Wouldn't it be nice if better health was simple? If eating healthier wasn't a complicated and restrictive diet formula? If it didn't feel like hard work to be healthy? Well here is a big ol' PSA for ya: BETTER HEALTH CAN. BE. SIMPLE. 🙌 Let's break down the myth that being healthier is hard work. It's not...
Changing our habits and mindset, however, is a little trickier...
Changing your habits and mindset
In true Aries style, I'm going to lay it out straight for you: If you don't come to terms with the fact that you have to change your mindset and your habits, you are limiting yourself to a life of stagnation and repeated behaviours. Making meaningful changes will always feel like hard work. I know I feel personally dragged when I read that! We all know it, but it is hard to face.
Because change can be scary. I know- trust me, I've had my life turned upside down a few times! We all know change can be scary. We have all had to navigate A LOT of change this past year+ through the pandemic. If we have learnt anything from this shared experience, it is that we can survive change. Some have maybe have discovered that they can thrive from certain aspects of it. If you reflect on (any) experience, you can gain real insight into how you deal with change, and how you want to carry your approach forward, or not. So, how do we start shifting this mindset? The first step is simply by creating more awareness around how you react to change. Keep on reading for more breakdown on why it's so hard, and where to start.
Why is changing habits so hard?
The habits we have formed throughout our lives are tied to so many things. They are deeply ingrained and influenced by our family upbringing, experiences, background and status.
They are tied to emotions. They are tied to forms of comfort and safety. They are the safe zone of "the known".
Making changes means moving into the unknown. Moving out of our comfort circles, into uncertainty. Dun Dun DUNNNN...
But remember that making changes also means:
learning
growing
developing
expanding
opening up new opportunities
improving
progress.
( That was a lot of words for the same thing, but maybe one resonated more than another :) )
Is fear the thing holding you back from making healthy changes?
What is the narrative you are telling yourself about the change that you keep putting off? What is it about becoming healthier that you are afraid of? Now you might be like - "Victoria... WHY the heck would I be AFRAID of being HEALTHY??!"
There are more reasons than you may think when you dig a little deeper. Here are some examples:
If a key step of your health is to reduce your drinking but you have a friendship group that focuses heavily on drinking, then maybe you have a fear that your friends won't accept this change in you.
Or maybe, you've been living with your illness or ailment for so long that it has become a part of your identity. It is not uncommon to feel afraid of who or what you might be without it. Or even hiding behind it as an excuse for not reaching your full potential.
Uncovering these silent resistors can shed immense light on what you need to overcome
The Key to Making Changes
How long do you sit in uncertainty, ruminating and building the fear around change or decision making? The answer is, longer than we should.
What brings you out of uncertainty?
A C T I O N As Picasso said,
Action is the foundation to all success.
But why is action so hard? What prevents you from taking action to making healthier decisions? More often than not the answer is fear. If we understand what the root of our fears are, we can start to rationalise with them.
Ways you can do this are
Journalling
Recording your concerns and listening back to them
Taking small steps
Getting professional support ( therapist, coach, nutritional therapist)
Journalling is the easiest and quickest way to help 'flatten' your fears. Taking them out of your head and onto a page takes away some of the charge.
That being said, we all have different ways of getting places. What have you found helpful in changing habits and overcoming fear?