Your Future Depends on What You Do Today and Not Tomorrow
By Gabriela Calvi – Epidemiologist Public Health Educator Podcaster “Good Morning Health”
We’re experiencing a bit of a difficult reality in the last few months, bombed with news everywhere. However, over the course I have learned that when we spend time taking care of our mental health, we gain more strength and resilience to meet the challenges. There are many things we can do for ourselves to strengthen mental capacity so that we can better overcome obstacles; in turn enjoy good times. Even though we often don’t see the beautiful things the world offers us.
Don’t underestimate the power of the small, simple works you do on a day after day. Small things make a difference because they transform the human being. Don’t let feeling ineptitude or insecurity stop you from doing those little spiritual and/or temporal things you want to do. For example, in English there is a phrase known as the FOMO “Fear of missing out”– in Spanish it simply translates as the“fear of missing something”. But what if instead of concentrating on FOMO, we gave ourselves the task of finding the JOMO – “Joy of missing out”, in Spanish would be the “joy of missing something”. A clear example of FOMO and its contrast from JOMO is when I decided to cancel my Facebook account for 3 years. Were you afraid of missing something? Of course! But the only desire to believe that such a habit would bring me peace, healing, strength, and hope that I could focus on my goals, knew that my purpose would not be in vain. So make the decision to follow JOMO instead of FOMO. What did I get during that time that I thought something was missing? I invested it in personal study, family sharing time, and serving my community. The end result is a joy of JOMO’s good investment – “Joy missing out”.
Strategies for personal care that can meet some of your mental, emotional, and physical needs include:
1.Take care of your body by observing a proper diet, getting enough sleep and exercising regularly
2.Develop and cultivate bonds with people with which you can talk and share your concerns, as well as your joys. Seek the guidance of the elderly, they have a accumulated experience of great value and objectivity, and they can get to make your best friends
3.Look for healthy sources of entertainment, hobbies, and activities that give you joy and make you feel realized.
4. Keep a personal journal in which you can express how you feel and organize your thoughts
5. Set healthy limits and say “no” when you already have too much to do.
6. Exercise gratitude. Being grateful allows us to avoid pitying ourselves or blaming others for our unhappiness. Try writing down three things you feel grateful for at the end of each day. If you don’t find blessings in your life – start by spending more time outdoors and watch carefully what’s around you. You will realize the many blessings that life is offering you
7. Replace the thoughts and negative things you say to yourself with something positive – as positive thoughts transform lives
8. Remember who you are, where you come from, and where you want to go
9. Reduce the time you spend on social media or avoid them altogether – whether long-term or short-term.
10. Forgive yourself and others. Keeping grudges or mistakes from the past places an unnecessary extra burden on your shoulders
I invite you to develop strategies that will help you strengthen all your mental, emotional and physical needs. We must work our thoughts, taking care of what is thought, what is heard, what is said, what is felt, what is read, and what is eaten. Since positive thoughts can transform our lives. One way to have an attitude of gratitude is to recognize, understand, and admit emotions. So that we can discover our needs with a grateful heart.
Good Morning Health wishes you a month full of many blessings and above all that you have an attitude of gratitude today and always. Happy Thanksgiving.
