It may seem like a silly question but how are you feeling right now? No, do not stop to think, don’t wonder who might read my answer and what should they like to hear; now is the time to be honest with yourself if you really want to make some changes in your life.
Let’s see if you are really ready for change: imagine yourself at the grocery store and the person bagging your groceries is rude to you. Are you going to be rude right back, complain to the grocery store clerk, or hold your tongue with the thought that “hey this person must just be having a bad day”? Fight or flight is the natural response to these kinds of situations, however when you are confident even if it was rudeness directed right at us, we can leave knowing that we are ok and not let incidents like this put an angry cloud over the rest of your afternoon.
When you lack respect for yourself, you will find that clinging to every morsel of respect you can get from other people is habit and a bad habit because you’ll feel threatened and unmoored if they are not kind. On the other hand if you have an internal reservoir of dignity and self-acceptance you won’t be begging others to fill it.
Think to choose, choose to act, act to win- this is the best way to get moving with your goals. When we think to choose we are telling ourselves that we have a choice and want to make the changes. When we choose to act we are making our goals happen and this is the time to fully commit by paying attention to current behavior and setting goals to make the changes needed to bring back the joy, and in the process you will be improving your health.
Ask yourself what choices or behaviors in your daily life do you currently engage in that support your goals? Even if it’s a tiny thing recognize it, take note of it and build on it. Reading books, articles, taking classes, and asking people who have made this change is a great to assess where you are right now and where and how to reach your goals.
If you recognize that changing jobs, friendships, or your marriage is not the solution and yet you still feel negative thoughts and can’t seem to improve on how to engage with the world and the people you love most then you could be fighting from depression which is not easy to treat for your self, in fact it would be best at this point to meet with a health professional.
If you do feel like you might have depression remember you are not alone; in fact more than 15 million in the United States have depression. Talk with your doctor about how you are feeling and go from there. Remember that life is managed, not mastered, sometimes we need more hands on help from others in directing our behavior and out look.
You are worthy of your best self, seize this moment to put yourself first and when you have pulled off the adjustments needed in your life to bring your best self forward, people will not just marvel at the changes but they will feel blessed themselves for knowing and associating with you.
For many people, managing their health care expenses and knowing what programs are available to help is not always easy. But, working with the right people can make it easier, give Social Service Coordinators a call.