Happy New Year!

Although, by the time this blog goes up, it will be almost February, but I digress!

Does anybody else feel pressured to do the ‘New Year, New Me’ thing?

Every year, we are bombarded with the same posts; many people start going to the gym, others go on diets, and there are even some who take on enormous challenges. The rhetoric is always the same: ‘be the best version of yourself now the new year has started!’

Now, I’m not here to criticise anyone, and I’m certainly not saying that people shouldn’t be the best versions of themselves – I absolutely approve of that! – but as a disabled person, the overarching feelings of overwhelm and pressure to ‘be better’, can make the concept feel pretty impossible!

Being disabled is HARD

As someone who has succumbed to the pressures of ‘new year, new me’ many times, I know just how unrealistic that can be. For example, exercising can make me very fatigued, so choosing an exercise routine that is not made with my conditions in mind, is definitely not going to work! It makes what could be an enjoyable way to move my body, 10x harder. As someone who also has autism and ADHD, I find just starting a new routine hard enough, so it makes me more likely to quit!

So, what can you do?

• Don’t put so much pressure on yourself! I know it’s easier said than done, but, for myself, just knowing that you don’t HAVE to join in with the crowd, can take at least some of the pressure off.
• Go slowly. We’re still in winter; the plants, trees and animals are still resting – you should be too! This is actually my first year actually having a slow January, it’s been quite nice! If it takes you the whole of January (or longer) to settle into the new year, there is no shame in that!

However you start your year…

If you have New Years Resolutions, or not, that is absolutely fine! I want this blog post to serve as a reminder to anyone who feels so much pressure at the start of the year, to please give yourself some grace. Alternatively, if you are someone who loves to complete plans and challenges, while it’s not for me, I hope you manage everything you set out to!

While we’re on the topic, I have some resolutions this year too:

• Go to more theatre shows!
• Find an actually sustainable exercise routine
• Have more experiences/holidays!

What are your New Years Resolutions, if you have them?

See you in the next blog!

L.

Product of the month: Morphée

If you’re anything like me, I struggle to sleep at the best of times , especially in the winter. Morphée is a guided meditation device that helps you achieve better sleep quality. It has over 200 sessions from body scans, to breathing exercises, to white noise! Sessions last between 8 and 20 minutes, and Morphée has an auto turn off feature after every session, so you never have to worry about leaving it on. I don’t have one a Morphée (yet!), so I can’t vouch for it personally, but I absolutely love this idea! I hope you find this useful too!