It’s hard to believe we are once again heading into the holiday season and looking forward to the start of a new year! Do you feel anticipation or resignation? Are you hopeful or concerned? It is certainly understandable if you’re not sure. When the world around us feels chaotic and unsettled, the best thing we can do is control the controllables and turn our focus inward.
Here are some tips to help you reboot your mind and body, so you can realistically look ahead with a lightness of spirit.
- New Year’s goals need to be empowering, not self-minimizing. Accept yourself for where you are today. Don’t put your life on hold until you accomplish something in particular. You’re enough right now.
- Give yourself permission to be perfectly imperfect. We are all just human.
- Have the same compassion for yourself as you have for others. If your self-talk is not as kind as it would be to a friend, remind yourself that you are just as valuable to others as your friends are to you.
- Don’t compare yourself to others. Being your unique self is your contribution to the world. Do you, as you are, unapologetically.
- Smile, even if you don’t feel like it. When you smile, your brain releases dopamine, endorphins, and serotonin. These neurotransmitters are associated with lowering your anxiety and increasing feelings of happiness. In fact, serotonin is often the chemical that anti-depressant medications attempt to regulate. (Source: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/201206/there-s-magic-in-your-smile). When you smile, you share happiness with others, and that’s a contagion we could all use more of these days.
- Consider trying acupuncture to help you reset emotionally and physically. The reason people feel so calm and relaxed after an acupuncture treatment is that our bodies respond well to being in balance. Acupuncture also releases endorphins, which are the feel-good hormones. Being in balance is what helps us on the road to health and happiness.
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