I Blow at Taking Care of Myself!!!
The one thing this challenge has brought to the forefront is that I blow at taking care of myself! Why is it that I can run a multi-million dollar business, fit in time for my grandchildren, complete the church communications and website, keep my husband happy, and chip in where a friend needs me to...and I can't frickin' do something for myself? Excuses, excuses....My husband can set a goal and nothing....absolutely nothing gets in his way. He walks at least 5 miles everyday, lifts weights 5 days a week, does most of the housework (which isn't much when your empty nesters but I still appreciate it), and says "I'm going to drop 10 in 3 weeks" and he just does it. What is wrong with me that I can't make those commitments to myself? I won't even make myself drink my water everyday. It's like I'm in a complete frazzle spaz at work and next thing I know, I'm dragging my worn out butt home at 7:30pm, stuffing in something fast to eat and "PLOP"....I'm done at 9:30 and can't move another muscle.
What happened to the night owl that would stay up half the night creating wonderful sewing projects, or reading, or writing an article for the newspaper???? Where is my energy?
This week 3 will be spent contemplating what happened to that "ME" that used to BE. This week I will try to keep "ME" in the front of every sentence. Seems selfish...maybe that's my problem. I have tears in my eyes right now. That has to be it. It seems selfish. I think that of my husband....selfish that he puts his health and well being in front of everything. I don't come from selfish. My life has been about taking care of someone else, of looking out for others, and being a good friend, a good wife, a superb employee. Not about "ME"...it seems selfish. I need to change that thought process.....any ideas?
Here's to a week of thinking,
Terry
You are a busy lady and have been as long as I've known you. It is difficult for us woman, I think, to think of ourselves. We're raised to do for others, take care of others first before taking care of our own needs. Let's see a raise of hands for those of us Moms who have worn holey underwear in the past because funds were tight and our kids or husband needed stuff? Take this week and evaluate where you need to start putting time in for yourself and what you can do to make sure you get your water in and some movement each day. Stop and think about what is more important, finishing a chore right now, or maybe an hour from now after you have had a chance to take a walk with Kenny? The chore/task will still get done but maybe just in a slightly different timeline. What I have learned (or at least told myself) is if I don't keep myself healthy, I won't be around to take care of my kids, my husband, or future (way future) grandkids. I want to be around so Sanjay isn't by himself in his old age. I want to grow old with my husband and experience life as a couple as it is meant to be: holding hands and being together into our golden, golden years. I am looking forward to having the kids and grandkids come visit. I want to be healthy and vibrant as I grow older so I can play with them and continue to do stuff with my kids as we all age. I want to be around so that my daughter can come to me for advice once she is a mother like I did with mine. In order for us to be vibrant and healthy and be around for a long while, we MUST take care of ourselves. We must put our health first so that we can then take care of others. Don't think of it as being selfish. Think of it as adjusting your daily/weekly timelines. You can still get everything you need complete, but perhaps your timeline for some of the tasks have a bit of flexibility so that something gets done on Tuesday instead of Monday so you can workout on Monday. I know it is hard to do that. It is hard to work yourself into your day, but I'm confident that once you start to do that, once you start fitting in a few workouts each week, getting your water, eating better, you'll get more of your energy back and will be able to fit more things in throughout the week because you'll have more energy to do it. It may take a bit of forcing yourself sometimes (there are times where I hate every minute when I'm running and can't wait for it to be done) but I think you'll feel better for it. Sorry, I'm blathering on. I think what you're doing this week is a GREAT idea and I know YOU CAN DO IT!!!! Keep us posted.
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