Bygones: A New Year

It can be said that 2020 was the year that broke us all. In February of 2020, I was engaged, I was going to the gym three times a week, and I was doing my best to work two jobs and finish putting myself through college. By May I had gone down to one job, became single, struggled a bit with alcohol, and slowly brought myself back into the realm of mental stability, even getting a therapist to help me work through some of the issues I was going through, all the while, maintaining full-time enrollment through the Summer and Fall semesters. You could say that I threw myself into work of any kind to get my mind off of losing my engagement as a casualty to COVID-19, and also working longer hours due to higher demand for fast food, as I was working at both Pizza Hut and Sonic Drive-In at the start of 2020.

The most important thing that I can do for myself is to set goals on how to move forward from this very challenging time of my life and I am sure everyone else feels the same exact way.

1. Set a Schedule

There is maybe nothing more important during this day and time than staying organized. With everything going on keeping track of bills, making sure I set aside time to relax, and also making sure that I keep up with money (I’m an Instacart full-service shopper now and I set my schedule). Setting a schedule can work wonders on the organization of life and its inner workings.

2. Get Exercise

Even if it is just a walk in the park, a walk around the block, or going on a light five-minute jog, exercise helps to curb stress, is heart healthy especially in a time of excess stress, and it allows for the release of pent-up energy as the troubling times of COVID-19 continue to wreak havoc on our daily lives.

3. Eat Smart

Making sure that the body has all of the nutrients it needs throughout the day Is important in sustaining mental and physical health. Does that mean go on a diet to lose weight, no, not necessarily, it just means to make sure you are getting the daily value and avoid stress eating as much as humanly possible.

4. Pick Up a Hobby or Passion

In times where you may have kids, no ability to leave home, or are just quarantined alone, things can get pretty depressing without something to make the day a little bit brighter. Picking up a musical instrument, reading a book, or writing can help to take some of the edge off of life at home.

5. Keep a Positivity Journal

While this may feel insubstantial, as time moves along you may feel like you are in a rut or you have not accomplished anything substantial lately. If a Positivity Journal, a place where every night you can write about the things that you achieved today, is kept, you can have a reminder so that when you feel like you are in a rut you can look back and see all of the things you’ve accomplished since starting one. It can be a great confidence boost for anyone looking to find ways to push past the rut.

While these are my personal goals for putting 2020 in the past, it is intentionally easy because it motivates me to actually accomplish the goals that I have put forward and it leads to bigger and better accomplishments that without this baseline may seem much harder to achieve.

If you feel like you are not meeting your 2021 goals remember that it is okay to be knocked down and to slip, we are human, and after all COVID-19 is still messing things up and there are surely more challenges ahead. Just remember that you can always get back on the horse and keep striving to be the self you idealize yourself to be, and in times like these do not forget to give yourself a break. Times are rough and getting through it will need effort, but together as a collective it is an effort we can use to push through together.