4 Ways to Maintain Good Mental Health as a Software Engineer

There is no escaping the fact that as satisfying as the work of a software engineer is, it’s also stressful. You need to solve puzzles. This involves breaking down bug fixes, feature requests, and user stories into smaller pieces and solving those parts of the puzzle without disturbing or interfering with the existing pieces that are fine. 

Rather than staying the same all the time, the puzzle and pieces change constantly, with new pieces often being introduced that have colors that don’t line up with assumptions and expectations you had when first arranging them. This is part of what a software engineer’s work involves, day in day out, and we say part because there is more you need to manage. As you know, when working on any software project or puzzle, others are involved, your team.

Even with the best group of people who all have the best intentions towards solving the puzzle together, there are disputes and disagreements. This is why being effective at using soft skills is so crucial. However, a lot of the stress that can arise during a project is because we aren’t really trained on how to be the best communicator or teammate during our studies. 

It’s those two parts of the whole developing work that make it such a challenge. That’s even before we mention the tight deadlines, delays, and more can all contribute to making you feel miserable, tired, and depressed. If you try to ignore these problems and hope they go away, you’re only setting yourself up for feeling worse, which can impact the enjoyment of your work and your overall performance. This is why it is crucial to take good care of yourself, mentally. To help, we are going to look at some things you can do to maintain a good mental health.

Make Time for Breaks

When was the last time you took a break from work? Walked away from the computer, put your headphones on, and just relaxed? Did it help? We can’t say for certain, but you more than likely answered, yes. Your productivity can be affected significantly if you don’t take proper breaks. It may sound counterintuitive, but you need to leave the computer or your workstation and go for a real break. Think of it this way, when you are exercising or working out with weights, you need to give your body a chance to recover between the different exercises so that your muscles have the energy to carry on. 

It’s the same with your mind.

To perform well in software development and engineering you need to be patient, use your knowledge, and concentrate intensely. Breaks are important, and to help you plan them we have outlined a couple of different options below.

• Pomodoro Technique – With this method of scheduling, breaks your periods of productivity into three specific time blocks – work sessions of 25 minutes, short breaks of 5 minutes, longer breaks of 15 minutes. Follow this pattern – 4 x 25-minute sessions of work with 5-minute short breaks and then follow the 4th work session with one 15 minute break. 
• 2 x 20-minute breaks – For every working day, you need to schedule in 2 x 20-minute breaks. You should set one for the morning and one for the afternoon and then use them to either gup and walk around for a little, read a novel, meditate, listen to an audiobook, or maybe even do some household chores. There are no limits as to what you can do during this time, the only thing you can’t do is look at your screen or do work. 

If it works for you, you will start to feel the benefits almost immediately, especially when returning to your computer after a break and feeling a real drive to work hard. 

Exercise Regularly 

Exercise plays an important role in easing mental strain. The reason this is helpful is that exercise needs discipline, when you stick to your routine you accomplish something and that in turn triggers the release of dopamine, which improves your mood. 

Exercise can also help to manage stress and make sure your heart is pumping enough blood around your body. As your job involves sitting down for almost 100% of the time, you need to fight against the problematic side effects that can occur from having that kind of sedentary lifestyle.

It really doesn’t matter if you are walking regularly or going to the gym, you can help to improve your well-being, help maintain a good mental health, and refresh yourself. 

Mindfulness

The modern world we find ourselves working in is very busy and there are various sources of “noise” we have to contend with at one time. Whether it’s reading up on something while texting, coding while we are slacking or just something simple like walking while we are listening to music, it is not often that we are just devoting our attention to just one activity. How often do you ever sit down and actually spend time thinking and being mindful of your thoughts, accepting and appreciating them with the patience they deserve rather than ignoring them?

When you make the effort to practice mindfulness, you get the chance to slow down and live in the present and focus more.

Time for Relatives and Friends

If you are busy all the time and the only other people you tend to see aside from those you live with, are your colleagues, this will not always be helpful for your mental health. You need to have interactions and spend time with the people in your life that matter the most, your family and close friends. We’re not necessarily suggesting that you should try to fill your schedule in with lots of meetups with friends or family, but you should still schedule some free time to speak or spend time with your loved ones. When you do so, you will be able to feel refreshed and rejuvenated in a way you only experience with people that know you best. 

When you’ve had a rough week, it can be nice to unwind with your buddies or your siblings and remember the good things in life.