Many people talk about exercise. For me, it creates a lot of overhead. Five hours a week of exercise is many times more time in terms of thoughts and activities

Many people talk about exercise. For me, it creates a lot of overhead. Five hours a week of exercise is many times more time in terms of thoughts and activities. Looking at it from a distance, it's more about distraction. While the exercise may help in terms of basic physiological levels, lifestyle, etc, I think that's the key factor. One thing no one else has mentioned: age. You can gain different benefits with age, whether it's finding what's important, sources of confidence, or ways to avoid situations where you're uncomfortable. Using time to find ways to connect with different people is important for what may be the most healthy pathways. Taking a strategic approach with this in mind can help too. I don't like the morbid sounding "this too shall pass," so "it gets better" is a nice mantra for this.