What changes?

Erudite · #1 12-28-2008, 10:57 PM

Well, it's New Year's Resolution time again. I still have mine from last year and did ok on about half of them. But now I'm thinking more concretely about specific CHANGES that I want to make as opposed to goals that I want to achieve. The New Year is a good time to consider them.

So here's one of my ideas...I'd like to eat better. This isn't to achieve a goal of weight loss (though I very clearly need to lose some), but to really make some forever changes in what foods I eat and how much of them. I'm on drugs that seem to make weight loss impossible, but eating right has other benefits besides weight loss and those are good too...like attitude staying positive and energy levels good. But that isn't a goal so much as a CHANGE that has to be made. Does that make sense?

So what you thinking about New Year's Resolutions/changes?

**5ft Diva** · #2 12-29-2008, 10:56 PM

I think the change for me this year is to stay on track and to make more goals. I do really well w/ goals for some odd reason....

Erudite · #3 12-30-2008, 12:12 PM

When I posted this, I was just mulling over some ideas to make some permanent changes in my life. But then I went to my other board and the board leader there has suggested that we use A Guide to Addiction and Recovery published by the LDS church as a means of learning better control of our eating habits and any other habits that are stopping us from reaching our goals. I read through the table of contents and was pretty impressed. The steps they advocate are great for helping in SO many more areas than "addiction". Our other board is tackling each of the 12 steps over the next year...one step a month. I'm hoping that'll help me to make changes that I don't even know I need to make as yet...if that makes sense.

We all don't always know what changes need to be made to help us in our lives and so it seems overwhelming to not only think of them, but also to formulate a plan for making a REAL tranformation in some aspect of our lives. .... I think I'm rambling now, but I have just been feeling overwhelmed at even the small change I've mentioned above, but feel these 12 steps might be a means of not only making that change, but also some other changes that will bring me closer to goals I haven't even thought of.

E

PS I did add extra berries to my low fat yogurt this morning. Do you know how many nutrients and fiber berries have?! Good stuff!

**5ft Diva** · #4 12-30-2008, 03:25 PM

That is a good resource. Thanks for reminding me of it, E. I think I'll take another gander at it as well.

Meticulous madness · #5 12-31-2008, 11:43 PM

I really like the idea of focusing on 1 step per month, from that LDS book you referenced. Maybe we ought to incorporate that same kind of idea on BNS?! I can't speak for everybody, but I certainly think it would be very useful.

Would you feel plagiaristic if you reiterated some of those ideas monthly from your other board, E?

Or I guess we could make it part of a new book club thing, if anybody else was interested. I've been wanting to read it for a while. Maybe it's not "book club" material, because it may be a bit personal or something. Who knows.

I have a few "changes" I'd like to incorporate this new year. I'd really like to fine-tune my sleeping habits. I have gotten into a bad habit of staying up really late, in order to fit in some "me" time on the computer.

But, I think I'd be a lot healthier and happier if I went to bed at a decent time and got up earlier to excercise, study and do some computer surfing BEFORE the kids got up, not after they've gone to sleep at night.

I'd also like to adjust some eating habits, for portion control and nutrition choices. I love this time of year for reflection purposes!

Dia Minha · #6 01-01-2009, 01:16 PM

I don't usually set New Years Resolutions. I set goals on a regualr basis and have never felt the need to set one just for the fact that it was a new year. However, this year I find myself really reflecting and thinking about what it is that I really want to acheive this year or the next 365 days, as Diva put it on an another thread.

At my last Weight Watchers meeting, my leader and I talked about what it was that we both wanted for 2009. She said she would love to give me my life time award, meaning I will have reached my healthy weight and maintained it for six weeks. We talked a little about the past year and how I just really needed that year to mourn the loss of my little boy. The first year of a child's life there is so many milestones and I found myself thinking often about what steps he would have been taking and then of course missing him so bad, tried to feed my sorrow with the closest bag of chips or pieces of chocolate. I did an amazing job of maintaining while mourning, but now it is time to look ahead and start taking better care of myself.

However, I do not want to base my goals on weight loss, but on taking good care of myself. I think a good place to start is to find a new OBGYN and figure out what I need to do in order to get off the birthcontrol which I believe is contributing to my depression and some other side affects neither DH nor I are happy with. I might also have to consider getting back on some anti-deppresants to repair the damage and this could cause havoc on my weight like it has it the past. Although I am beginning to think if I could get my brain working properly, then I might find that it would be easier to work on the other stuff, like loosing weight. And I do know there is medication out there that could help with brain function and also increase energy levels, which could aid in weight loss.

Anyway, now I'm babbling.

I have read through the program, A Guide to Addiction and Recovery published by the LDS church and it is a good one. I learned so much just by reading through it, even though I did not actually follow the program. For one thing, it was affirmed to me that addiction to food is a real thing and I am not alone. I also realized that I am not taking care of my body when I give into my addictions and I am slowly bringing harm to my spirit. However, I can overcome my addictions by renewing and caring for my spirit, which at times seems easier than fighting the food addiction. Does that make sense?

Erudite · #7 01-03-2009, 05:26 PM

MM, I would not feel plagiaristic, but I think on that board, we're VERY focused on the eating part as an addiction, where here, we're looking at more general habit changes...and we each have our own. It seems like there was going to be a private board for this very topic on BnS. I didn't join at the time it was started, so I don't know where/how it has gone.

The book, I think, would make an excellent book club book, so long as the club was a pretty close group of friends, like I think BnS is, because you do have to think very deep and make some adjustments to get where you need to be. We could try it here, if there's an interest?

natickgirl · #8 01-09-2009, 10:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Erudite

...you do have to think very deep and make some adjustments to get where you need to be.

That is my main goal for this year...to get to the bottom of things. Rather than focusing on the behaviors & habits I want to get rid if, my goal is to figure out WHY I am clinging to those behaviors & habits. What is the underlying issue? Why am I holding myself back from being a better person, and what will it take to change my thinking? Maybe that book or pamphlet would be helpful in my searching. Let me know if you decide to read it together.