January… do you love it or hate it? A fresh, clean start or a dreary, five week long ordeal?
The January blues are real, December has left, taking all its twinkly lights, excessive food consumption and generous good will and January is here with its resolutions, restrictions and a general feeling of being fed up.
The preparation for the season of advent seems to begin earlier every year and the hype and pressure of December celebrations is growing too. It is not surprising that come January, we feel tired and drained. This post Christmas exhaustion can leave people feeling flat and fed up. And then in comes January, and what would be a natural month to rest, recuperate and hibernate has been marketed as time to make big changes, restrict enjoyable food and embark on gruelling exercise regimes.
As wintry January continues, unsurprisingly, hard core new year resolutions and regimes fall by the wayside, leaving us melancholic and longing for spring. However, January doesn’t have to be so painful, done right, January can be rejuvenating and refreshing. Lets have a look at few ways to get the new year off on the right foot….
Get out of bed on the right side.
Improve your sleep habits. Remove your phone / tablet from arms reach and read before bedtime. Cut out caffeine in the evening. Tidy your bedroom. Clear out that drawer with all the old chargers in.
Actually, don’t worry about the drawer with the chargers … no one needs that in January.
Exercise
Find something you enjoy, has a purpose to it and that fits in with your lifestyle. The gym isn’t for everyone. Take your neighbour’s dog for a walk a couple of times a week and do someone a favour. Feels good right?
Limit social media
No one needs to see the wonderfulness of other peoples lives 24/7 …at best, its irritating, at worst its demoralizing and distressing. Don’t use other peoples dramas as your downtime. Turn it off, read a book or watch a film.
Be sociable
Not just your friends. Smile at people, say hello to passers by, have a two minute chat in the shops. Try it doubters, you might like it! Have you neglected your friends? Time to get back in touch.
Eat well
Nourish, don’t punish. But also, if you want chocolate, have it. Ditto red wine.
Go old school
Time to make a cake. You don’t have to let the kids help, that’s pretty stressful. They can have it for pudding though.
Get your garden spring ready or get some pots of winter pansies….see, that’s brightened things right up.
Enjoy nights in
December promotes cosy indoor images of families around the fireside. Board game sales soar. What a shame to let that all stop in January.
And now the new year resolutions …
Choose one goal. Make it realistic. Make it precise. Make it suitable for you and your lifestyle.
Think about exactly how you will achieve it, changing ingrained behaviour will need planning. Keep your initial goal small and keep it evolving through the year.
Recognise when to take baby steps and when to push yourself. Knowing yourself is a gift, be self aware. When you inevitably lose your motivation, don’t be hard on yourself, lessen the goal for that day, but still do a little something towards your resolution.
Be brave and remember this ‘What great thing would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?’ - Robert H Schuller.
And if all else fails, don’t make the same resolution as last year, keep a set of fairy lights up and hold a few bottles of mulled wine back from Christmas. Godt nytt år. The brand new year belongs to you.