A delicate balance is often required to keep me in my happy place. Not too much work as it stresses me out and not too little as that leads to anxiety and worry. I’m not sure if I am really weird, just a bit odd or totally normal. I write down my thoughts here at My Little Blue Kayak and then I hit the “Publish” button for the world to see. Generally my words are positive, express gratitude, and hopefully lead people to smile and nod their head in agreement.
I used to say I was a simple person but I am learning that is not accurate. I strive to be simple but on the inside there is a lot brewing. I tend to be introspective and am not a people person. I prefer to be alone or with close family or friends. I would be perfectly happy if I never had to attend a large social gathering again in my life.
In a recent post, I talked about health as a puzzle with 8 pieces. Today’s post is all about “Positive Relationships” as one piece of the overall puzzle. Through my work as an Occupational Therapist, I have seen how having positive relationships in one’s life can improve health outcomes for my patients. When in a Rehab setting, patients are surrounded by people but it can still be an isolating experience. Those who receive phone calls and visits by loved ones have a big advantage over patients who have no support. Having someone to run errands, bring home-cooked meals, listen to concerns is incredibly important. Positive relationships are a two-way street and they don’t get built over night!
Positive Relationships are a two way street… Image by 12019 on Pixabay
I have been writing a lot lately about choosing health and how that means a lot more than simply eating a good diet and exercising. One of my goals for 2019 is to write a gratitude journal as a means to choose mental health! Expressing gratitude is a wonderful way to bring inner peace, to get outside of negative thinking and to simply focus on the good. It is too easy to get sucked into “Stinking Thinking“, negative energy, bad vibes and the horrors of the daily news.
Today, I want to share a gratitude letter that I wrote at the end of 2018 to a former boss and mentor. I mailed this letter to her and she called me within a few days of receiving it. We had a great chat, caught up on life and shared more than a few laughs. Maybe reading this letter will encourage you to share your gratitude with a special person in your life!
Who did you follow around as a kid? Is it time to thank them?
When I was younger, I looked at health as the composite of two things. Eating a healthy diet and getting plenty of exercise. If you did these two things, you would be healthy. Mother Fran and Papa Jack took care of the healthy diet for everyone in my household so all I had to do was get plenty of exercise. Wait, they helped ensure that as well. My parents were always kicking us out of the house to go and play, go weed the garden, go shovel the dirt around the pond. Plus my siblings and I loved to shoot hoops, ride bikes, climb trees and play catch. Getting exercise as a kid growing up in the 1970’s and 1980’s was easy.
Now that I have Embraced the Gray, I know that living a healthy lifestyle is about so much more than food and movement. These two things are absolutely critical but they are only two pieces of a larger puzzle. I have done a ton of reading on this topic and listened to many podcasts and audiobooks that it is time I summarize for myself (and for anyone else interested) what a more complete health puzzle looks like. This is important to me because energizing others to choose health is part of how I live my life strategically!
2019 is in full swing and it is time I finalized my annual goals. I try to live my life strategically, spending as much time figuratively and literally in my happy place (My Little Blue Kayak) where I make my best decisions in pursuit of health, wealth and happiness. When sitting in my kayak, I can really see my life. I can see how it mirrors the life I want to be living and where it comes up a bit short! Writing annual goals is one way I try to make course corrections to keep me on my path. I use health, wealth and happiness as my goal categories and loosely define them as:
My job as an Occupational Therapist at a Nursing Home has taught me to be persistent. If I am scheduled for 75 minutes with a patient, my boss doesn’t want to hear that I only got 60 minutes. Sometimes, I want to listen to my heart when someone starts complaining that they didn’t sleep or are in pain or that they have company. Quite often though, I have to listen to my head.
Getting out of bed may sound like the worst possible torture to someone who doesn’t feel well, but in reality, it is often exactly what they need. So, I often need to go back to see the same person 3x during the day in order to get my 75 minutes. I have to bother them despite the fact that they have tried to refuse me, I have to ask them again to get out of bed, to sit on the edge of the bed or to lift some light weights while in bed. Some days, I walk in someone’s room and before I even introduce myself they groan or roll their eyes. They know I am a therapist before I say a word and they know I am going to be pushy.
I spent one day recently engaged in completing some Strategic Planning exercises to help me clarify how I will use my Health Coach Certification. The exercises I completed were helpful and fun and by the end of the day I had written a mission statement and a list of actionable steps to get me moving in the right direction.
Mission Statement: “To energize adults living with chronic disease to maximize their health, wealth, and happiness by adopting new habits, embracing positive attitudes, removing barriers, and focusing on what brings them joy“.
Lake Girl@mylittlebluekayak.com
What new habit are you thinking about embracing? Let me know in the comment section below!
2018 is long gone and it is past time that I took a peek at the goals I set for myself at the beginning of the year to see how I fared. Overall, I am pleased with how I did and have started the process of writing my 2019 goals. I wonder what it is like to be one of those people who have annual goals written by the beginning of the year. I wonder, but I don’t stress about or even bother to dream about it!
Quite a while ago, I made a shocking confession here at My Little Blue Kayak. I confessed to the world that I was having a love affair with someone incredibly important to me. She was laid back, easy-going and nice to look at; I am talking about my crock pot of course. I had started using it several times per month and really enjoyed coming home to a piping hot dinner that smelled awesome. Well, I have had my slow cooker for probably 20 years and she still works great. But it is time for a new confession; I haven’t used it in forever.
I have given my heart to another and don’t anticipate needing my crock pot, well ever. In October, we went on vacation with Number 9 and his wife and they brought their Instant Pot. When Mother Fran and Number 7 returned to Florida, I borrowed their Instant Pot from the cottage and began experimenting. In December my honey and I took the plunge and bought our own Instant Pot and I fell in love! I have officially joined the Instant Pot Fan Club. This pot has a bunch of different setting including saute, pressure cook, steam and can even make yogurt. Oh, it also has a slow cook function so goodbye crock pot!
If you read this blog at all, you have a pretty good idea that my Mom is super important to me. I affectionately call her Mother Fran and have learned so much from her as it relates to health, wealth and happiness. She is 91 years young and still enjoys playing bridge, cards, doing puzzles and reading on her kindle. Playing Canasta is her favorite past time and she is always ready for a match. I have inherited her love of games!
Mom has always been ahead of her time when it came to healthy eating. She only allowed the healthiest breakfast cereals in the house. I remember Product 19, Shredded Wheat (plain), and Grape Nuts. I used to try to sneak sugar into my cereal bowl to give it some taste! I don’t recall her cooking breakfast but Papa Jack would routinely cook eggs, pancakes, and French toast. Two vegetables were always on the dinner menu and fruit was always in the fridge when we were hungry. We had huge gardens and Mom used to send me out to pick the veggies right before dinner. I have inherited her interest in nutrition and healthy eating.
I remember she had a subscription to Prevention Magazine, always took vitamin supplements and tried to pass carob powder off as chocolate. We only ate whole grains, rarely had soda and the only time we had candy was on Halloween. I remember her swallowing a tablespoon of olive oil in the morning because she knew it was good for her.
Through her 80’s she used her arm weights, ankle weights and did seated yoga. She used to engage in exercise every day but over the last few years, her love of games has gotten in the way. Now, Child #7 makes her stretch her neck and do shoulder shrugs in between rounds of Canasta! She also used to listen to relaxation tapes daily and take long afternoon naps. I am kind of a nap failure but I do love my daily quiet time. Guess I inherited a need to take time to myself every day in order to recharge my batteries.
I have learned a lot about optimizing health from my Health Coach Training, reading a ton of books, listening to podcasts and modifying my own diet. I focus on making one good decision after another to reach my health goals. Recently, I have begun to track healthy habits in an App on my cell phone which has really helped me stay on top of my game! I have definitely inherited Mother Fran’s interest in living a healthy lifestyle.
Mother Fran is wonderful but she is not known for her patience. If she wants you to do something, she wants it NOW. I remember several years ago, I was resting on the deck after driving 6.5 hours to visit her. She asked if during my visit I could move a bunch of rocks that had fallen off a rock wall. I said sure and closed my eyes. About 30 minutes later, I see her carrying a large rock out of the corner of my eye. When I asked her why she was moving it, she said well you weren’t getting around to it! I am afraid I have inherited her lack of patience too!
As my honey and I gear up for a long visit with Mother Fran and Child #7, I look forward to sharing some of my favorite meals and newfound healthy living knowledge with her. I want to get her talking about her own interest in health living to see what she can teach me as well. I am 100% positive we will play hours upon hours of Canasta. We will hit the beach and some favorite restaurants. Who knows, maybe can brainstorm ways to improve our patience too!
I wonder what else I have inherited from Mother Fran???
Lake Girl!
Check out these articles to see how Mother Fran can influence you to choose health too!
