Dr Beccy Cooper MP: The power of taking a break

Last week, I was very fortunate to get away for a week with my family before heading back to school and work.

Taking a break is an essential thing for all of us to do in order to recharge our batteries. If you are fortunate enough to be able to go away on holiday, it is often an opportunity to see a different part of this country or even a different part of the world.

We spent a lovely week on the North Coast of Cornwall, enjoying the spectacular “Poldark” views, the excellent surf (the kids rather than me for that one!) and the very tasty cream teas (definitely me!).

Even if you haven’t managed to get away this summer, I hope that you were able to enjoy a bit of staycation time, where you took five minutes for yourself to enjoy some peace and to let yourself reflect.

Good mental health is grounded in our ability to take time to reflect and to process what is happening in our lives. Without this, we can often find ourselves not enjoying work, struggling in our family lives or isolating ourselves from friends.

As someone who has a pretty busy job and family life, taking time out is something that I can often forget to do.

A holiday is always a good reminder to me that taking a few mins every day to be mindful can be as refreshing and worthwhile as a week on the beautiful Cornish (or West Sussex!) Coast.