New Year, New Dreams

I usually think about a new year's resolution-- sometimes I keep it, sometimes I break it... This year I did not so much make a resolution, as set the intention to follow my dreams and opportunities wherever they might lead.

I have let MS, the shoulds and musts dictate far too much of my life for too long but in the last year or so I have really been trying to follow my dreams and to enjoy life as much as possible. I think it is paying off in health and happiness.

As I move into the year, I don't want to let anything hold me back. I want to wait on recording my latest ambitions, but I do have my sights set on getting out of public school teaching sooner than later and embracing a life choice that allow my to focus on yoga, acro and aerial dance.

Guest Post by Melanie Bowen

Setting Goals and Improving Health

An excellent quality of life is an important step of improving health and beating any type of sickness. Whether the prognosis is a rare cancer like mesothelioma or a long-term chronic disease like diabetes, taking time to set goals and write down accomplishments can result in benefits to any patient. Quality of life is not about being a patient; rather, it is about setting goals, taking steps to achieve the goals and then writing down the accomplishments.

Helping Health:

The National Cancer Institute points out that setting short term and long term goals can help take the mind off illness. By taking measures to remove the stress of constantly thinking about sickness, it is possible to improve quality of life throughout the day and week. Start you path to healing by setting personal goals.

Setting small daily goals is a key component to helping make quality of life better. Small goals might include fitting in a little extra exercise, trying something new for stress relief or even reading a chapter of a book for relaxation—all of which aid recovery.

Setting Long Term Goals:

Having long term goals gives hope and confidence. By having a few goals to look forward to reaching, it is possible to forget the problems and work toward something worthwhile. Whether the goal is something like having a child or something like graduating from school, it helps manage the situation.

The National Cancer Institute suggests that while long term goals are important to plan, it might also require some flexibility based on the situations that might arise.

Writing Accomplishments:

As goals are met, it is important to write it down as an accomplishment. This applies to both the short-term goals of a day or two and the long-term goals that might be months away. Writing down what was accomplished helps keep the mind focused on the positives rather than the negatives.

Having a reminder of the accomplishments goes further than just noting that a goal was met. It brings the focus on reaching set goals and working toward something as well as possible under the circumstances. It also provides motivation to continue trying to reach further goals and keep setting new tasks to reach toward as quality of life improves.

Goals and accomplishments are more than just a list of things to try before death: they are hope that life will continue on long beyond the estimates of doctors. Severe illnesses like cancer or diabetes might seem scary at first, but working toward something helps improve the situation for a better lifestyle while undergoing traditional treatment.

“Melanie Bowen is an awareness advocate for natural health and holistic therapies. You will often find her highlighting the great benefits of different nutritional, emotional, and physical treatments on those with illness in her efforts to increase attentiveness and responsiveness on like topics"