Donna, David, Titanya and Dondi’s Personal Thoughts

If you’re anything like us, you probably can’t think about the New Year without thinking about New Year’s Resolutions! While setting positive goals each New Year can be a great way to become a better version of yourself by December 31st, what do you do when you’ve broken every one of your Resolutions by the 3rd week of January? 🙂

In this compilation of personal notes, Donna, you’ll find Donna’s wish for all of us in 2024 plus fun, helpful strategies from David, Titanya and Dondi on how to stay on track with your Resolutions in Jan, Feb, March and all the way through to December!

May Energy Methods Empower Your Most Noble Intentions
By Donna

One of the side effects of having triple bypass surgery for my heart back in 2022 is that my body didn’t trust the procedure and was confused about how to heal. During the operation, my heart was literally removed from my body and the blood was rerouted. My body assumed that death was the next step. The message that came in was to start “closing down.” My skeletal muscles began to atrophy, my legs became weak and then the fatigue came in -- almost to the point of paralysis -- because everything in my body was shutting down.

After the surgery, my body needed to recover and relearn a lot of seemingly simple tasks, including walking. So I had to learn how to walk again, just as a baby might learn to walk. This might seem like no big deal under normal conditions but walking is a very complex motion that takes a lot of strength, especially in your core, after cardiac surgery.

As you might know, the core consists of all the muscles and organs in your abdomen and under the rib cage down to the hips, front and back of the body. If your core becomes weak, your body starts to bend forward because the central muscles and organs cannot hold you up and you lose balance.

It was so strange feeling air and emptiness in my core and almost no strength at all! It’s why I resolve to stay conscious about retaining and gaining strength and vitality in my core, my legs and my bones and not look at my feet as I walk. I resolve to look straight ahead and lift my chest up, following my Assemblage Point -- my North Star! I resolve to use energy methods to empower my intentions to teach my body better balance.

Wishing you a Happy New Year and may energy methods empower your most noble intentions!

How I Stay True to My New Year’s Resolutions
By David

What makes New Year’s Resolutions tricky, as well as other intentions for transforming ourselves, is that we can easily see how we want to be different but not how to overcome all the forces that shaped the way we are.

The first step for me is to accept the way I am. This is a paradox. It might seem that not accepting the parts I want to change would motivate me to change faster. But it's the opposite. If I accept that I don't want to exercise every day, my psyche doesn’t then resist my efforts to overcome the inertia. At a deeper level, if my intention is to be less driven and more playful, which it is, I am more likely to succeed if I first recognize and accept what makes me so driven.

So I start with some inner reflection that allows me to get all my parts aligned with the change I want to bring about, from appreciating where I am to envisioning the steps to a different future. Once I have that, my preferred strategy is EFT tapping to more deeply embed the intention into my nervous system, address whatever obstacles come up, and affirm a clear vision for making the change.

Reaching Your Desires in a Healthier, More Positive Way
By Titanya

New Year’s Resolutions used to be a big challenge for me! Every year, come New Year’s Day, I’d feel excited and hopeful about achieving my Resolutions but by February, when Valentine’s Day chocolates seemed to be everywhere, I’d fall off my diet and end up feeling like a failure.

I started to believe that New Year’s Resolutions don’t really work because I always felt worse than before I made my Resolutions. So, I began thinking deeply about the word “Resolution” and I realized that it was kind of a “downer.” It felt like an “end-all” -- a final goal.

You see, Resolutions are future oriented and they can conjure up negative emotions. Most of us feel that if we don’t keep our Resolutions, we’re failing ourselves and that no matter how hard we try, we’ll never achieve them. For example, you want to lose those 50 to 100 lbs year after year but you never manage to achieve that goal.

To me, a Resolution usually feels like an insurmountable challenge. It’s like a giant mountain that I have to climb. I might get to the halfway mark but I never really reach the top. I didn’t want my New Year’s Resolutions experience to be the same story every year so a few years ago, I came up with a different way -- I decided to create an Intention, rather than a Resolution!

An Intention feels far more positive to me, and I’ve found that I can create it from a hopeful, powerful state. I’ve also found that with an Intention, you don’t have to become entangled in the outcome. You are creating an Intention in the moment and you can mold it as you go when it doesn’t fit your needs.

When I switched from a New Year Resolution to an Intention, things became so much easier. I wasn’t so concerned about winning and it was more about experiencing a positive, exciting vibration.

Here are some examples of how I reworded my Resolutions into Intentions this year:

Resolution - To not cuss, when I get mad.
Intention - “I can intentionally calm myself so that when I get mad, I don’t cuss but choose
different words instead.”

Resolution - Drink more water, with a goal to drink 8 glasses a day.
Intention - “When I drink more water, my body feels more energized, and my brain can think
clearer.”

Resolution - Get more organized and find balance in work, rest, and play.
Intention - “I joyfully commit to embrace greater organization to bring more harmony in my life with work, rest, and play.”

Resolution - To not get so triggered by my 6-year-old son, but find a calmer place so I can meet his needs.
Intention - “I lovingly intend to find my inner peace when my 6-year-old son triggers me, so that I can respond with more patience to understand his needs.”

I write my Intentions on notecards and speak them out loud every day, throughout the year. One more thing I like to do every year is to set my Intentions into place by putting them on a Vision/Intention Board (this has become a yearly family tradition!). I look at this Vision Board throughout the year and visualize the Intentions coming into my life.

I hope you enjoy creating your Intentions for the coming year and may they help you reach your desires in a healthier, more positive way!

It’s Okay to Start Again!
By Dondi

I always need to write down my detailed Resolution or commitment. It usually revolves around my health – whether it is to lose some weight or stick to daily walks. I put my Resolution where I can see it, as a reminder. Maybe it is taped to the inside of my makeup cabinet or on the kitchen refrigerator. It needs to be in BIG writing and bold colors so it can grab my attention!

I also predict and prepare for my “fails.” For instance, I know the time will come when I will completely pig out on a yummy meal, or eat some chocolate (I love sweets), or I go for that tub of buttered popcorn. I get really clear on what my obstacles might be and I plan for them in advance.

Will my challenging moments come when I get bored or at the next holiday or when I have strong cravings? I think about those and plan for them so they don’t surprise me and take me off track. I remove sweets from the house, I tell people not to buy me any chocolate, and I take some healthy (but yummy) snacks to the movies, so I don’t eat the buttered popcorn.

Additionally, I plan in advance how I will immediately get back on track the next morning after an “off” day. I try really hard not to continue the downward spiral for days on end. I write out exactly what I will eat the next morning after I veer off course. Will it be an intermittent fasting day, a morning of lemon water, or a vegetable day? I ponder that in advance and I have the ingredients ready to go in the house for the morning I wake up after a “bad” day.

Now that we are part way through January, if you are already struggling, we support you to get back on track. It’s okay to start again! Write down your good intentions, put them where you can see them and start fresh -- you can do it! We are rooting for you and Happy 2024!