Take charge of your health and well-being in the new year

FOR MANY people, the start of a new year marks an opportunity to reflect on your life, and think about where you would like to be in the future. While new year resolutions may get a bad rap for encouraging unrealistic goals or placing pressure on you, they can also be a great starting point to prioritise your health and wellness on your own terms.

Starting small could look like making an effort to reset your sleep schedule and prioritising having a set bedtime. Or it may start with your home, beginning to organise one room at a time, first focusing on your closet and later getting to your kitchen. Still, it could be as simple as taking control of your thoughts and incorporating inspiring quotes and daily affirmations into your morning routine.

Even if the path to reinventing yourself starts off a little rocky, you can always get back on track at any time throughout the year.

START A GRATITUDE JOURNAL

Keeping track of things, people and events that you are grateful for throughout the year can help you to improve your mental and physical wellness. It literally breathes new life into us. It recharges and it rejuvenates, and it does not have to take up much time. Just a few minutes a day can make all the difference.

MAKE TIME FOR FAMILY

With the busyness of our daily lives, it can be difficult to prioritise spending time with loved ones, especially if they live far away or have hectic schedules themselves. But next year, make a conscious effort to carve out that one-on-one time, whether it is by planning monthly family dinners or simply checking in once a week, in person, or by telephone.

PRACTISE MINDFULNESS

Anxiety can nag at anyone during any season, in all parts of life, and it can be easy to let the idea of the future, or past experiences, inform your reality of the present. Practising mindfulness means doing everything you can to be grateful for what you have in the moment, where you are in life, and who you are right now.

COMMIT TO A HEALTHIER SLEEP ROUTINE

So many issues can be traced back to a poor night’s sleep and yet, there is so much more that we can aim to improve beyond a reasonable bedtime. Creating a plan to improve your sleep hygiene, the habits you maintain to get good sleep every night, may look different for everyone, as it depends on when you need to be active and working throughout the day. Your brain actually relies on cues to regulate your internal circadian rhythm, and the choices you make throughout the day can interfere with these.

QUIT SMOKING

Cigarettes are extremely harmful for your health, particularly your lungs, but tobacco products in general, including vapes, pose a serious threat. There are so many resources to help you get a jump-start on ditching tobacco.

PRIORITISE ANNUAL HEALTH SCREENINGS

Open your calendar app or planner and make your appointments for the year in one sitting. Not only will you get the anxiety-inducing nuisance over with, but exams will be less likely to get squeezed out as life gets bonkers. Start with your primary care provider, and ask which screenings, for example, mammogram, colonoscopy, you are due for. Slot those in, then move on to the dentist’s office, and head over to your ophthalmologist, too.

DRINK UP

You know you need to hydrate, but it is especially important when you get only six hours of sleep or less. You are more likely to be dehydrated the day after a disrupted night of sleep, because a hormone that regulates your body’s water conservation is released during later stages of sleep. So down some extra water on those days if you can, and remember that too much water can be tricky for your gut, too.

CHILL OUT

Literally, start working on letting go of all of that anger! Constantly feeling angry and pissed off, especially for women, can lead to less-than-desirable, long-term effects on your holistic health. Chronic anger can impact the body in more ways than one; it can induce headaches, anxiety, digestion problems and high blood pressure, among other drawbacks.

CONSIDER THERAPY

We all lean on friends and family for support, but is this the year that you finally make a move to unpack your mental health? You do not even have to leave the house to start, and some of the best digital offerings are absolutely free. Start by checking out a few apps on your phone or reach out to a healthcare provider.

The truth is that the lifestyle you have today is a result of a lifetime of choices that cannot be changed in the blink of an eye. Our history lives inside of us; it becomes part of us; it is who we are. We carry it in our bodies, until we mindfully overwrite it. Yes, you can rewrite your story.

However, it is important to become very aware of what the whole story is that has lodged within you. That is why it takes time, patience and compassion to take charge of your life. We cannot expect instant results.

keisha.hill@gleanerjm.com