A woman who struggled with depression found a way-actually, more than 300 ways-to improve her mental health by doing something new every day for a year.

Jess Mell says she's now the happiest she's been in a decade after trying new things for 365 days, including a try at hot yoga and beekeeping.

During the pandemic, the 34-year-old suffered from anxiety and depression-but the lockdown made her realize that she was depending upon her routine as insurance to keep her going.

So, last year on December 27th-as the pandemic was fading-she decided to try something new every day for 100 days. When that period ended in April, she found herself eager to do more.

One full year later, the Englishwoman has completed her challenge-yet still has no plans to stop.

Jess completed a wide range of 'firsts', including bleeding a radiator, using a sewing machine, and joining a gardening group.

From her home in Surrey, she was able to visit European cities like Vienna, Budapest, Copenhagen, Dublin, and Krakow-and, back on home soil, she tried speed dating and line dancing.

"I feel pretty emotional about it to be honest," said the resident of Redhill. "I can't believe it.

"I wanted to finish it off with something exciting, 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," she told SWNS news service. "My final one was making my first ever Instagram reel of some of the things I'd done in the year."

PRO TIP: She adjusted her goal midway through the year, after finding it difficult to do 'one thing every day'. She settled on simply doing 365 new things throughout the year.

"That way, I could do ten things in one day if I was free."

Joined sometimes by friends, Jess says the best part about the whole experience has been putting herself out of her comfort zone.

"I feel like I should constantly be doing something."

From entertaining 'firsts'-like watching an ice hockey match to playing with miniature pigs-to educational quests-like learning the DIY tasks of hanging a picture and sewing a button-her list is a unique hodgepodge of items.

"It's now just part of what I do," said Jess, who's been keeping track of it all on her Instagram page.

"There's still a lot more I want to try… What has been so nice about the whole experience has been that whenever I've thought ‘I could try that', rather than putting it off I just ask myself ‘why don't I'."

Her Partial List: (Maybe it will inspire you to try something similar)

Got Instagram Watched ET Made a lampshade Grew a plant from seed Bled a radiator Tried origami Went to hot yoga Dyed my hair pink Did 1000 piece jigsaw by myself Made muffins Visited an aircraft hangar Used the "scary" gym equipment Got a henna tattoo Watched the Great Escape Learned how to tie various types of knots Learned to shuffle cards Went to a life drawing class Completed a paint by numbers Learned to pick a lock Made/ate a vegan meal Hung a picture on the wall Learned to sew a button Learned some British Sign Language Went to a board game club Learned to change indicator light bulbs in my car Tried a Guinness Joined a community volunteer group Ate using chopsticks Attended a first aid course Went to the British Library Had an Espresso Martini Used a sewing machine Poached an egg Played chess for the first time Successfully completed some monkey bars Went to the Tate Modern museum Changed a car wheel (or helped to!) Played golf Made a pizza from scratch Did a French braid Whittled some wood Learned a simple tap routine Tried to whistle with my fingers – couldn't do it loudly! Made a rainbow cake Tried embroidery Bowled without bumpers Visited a Mormon Temple Tried to start a fire without matches – failed! Tried soldering Went on my first solo trip Went to Belfast/Northern Ireland for the first time Made butternut squash soup Tried knitting Drove a van Upcycled an old stool Went paddle boarding Tried papier mache Visited St Paul's Cathedral Fixed my bathroom plug Attempted to learn to play the ukulele (gave up!) Watched a foreign film without subtitles Went on my first solo trip outside of the UK Made jam from scratch Fed a tortoise Made tapas from scratch including a Spanish tortilla Tried sherry Joined an outdoor fitness class Went on an organized walk Made banana bread Tried Geocaching Went to a butterfly house Visited Krakow, Poland Tried local dish, pierogi Went on an e-scooter Went to a poetry reading session Tried bubble tea Tried Zumba Did a proper tequila shot Tried reflexology Did a solo escape room Went to a local town's museum Learned a magic trick Ate fish eggs Used a bidet Tried teeth whitening strips Saw the changing of the guard Sat on someone's shoulders Watched Tower Bridge going up Tried a gooseberry Made my own protein bars Went to an outdoor cinema screening .. And watched Casablanca for the first time Went to a hot air balloon show Had a beekeeping experience afternoon Watched a jousting tournament Tried plantain Gave blood Made a scarecrow Swam in the sea during a storm Had a birds of prey experience afternoon Went on a tractor ride Tried pumpkin spiced latte Went to a casino Went to an Oktoberfest Finally worked out how to screen cast from my phone to the TV Watched and painted along to a Joy of Painting with Bob Ross Made ice cream Saw the Little Mermaid statue Went pumpkin picking Went to puppy yoga Watched Hocus Pocus for the first time Went on a Murder Mystery Train experience Ran up a downwards escalator Drove a Tesla Went to a sketch comedy show Went to an ice hockey match Made a key lime pie Tried mulled cider Toasted a marshmallow on a fire Pulled a pint in a pub Snapped a wish bone Attended an online cookery class Tried curling Caught a grape in my mouth Streaked! Went line dancing Went speed dating

SHARE the Inspiring Ideas With Friends on Social Media…