Getting Through The Winter Blues

When I started this blog, I said I was opening up my wellness journey to invite those around me along for the ride. Yesterday, I was laying in Savasana and realized that also means letting people in when I am not fully engaged in a wellness based lifestyle. I could make a million excuses about how or why I got to this place but they are not important. What is important is recognizing where I am and what comes next.

It has not been all bad. I did not totally stop any of my wellness practices. I am still feeling mentally and physically healthy. More often than not, I am really happy. Being newly married has been so exciting and beautiful...so much so I didn't even really notice the changes to my routines and self care until about a week ago. I got back from a weekend trip for my best friends wedding and the post-travel fatigue was not really wearing off. So I started to make an effort to be more present. What came to light is that I have been finding (or maybe creating) more excuses to lean into the cold and dark winter nights. Laziness and complacency have felt more inviting than presence and expansion. I've often decided to not go to yoga and say no to plans. I have been more anxious, more critical of myself, and more worried about what others are thinking. I haven't been prioritizing a lot of relationships that are important to me. I have been more emotionally reactive. I am always tired enough to fall asleep. In the past, I may have ignored these changes because many of these things always tend to ebb and flow in my life. Today, I want something more.

Instead of ebb and flow, I want to thrive and grow.

So it's time to talk resolutions. I have never been a fan of New Years Resolutions. First, I think its ridiculous to wait until a new year to make a change you know is good for you. Second, we tend to make this lofty goal that is not realistic to be a priority for a full year. A lot happens is a year, priorities change, life circumstances change...I have never known on January 1 what I was going to want on July 1 or December 1 in the year to come. So, I've started creating right now resolutions. When I recognize a change I want to make, I've decided to stop waiting for some perfect moment to make it. I commit in the here and now. When those resolutions create the change and growth, I am grateful. When it doesn't work out, I do my best to let go of judgement, re-frame my goals, and try again.

Here are my right now resolutions in this moment:

1. Say yes more, make excuses less

2. Enter conversations from a place of empathy instead of anxiety

3. Create a time of day to check in with how I am feeling to readjust my priorities as needed

What are your right now resolutions?

With love + gratitude,

Samantha

#selfcare #mentalhealth #wellness