Jenny Crissman MS L.Ac.
Here we are, officially in the Year 2016!
I am not sure how many of you feel about endings and beginnings, but I love change and endings symbolize change, a chance to begin something new, different or the same again!!
Each and every day is full of beginnings and endings. We cycle through a multitude of these starts and stops: Our morning ritual: tea/coffee, shower, breakfast, then we have our commute, meetings, lunch, gym time, dinner, bed time... and then we start again!! Many opportunities for change, every day! So why does the end of the year create such pressure to make resolutions to change?
We can make a resolution every day. We can pick and choose some new habit to try, investigate or even implement. But, one at a time, slowly, consciously and with compassion for how difficult it might be. It does not have to be a big long list of resolutions, just gently incorporating some shifts in our lives and behaviors until they become a new habit. According to most sources New Years Resolutions fail because we are not hard wired, as in how our brains work, to implement change without a great deal of focused practice. Consistency is the key! So just as we know “multitasking” is really not efficient or maybe even truly possible, it is suggested that making a long list of New Years Resolutions is also not an effective way to actually create life changes.
This is a link to a Wall Street Journal article published in 2007, addressing how our brain executes making changes.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703478704574612052322122442
If we know that brain function may be at the root of change then one resolution might be to feed our brains this year!!
DHA, Omega 3 Fatty Acid: A major building block of the brain crucial to brain function and the nervous system.
https://www.standardprocess.com/Products/Standard-Process/Tuna-Omega-3-Oil#.VolRufHX5E4
Vitamin D: Can lift your mood, improve your memory and increase your problem solving ability!
http://www.pureencapsulations.com/vitamin-d3-liquid-22-5-ml.html
B12: Improves Memory!
http://www.pureencapsulations.com/b12-liquid.html
Anti-oxidants: Protect our brains from environmental damage and aging.- Eat your blueberries!
http://www.pureencapsulations.com/alpha-lipoic-acid-100-mg.html
http://www.pureencapsulations.com/resveratrol.html
Everyone has an opinion about New Years Resolutions, whether you make them or not is not important. What is important is that we all have compassion for ourselves and our habits, then we might find the habits and behaviors of others more tolerable too!
Below I have included some of others thoughts on 2016 resolutions. You might find some inspiring or at the very least entertaining!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/caryn-fine-sullivan/10-wellness-tips-for-atta_b_8887268.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jennifer-connolly/simple-ways-to-be-happier_b_8887702.html
Happy Trails!