Benefits of exercise worksheet
Are you a therapist looking for a worksheet to devise a mental health maintenance plan? You’re in the right place.
This guide to mental health maintenance gives clinicians and therapists a brief overview of mental health relapse prevention worksheets and key components to include in your plan.
You can also download a free mental health maintenance plan worksheet to use with clients and save to your electronic health record (EHR) for repeated use.
What is a mental health maintenance plan?
A mental health maintenance plan is a health promotion strategy used to sustain an individual’s mental health, just like eating a balanced diet and moving your body.
You might also hear these plans called “wellness recovery action plans” or “relapse prevention plans.”
The goals of these plans are to maintain mental health, promote positive well-being, reduce the recurrence of certain conditions, and increase positive outcomes among those with mental health disorders.
Mental health maintenance plans typically focus on identifying stressors, listing coping strategies, example mental health maintenance activities, warning signs, and what to do when struggling.
For example, a client who is seeking to maintain their sobriety may utilize a relapse prevention plan or mental health relapse prevention worksheet that helps them to identify what they’ll do in response to triggers and how they’ll maintain their recovery.
Working with a client to devise a mental health maintenance plan may include the following components:
Stressors
A mental health maintenance plan should list triggers and risk factors that may cause increased stress, which could lead to a mental health condition or recurrence of a disorder.
For example, chronic stress may lead to burnout, which could cause depression or a recurrence of substance use.
Coping strategies
The plan should specify coping strategies the individual has found effective in the past, such as attending therapy, developing distress tolerance skills, engaging in emotional regulation exercises, engaging in cognitive restructuring activities, calling a friend, and engaging in movement.
Maintenance/prevention activities
This part of the mental health maintenance plan should include specific activities and actions a client will take to maintain their mental health.
For instance, regular exercise, eating well, prioritizing sleep, taking daily medication, journaling or self-reflection, restorative activities, attending weekly therapy, going to church, and if in recovery, that might also include attending regular peer support meetings and staying connected to a recovery community.
Warning signs
Some mental health conditions, particularly in complex cases, may require a specific action plan once a client reaches a certain level of activation or crisis.
For example, if a person with substance use disorder returns to use (relapse), they may have an action to call their drug and alcohol counselor right away. Or, a person with bipolar disorder may be monitoring their mood and notice signs of mania and know to contact their psychiatrist.
Tips for mental health maintenance
Here are some helpful tips to suggest to clients that they can include in their mental health maintenance plan:
Prioritize self-care
In addition to meeting basic physical and emotional needs, clients may focus on ensuring they get a minimum of seven hours of sleep every night to wake up feeling refreshed, move their body for 20 to 30 minutes most days of the week, invest in nurturing activities like massage and meditation, stay hydrated, and maintain a balanced diet.
Practice mindfulness
Meditation, yoga, deep breathing, and reflective journaling can reduce stress and enhance emotional regulation.
Maintain social connections
Develop and sustain strong social relationships, such as with friends, family, and community groups, that provide support, enjoyment, and a sense of belonging.
Keep firm boundaries
Clients can protect their mental health by setting and maintaining firm boundaries with others, including at work and their own self-care time.
Monitor your mental health
Keeping a daily mood chart, thought record, or journal, and attending regular therapy appointments helps clients track mental health symptoms, identify trends, and note early warning signs of increased stress, anxiety, or depression.
Utilize behavioral activation planning
A behavioral activation worksheet can help clients with conditions like depression commit to specific activities to maintain their mental health.
Using the mental health relapse prevention worksheets
You can use the mental health maintenance plan with clients in several ways.
First, you can use mental health relapse prevention worksheets in session to illustrate how to maintain mental health.
Therapists can also use the worksheet to identify the client’s triggers, warning signs, and coping strategies collaboratively. Clients can then include this information in their mental health maintenance plan.
You can also provide the mental health relapse prevention worksheet as a handout for clients to complete on their own in between sessions, then debrief at their next therapy appointment.
Sources
- Cook, J. A., Copeland, M. E., Floyd, C. B., Jonikas, J. A., Hamilton, M. M., et al. (2012). A randomized controlled trial of effects of wellness recovery action planning on depression, anxiety, and recovery.
- Segal, Z. V., Pearson, J. L., & Thase, M. E. (2003). Challenges in preventing relapse in major depression. Report of a National Institute of Mental Health Workshop on state of the science of relapse prevention in major depression.
- Singh, V., Kumar, A., & Gupta, S. (2022). Mental health prevention and promotion-a narrative review.
- World Health Organization. (2021). 6 ways to take care of your mental health and well-being this world mental health day.
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