Woman improves her mental health by trying something new almost every day for a year

One woman found not just one way but 365 ways to improve her mental health. Jess Mell is the happiest she’s been in a decade after doing something new almost every day for a year. This included signing up for a surf class, hot yoga and even beekeeping. The pandemic took a toll on her and the 34-year-old said she suffered from anxiety and depression. During lockdowns, she got time to reflect on her life and on December 27, 2021, she decided to try something new every day for 100 days. When she finished her list in April she decided she wanted to keep it going.

Even a year after challenging herself to try something new almost every day, Mell has no plans to stop. The range of "firsts" she's tried so far includes everything from using a sewing machine, speed dating and line dancing to joining a gardening group. She's even traveled abroad to visit European cities like Vienna, Budapest, Copenhagen, Dublin and Krakow.

"I feel pretty emotional about it, to be honest. I can't believe it," Mell said, according to The New York Post. "The first 100 I had to do one thing every day, but that was quite difficult so when I decided to continue for the rest of the year I decided I'd do 365 new things." The Englishwoman switched from trying something new every day to trying 365 new things in the span of a year, because "life kept getting in the way."

"I was going to finish off by swimming in the sea, but I had not quite got to 365 yet, so that ended up being No. 363 or something," she explained. "I still wanted to finish it off with something exciting though, so in the end, I finished up by convincing my dad to let me sit on the roof of his car as he drove down the road."

Here are some of the new things Mell tried:

1. Tried origami

2. Went to hot yoga

3. Dyed my hair pink

4. Did 1000 piece jigsaw by myself

5. Made muffins

6. Visited an aircraft hangar

7. Used the “scary” gym equipment

8. Got a henna tattoo

9. Watched the Great Escape

10. Learned how to tie various types of knots

11. Learned to shuffle cards

12. Learned to change indicator light bulbs in my car

13. Tried a Guinness

14. Joined a community volunteer group

15. Ate using chopsticks

16. Attended a first aid course

17. Went to the British Library

18. Had an Espresso Martini

19. Used a sewing machine

20. Poached an egg

21. Played chess for the first time

22. Successfully completed some monkey bars

23. Went to the Tate Modern museum

24. Changed a car wheel (or helped to!)

25. Played golf

26. Went to a life drawing class

27. Completed a paint by numbers

28. Learned to pick a lock

29. Made/ate a vegan meal

30. Hung a picture on the wall

31. Learned to sew a button

32. Learned some British Sign Language

33. Went to a board game club