Five Caregiver Resolutions for 2020
It’s hard to believe how fast 2019 has flown by! Do you remember what you aspired to accomplish during this year? Were you successful in reaching your goals? If you fell short of fulfilling your 2019 New Year’s resolution, don’t fret. You’re certainly not alone.
Aiming to change our lives in a challenging and important way isn’t the easiest thing to do in January; perhaps that’s why many New Year’s Resolutions are abandoned by January 12. It’s a difficult time of the year: the days are chilly and short and it’s hard to say goodbye to the buzz that the holiday season brings and return to the everyday reality of professional life.
While the ambition to change for the new year is a good and healthy one, how do we accomplish it? Maybe looking inward and aiming to take on a resolution that’s authentic and manageable can help. Consider these caregiver resolutions for 2020.
Adopt a health goal
As a healthcare professional, you know a lot about what the body needs to stay healthy, fit and harmonious. When you think about your own health, what about your routine stands out? Visiting Angels caregivers are busy professionals; you have a lot to manage. It’s can be hard to take care of yourself on top of everything else you do.
But what do you find yourself saying to you on a regular basis? Is it something like:
- I really should eat breakfast everyday
- I must stop eating lunch in my car
- Those energy drinks I adore make me feel kind of shaky and ba
Addressing an issue like this is a small, but meaningful, adjustment. Keeping a resolution is healthy and motivating. Target a health goal that’s manageable. This sets you up for success in the new year.
Invite a professional goal
Upgrading your credentials is good for your career and it helps keeps you challenged and satisfied in your work. Could this be your year to get trained to care for Alzheimer’s, dementia or end of life care clients? Talk with your supervisor to learn about available training opportunities.
Commit to better sleep
You know from your work with clients how important sleep is for sound mental and physical health. Are you doing enough to prioritize your own? “It is estimated that sleep-related problems affect 50 to 70 million Americans of all ages and socioeconomic classes” reports Sleephealth.org. Make good sleep a priority in 2020 - whether that means refining your evening ritual or investing in new pillows or blankets this holiday season.
Drop a habit that haunts you
We’ve all got those pesky habits that bother us about ourselves. Do you find yourself justifying something, either out loud or in your own mind, that you’re getting tired of explaining? Maybe it’s smoking, over doing it with something that you eat or drink or getting too sucked into your screen. We’ve all got those guilt-inducing habits that feel exhausting to carry around.
Take all the energy you’ve been using to explain the bad habit away and put it into giving up that annoying crutch. If it truly doesn’t bother you, then that’s one thing, but why carry a habit that haunts you? If it bothers you then, on some level, you want to be rid of it. Do it. You’ll be proud of yourself, and relieved of that on-going conversation that you’ve had a million times in your own head.
Pick up a good habit
Do something easy but rewarding. Read a book a month. Learn to knit. Take a self-defense class. Volunteer at church. Pick up that habit that you keep saying to yourself: I’d like to try that. You don’t have to make a huge commitment. Set a goal that you think you can handle. Then chip away at it.
Achieving your goals feels good, especially in the winter months, when you need a sense of accomplishment to keep you feeling good about yourself. Embrace the opportunity that a new year’s resolution presents. It’s worth it!
Happy holidays!