see the benefit of adding mental health benefits to employees' compensation packages.

These benefits often include telehealth counseling and paid mental health days.

With apps like BetterHelp and Talkspace, Americans can expect to access more convenient mental health care services in 2023. These apps offer virtual therapy via chat, telephone, and video conferencing, with services available 24 hours a day.

In addition to making therapy more accessible, online services also make it more affordable with lower hourly rates and tiered membership options.

Studies are consistently showing us how social media can be a detriment to mental health, and there are several reasons for this. While part of it is physical—regular exposure to screens is bad for the eyes and the brain—there's also a mental health aspect to it.

Constantly seeing filtered photos and stories of friends and random influencers looking their best and enjoying life can make it hard to see the good in your own. Several studies in 2022 showed that taking a social media break of just one week can help improve symptoms of depression and anxiety.

The economy, food deserts, and misinformation all have a huge impact on nutritional eating and exercise, but that doesn't mean there aren't good initiatives out there, too. In 2023, expect to see more and food-related influencers pushing balance, affordability, and time-friendly meals and workouts that don't assume you live beside (and can afford to shop at) a Whole Foods or local farmer's market.