Look after your mental health this October
October is Mental Health Month around the world and a good time to reflect on the importance of good mental health in our daily lives. One in five Australians will experience difficulties with...
A recent article in The Guardian said there is mixed evidence for whether New Year’s Resolutions are effective. The article goes on to say that resolutions should be Smart – specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely – and they can be a spur to effective action. But vaguer resolutions such as “get fit”, “lose weight” or “stop wasting so much time” often conceal a deeper self-criticism that undermines our intentions.
Too often, we set unrealistic goals and target dates for ourselves that leave us feeling more stressed and unhappy when we don’t achieve the results we want. And why do we wait for the magic moment of 1 January in a new year to set goals for ourselves? Why not throughout the year instead?
According to an American website, there is a history behind why we make these resolutions on the first day of a new year. The dictionary tells us the definition of making New Year’s resolutions is “setting goals for the New Year.” As to where or how they first originated we do not know. What we do know is that resolutions were already recorded by the Babylonians over four thousand years ago, and that they believed that whatever a person did on the first day of the year had significant effects on their lives all year long. It is, in fact, well known that New Year’s resolutions do not have much of a success rate. Yet, while many folks choose to skip the annual goal-setting phenomenon, almost half of American adults do indeed set at least one resolution in honour of the New Year.
It's probably no surprise that the most popular New Year’s Resolutions are:
• Lose weight/eat healthier
• Get organized
• Save more money
• Quit smoking
• Enjoy life
• Spend more quality time with close friends and family members
• Get—and stay—healthy
• Learn something new
• Help others pursue their goals
• Find love
There are some great reasons to make these New Year’s Resolutions. They inspire hope, optimism, and positivity. They can help us connect with others if we share our resolutions and even make them with family, friends and others in our community. If you do meet your new year goals, the feelings of accomplishment, joy and achievement will be well worth it.
A recent study, though, showed that only around 8% of people achieve their New Year’s Resolution goals. Even so, making the resolutions can teach us a lot about intention, responsibility, hope, moving forward and planning.
Some people make New Year’s Resolutions to improve their mental health and to improve mental wellness for the year ahead. But, if these goals are unrealistic or unreasonable, not achieving them could be damaging to mental wellness. When mental health goals have failed, some people have found that it has caused them depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem.
The key is to focus on small, realistic changes and not on big goals that cause stress and worry. Mental health and wellness goals could include making time to take a walk a few times a week or making time to sit quietly each day and enjoy a cup or coffee or tea.
Whether you do make New Year’s Resolutions or not, focusing on small steps to wellness and contentment is a great way to start any part of the year.
References:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/jan/06/new-year-resolutions-cause-stress-mindful
https://glennmillermd.com/why-we-make-new-years-resolutions-and-why-we-should/
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/60776/why-do-we-make-new-years-resolutions
https://www.forbes.com/sites/tracybrower/2021/12/31/4-reasons-to-make-new-years-resolutions-even-if-you-dont-keep-them/?sh=68c711c66a1d
A recent article in The Guardian said there is mixed evidence for whether New Year’s Resolutions are effective. The article goes on to say that resolutions should be Smart – specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely – and they can be a spur to effective action. But vaguer resolutions such as “get fit”, “lose weight” or “stop wasting so much time” often conceal a deeper self-criticism that undermines our intentions.
Too often, we set unrealistic goals and target dates for ourselves that leave us feeling more stressed and unhappy when we don’t achieve the results we want. And why do we wait for the magic moment of 1 January in a new year to set goals for ourselves? Why not throughout the year instead?
According to an American website, there is a history behind why we make these resolutions on the first day of a new year. The dictionary tells us the definition of making New Year’s resolutions is “setting goals for the New Year.” As to where or how they first originated we do not know. What we do know is that resolutions were already recorded by the Babylonians over four thousand years ago, and that they believed that whatever a person did on the first day of the year had significant effects on their lives all year long. It is, in fact, well known that New Year’s resolutions do not have much of a success rate. Yet, while many folks choose to skip the annual goal-setting phenomenon, almost half of American adults do indeed set at least one resolution in honour of the New Year.
It's probably no surprise that the most popular New Year’s Resolutions are:
• Lose weight/eat healthier
• Get organized
• Save more money
• Quit smoking
• Enjoy life
• Spend more quality time with close friends and family members
• Get—and stay—healthy
• Learn something new
• Help others pursue their goals
• Find love
There are some great reasons to make these New Year’s Resolutions. They inspire hope, optimism, and positivity. They can help us connect with others if we share our resolutions and even make them with family, friends and others in our community. If you do meet your new year goals, the feelings of accomplishment, joy and achievement will be well worth it.
A recent study, though, showed that only around 8% of people achieve their New Year’s Resolution goals. Even so, making the resolutions can teach us a lot about intention, responsibility, hope, moving forward and planning.
Some people make New Year’s Resolutions to improve their mental health and to improve mental wellness for the year ahead. But, if these goals are unrealistic or unreasonable, not achieving them could be damaging to mental wellness. When mental health goals have failed, some people have found that it has caused them depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem.
The key is to focus on small, realistic changes and not on big goals that cause stress and worry. Mental health and wellness goals could include making time to take a walk a few times a week or making time to sit quietly each day and enjoy a cup or coffee or tea.
Whether you do make New Year’s Resolutions or not, focusing on small steps to wellness and contentment is a great way to start any part of the year.
References:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/jan/06/new-year-resolutions-cause-stress-mindful
https://glennmillermd.com/why-we-make-new-years-resolutions-and-why-we-should/
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/60776/why-do-we-make-new-years-resolutions
https://www.forbes.com/sites/tracybrower/2021/12/31/4-reasons-to-make-new-years-resolutions-even-if-you-dont-keep-them/?sh=68c711c66a1d
