It is a New Year and I couldn’t be happier to turn the page on 2018. Since I was so busy last month my December Link-Up party didn’t get submitted in time, therefore I am participating in January’s Link-Up party first thing. This month is the first for 2019 and full of new beginnings. Please visit Sheryl’s website A Chronic Voice to find all the rules to link up party.
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This month’s prompts are:
- Dedicating
- Establishing
- Breaking
- Strengthening
- Allowing
Dedicating
I am about to start back up to school this month after a semester off to take care of myself. Working full time, curating a blog and taking two college classes online is going to take some serious dedication. I have to admit, I am scared! I’m afraid of failing, of doing less than I am capable of doing. Not to mention I am totally afraid I’m not going to find and keep my balance and go into a debilitating flare.
So now you know how I truly feel inside, but what you don’t know is how dedicated I am to finding my courage. I have several chronic illnesses, and I could easily let them take control over me. However, I am dedicated to establishing new beginnings this month so I continue to decide over and over again to remain in control of my outlook on life.
Establishing
My goal for this month and for 2019 is to establish more of a routine that involves taking care of myself. I have a nasty habit of putting too much on my plate and then not having enough energy to finish it all. I would like to have a self-care routine where I am able to decide ahead of time the food I will eat, the exercise I will do and the projects I need to accomplish. Establishing this will hopefully make things easier for me. As I said in last month’s link up party, getting organized and preparing for things really does make establishing balance easier.
Breaking
To me breaking is a negative word. My mission is to use positive words as much as possible. This helps keep me in the right mindset, as it would be so easy to go into “the dark place” in my mind. Of course, I could have chosen to just skip this word, but I think it is important to recognize the negative and establish how to turn it into a positive.
I broke last year, physically, mentally and emotionally. So, I am determined to NOT break this year! I took steps to put myself back together which most importantly was starting my blog. Therefore, this month and this year I will do everything I can do ensure there is no breaking.
Strengthening
2019 is going to be all about Strength for me. I am going to take steps to be and stay physically, mentally and emotionally strong. First, I really need to figure out a way to keep exercise in my daily life (which can be so challenging with Fibromyalgia). Second, I am going to strengthen my mind with the challenges of my blog and college classes. Lastly, I am going to strengthen emotionally by not ignoring my feelings but validating them. These will all be a part of my new beginnings for January and 2019!
Allowing
This month I am going to allow myself to relax more often. Ironically, I know I just said I put even more on my plate than before. I can see though that I am always “working” whether it is at my job, my blog or school. Therefore, I will be allowing myself time each day to just “be”. This will be the key to not only my survival but also my growth. Lastly, since the theme is new beginnings I am going to allow myself the possibility of not getting A’s in my classes. For anyone that knows me personally, you know how hard this goal is going to be for me. Allowing myself to not be perfect will be my biggest goal for January and hopefully my biggest accomplishment.
Since joining in A Chronic Voice’s Link-Up Party a few months ago, I have tried to make it a point to do this every month. For me, there is a challenge in someone else giving me prompts because it really makes me think. I also love the feeling of belonging that I get from being a part of something bigger than my blog and me. My hope is that those of you with a chronic illness decide to participate as well. There is nothing to lose and why not say yes to new beginnings this year? Gentle hugs to my fellow Warriors!
Thanks for joining us Suzanne, and for showing such enthusiasm – that was a quick submission! 😀 And I admire how you’re actually going about getting the things done one by one – whilst you may say that you admire my blogging, truly I wouldn’t be able to even do it at all if I were studying/working/etc! 🙂
Wishing you all the best with all of that, and happy new year!
Thank you Sheryl! I really appreciate your constant support and I know with my fellow chronic illness bloggers behind me, I CAN do this. Wishing you the best as well.
I love this post!
I totally understand the not breaking part! I feel exactly the same way.
Strengthening my body is on my list as well and I am still not sure how I am going to do that since walking across the room sometimes leaves me totally spent.
Thank you for sharing your goals and I wish you the most blessed New Year!
Thank you so much Jennifer! When I write these posts I wonder sometimes if they really help anyone else besides me, so thank you for saying you love it. So I have started going for a 5 minute walk the last two days. I am out of breath each time. I am hoping to keep it up though. Let me now if you come up with any helpful ideas on this front.
Yeah I want to focus a lot of self-care as well and overall well-being. I don’t over-extend myself right now because I am off work. But I can’t do much with the vertigo, so I need to rest… without guilt. I hope your schooling goes well. I understand the fear. Chronic illness can beat us in the self-esteem so we think we are not capable and will fail at anything… but it isn’t true. We can succeed at our pace.
Thank you Nikki. I’m so sorry about your vertigo I know how hard that can be. No guilt…that is the key right! Thank you so much for your support it means the world to me. With all my Warriors in my corner, I’m sure I can do it. Take care girl.
Hey, thanks for your post. My link up was also about not ignoring feeling, so important, as I’m just finding out. I hope you have a good year, with no breaking!
Thank you Katherine! I have the same hope for you. We got this though – #chronicallystrong
Hello Suzanne and nice to see you joining in the link-up party once again! And a big Happy New Year to you! I hope you had a lovely Christmas.
I can relate to wanting to allow yourself to relax more this year, in my blog post I mention that if I am alone I have a tendency to overdo things just to fill the silence and boredom. So I too am going to allow myself the opportunity to rest and relax more this year. And with the guilt that often accompanies it.
Wishing you the best of luck with your studies.
Rhiann x
Thank you so much Rhiann! I really appreciate your support.
That’s awesome that you’re not letting the events of last year hold you back from trying new things this year. We love how you’re able to set goals while still prioritizing your self-care. It’s a good reminder to dream big and work hard while still taking care of our needs. Thanks for sharing!
Hi, Suzanne! I enjoyed reading your prompt answers. validating my emotions and not “stuffing” them is another area I also struggle with. May I suggest if you get bogged down with work, school, and blogging ease up on the blog. You won’t be in school forever, and we’ll still be here if you need a break.
Thank you so much! I will try for sure. I know I’m going to have to make some decisions about it all very soon. It’s funny that you say school won’t be forever. I’ve been going part-time for 6 years so it totally feels like forever. But, I hear you and I value your advice. Thank you for reading!