牛年到了，你是不是也习惯于在新年伊始表表决心呢？列出一个很长的单子，决心完成一番大事业……但一家心理健康慈善机构警告人们，这样做其实弊大于利。

Deciding to turn over a new leaf in the new year could do more harm than good, a mental health charity has warned.

一家心理健康慈善组织警告人们：新年立志，决定开启人生崭新一页的做法，对身体的影响弊大于利。

Mind has urged people not to feel they must start 2009 armed with resolutions for self-improvement.

这家名为Mind的组织规劝人们，不一定非得在新年定下“提升自我”之类的决心。

The charity said resolutions which focus on issues such as the need to lose weight or job worries create a negative self-image.

这家组织说，那些敦促自己减肥或者解决工作难题的新年决心都会对自身造成负面的影响。

And if the plans fail to materialise, that could trigger feelings of failure and inadequacy¹, the charity said.

慈善组织还说，一旦目标未能实现，人们将产生挫败感和自责感。

Mind chief executive Paul Farmer said focussing on problems or insecurities can lead to feelings of hopelessness, low self-esteem and even mild depression.

Mind慈善团体负责人保罗•法尔莫说，人们对问题的关注和由此引发的不安全感，都会导致人们感到无助、缺乏自信，甚至导致轻度抑郁症。

"We chastise² ourselves for our perceived shortcomings and set unrealistic goals to change our behaviour, so it's not surprising that when we fail to keep resolutions, we end up feeling worse than when we started," he said.

他说：“我们会通过自我惩罚来改变自身的缺点和行为，然后定下不切实际的目标，所以当新年计划无法实现的时候，我们感觉比定计划前更糟，这一点也不奇怪。”

"In 2009, instead of making a New Year's resolution, think positively³ about the year to come and what you can achieve."

“在2009年，与其制订一份新年大计，还不如积极地做一个规划，想想那些自己可以完成的事情。”

Instead of easily broken resolutions, the charity has suggested a few steps to improve all-round mental health in 2009:

舍弃了不易实现的新年大计，这个慈善组织提出了几条全方位提升心理健康的2009年计划：

Being active--exercise releases endorphins and even a gentle stroll is beneficial for mental well-being⁴;

多做运动——运动能让人体产生一种叫作内啡肽的荷尔蒙，即便悠闲的散步也能让人心情愉快；

Going green--evidence has shown that connecting with nature can boost moods;

亲近大自然——有证据显示，亲近自然可以改善情绪；

Learn something new--it will keep minds stimulated⁵ and give confidence;

接触新事物、学习新知识——这样做有助于刺激大脑，提高自信；

Give back to the community--it can be just as rewarding for you as those you choose to help.

回报社区——你在帮助别人的时候，自己也有收获。