Oh January—the month of resolutions, redefinition, and rededication to being healthy in a variety of forms. Eating, exercising, education, and finances are a few of the biggest areas we tend to resolve to improve in January. But now, it’s March. The lingering hope of the holidays has long passed. The days are often short, dark, and dreary. The energy and exhilaration of 2022 has been lost to illness, being back at work, workout routines missed, and reading plans skipped. But also, it’s only March! We still have 10 more months of 2022. How do we get our habits back?
Evaluate:
What was working and why did it stop? What was unhelpful and why? What is a routine or new habit that is helpful to your overall proximity? Is it helpful? Are you caring for yourself? If components were helpful, add them back to your daily, weekly, or monthly schedule slowly. Take it one day at a time. Re-integrating slowly, rather than starting all the good things again at once, will set you up for greater success. For example, if you created a financial goal and then your Christmas bills came—causing you to feel overwhelmed and incapable—sit down and look at your expenses. Skip the fancy coffee and make it at home, pack your lunch a few days a week. Can you get rid of one of your streaming services? Workout at home instead of the gym. Look at where your debts are and pay them off by making small sacrifices and living within your means. Making sacrifices in March can provide opportunities that might not be open to you if you continue to avoid and ignore for the rest of the year. In my experience, avoiding the problem generally makes it grow, so give it the attention that it needs.
Set Yourself Up for Success:
Ask yourself these questions: Are your goals and habits reasonable for you? Are they lofty and unrealistic? For example: Is it reasonable (or even healthy) to expect someone just coming out of a surgery to train for a marathon? Is it realistic to expect that a homemade and healthy meal is on the table nightly if you and your spouse both work full-time? No. More gracious (but still challenging) goals are where you will find success and the wherewithal to stick to your habits. For the postoperative patient, going on a walk a few days a week will build strength and grow capacity. For the full-time workers, meal prep, realistic expectations, and healthy eating habits that change over time will build stamina. If you’re curious about your goals being reasonable – ask yourself if you believe that to be reasonable for someone else in a similar stage of life? If your immediate answer is exasperation or laughter at the ridiculousness, you’ve got your answer. For me, this looks like planning my weekdays the night before. I do this by setting out vitamins and breakfast options so that I start my day without the option to avoid or ignore my healthy choices. This gives me a better trajectory as I walk out the door. I think through what my family will have for dinner the following evening so that we don’t eat frozen pizza and Kraft Mac & Cheese every night simply because we were unprepared for a meal that happens every day. Do I do this perfectly? Absolutely not. We still eat Mac & Cheese regularly. I forget to take my vitamins. But I don’t let the one failure keep me from continuing to try. I use that failure to learn and figure out how to do better next time.
Build Better Habits:
Building takes time. Building takes blueprints and evaluation. Is what you are attempting (or avoiding, à la the beginning of this article) building a better you? Or, is it trapping you in legalism? Is it providing you a healthier set of rhythms to live within? Or is it projecting perfectionistic and unrealistic expectations for no reason other than that you saw someone else do it on Instagram?
To build the best habits for ourselves we must know our limits. Growing our capacity is imperative, but being kind and giving ourselves grace is just as important. You will mess up. It’s March. Habits I thought were consistent after months of building them have become a distant memory. I can look at these memories and wallow in my self-pity, or I can evaluate, set myself up for success, and review my limiting factors.
I have a dear friend who has suffered from medical anxiety (sometimes debilitating medical anxiety) for a large portion of her life. She’s done much to work on this, created and used tools to lower her anxiety, reframed her worry, and built control over her worry. However, she recently told me that one of the most beneficial steps she has taken regarding gaining control over this anxiety was by telling her doctors. Rather than shamefully ignoring it and hoping for the best, each time she walked into different doctors’ offices, she started by saying “Hi, I have a lot of anxiety, much of it revolves around medical concerns. If you talk with me about specifics of my treatment and/or possible outcomes, please know that my mind will often go to the worst-case scenario of any diagnosis, ailment, or concern. Can you help me by communicating with that in mind?” Not only did this give her more control over her anxiety, it added significant support, understanding, and awareness from her doctors who were grateful that she’d shared this up-front so that they could be cognizant of her needs. We don’t know what people don’t tell us and when we are working to build better habits, being aware of where we are, and the support we need, is imperative in moving forward.
2022 isn’t going anywhere for 10 more months. You have a choice to make: Will you trudge through it barely getting by in survival mode, or will you gain ground in building a better version of yourself using these tools? Asking for help and crafting healthy rhythms are worthwhile and healthy pursuits. They will build your stamina and increase your overall wellbeing. As a reminder – you don’t have to do this alone. A healthy support system, that may include a counselor, can help. The choice is yours!
Presented by
Friday, May 20, 2022 @ 8:00 AM
If you came to this event last year or have been to our golf tournaments, you know this will be a top-notch event with some stellar swag bag gifts. At the event you can expect breakfast, lunch, 100 clays, prizes, team golf car, swag bag and 1 raffle entry per person. You won’t want to miss this!
Your participation in this event will help provide FREE in-school counseling services to at-risk children in our community. These children would otherwise not be able to afford the mental health care they need. We can't thank you enough for your continued support of our mission!
Teams fill up fast, so chat with your friends and get signed up today!
REGISTRATION:
Team Registration – 4 Person ($500)
Individual Team Registration ($125): Playing on a team but paying fees individually.
Individual Registration ($150): Individual shooter, not yet on a team. Will be placed on a team prior to event.
SPONSORSHIP LEVELS:
12 Gauge Sponsor ($2,500): Logo on Event Participant Gift, Logo on Event Banner, Logo on 1 Shooting Station Sign; 1 Team of Four Included
16 Gauge Sponsor ($1,250): Logo on Event Banner, Logo on 1 Shooting Station Sign; 1 Team of Four Included
20 Gauge Sponsor ($750): Logo on Event Banner, Logo on 1 Shooting Station Sign
28 Gauge Sponsor ($250): Logo on 1 Shooting Station Sign
Want to be an event VOLUNTEER?
Email: naomi@peacecounseling.org for more information!
Save the Date for our 6th Annual Golf Classic on Thursday, September 22, 2022. This is a sold-out event every year, so start getting your team together. Registration link will be available soon!
We never tire of thanking each and every one of you who continues to partner with us to accomplish peace and hope in the lives of hurting people in our community. To those of you who are new to Peace Partnership, we thank you for joining us and look forward to connecting with you as we work together to change lives. At Peace Partnership our goal is simple: to help struggling people find peace in their lives. Your generosity makes everything we do possible.
Thank you, Rick & Jan Britton, for your continued financial commitment. Your gifts of time, wisdom, and support are instrumental in moving us forward. We appreciate you!
Children’s Services Fund of Jackson County, thank you for your 25% Cash Match for our in-school counseling program. We are so thankful for this additional grant.
Thank you, Mark McDonald for your recent gifts. We are grateful for your belief in our ministry.
Jon & Jill Smith, we are so humbled by your first-time gift. Thank you for helping change lives.
A special thank you to Micah Hefner and John Hefner for your Sporting Clay Tournament Sponsorship.
Thank you, Laura & Keith Bowman, and Clayton Jones for your Sporting Clay team registrations.
A special Thank You to our faithful monthly supporters: Mike & Jan McGraw, Brandon & Vanessa Blanchard, Cory Young, Jenny Glasgow, Craig & Samantha Compton, Roger & Jennifer Madsen, John & Vicki Hefner, Tamara Stroud, Church at Coffee Creek, Stone AMP SEO, John & Keshia Otradovec, Zane & Melissa Morerod, Matt & Kristy Newton, Jondy & Heather Britton, Rick & Jan Britton, Diane Smith, Rick & Kathy Daulton, Scott & Lydia Hurley, Kevin Quinn, Dan & Gigi Rippee, Mark & Cathy McGaughey, Mike & Tracy Pruitt, Linda Hartman, Lone Jack Baptist Church, Brent & Amanda Miller, Clayton & Pam Wooldridge, Demi Raveill, Stan & Linda Byrd, Jeff & Lacey Cherry, Andre & Rose Fantasma, Jon & Naomi Thompson, Jon Brody, Dave & Rosie Bourland, and Greg & Jennifer Spears.
To find out how you can join our team of Partners, contact our Director of Development, Naomi Thompson at: naomi@peacecounseling.org or call 816.272.0653. To make a donation through our website, please click on the link below.
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