We get stuck in the all-or-nothing trap

This week, I'll be sharing some lessons I've learned as a wellness counselor. These are things I've observed in my clients and in myself—maybe you'll recognize them too.

5 THINGS WE ALL GET WRONG WHEN IT COMES TO WELLNESS:

4) WE GET STUCK IN THE ALL-OR-NOTHING TRAP.

Very rarely am I providing wellness recommendations that are brand new to my clients. Most of them know exactly what they need to do to support their well-being. They know intimately which eating, movement, and emotional patterns are helping or harming them.

But that’s part of the problem.

They can see the full picture and get overwhelmed by its potential. They think they have to do it all and do it fast. Flip the switch of sheer will and determination to become healthy overnight. When they try and inevitably fail at doing wellness perfectly, they give up. A trap I’m deeply familiar with.

When we study Ayurveda, the very first principle we ground ourselves in is that we are not separate from nature. We are an expression of nature. Our mind-body system operates like all other natural systems on Earth—it moves slowly.

Let’s take our cues from our wise old friends, the trees. On the fall equinox, trees don’t suddenly decide to change colors and drop their leaves. They evolve gently, little by little calling back nutrients, sugar, and water from their open embrace. Day by day they change into brilliant autumn hues, negotiating between light and dark with every cell of their being.

We too change this way. Little by little. Day by day. Cell by cell.

Somehow, 2023 is around the corner. While I don’t subscribe to the “new year, new you” trope and the industries that profit from it, I do love rituals of intention. If you want to be intentional with your wellness this next year, remember that you don’t have to do it all. You just have to do one thing.

Find what fills you with joy and add to that moment one small practice that brings you closer to your center of balance. Give that new ritual the space and time to integrate into your daily and/or weekly routine. When the habit sticks, layer on the next.

Above all else, be gentle with yourself. It is in your nature to go slow.