New month: one goal

I wish I can do what Sarah does, sit with a coffee, with her utensils spread out and plan the month ahead. I can’t. Those planning moments don’t come out that way, they come when I am on the move, 90% when I run, so I juggle down notes when I finish or during water breaks and later transfer them to the journal.

The planner showed me that we are starting October. The blank page hints new start, goal setting option, yet, I have one goal for October, survive, manage stress.

I don’t complain about it, I know what is expected from me (give all I have for the best chance), I am just acknowledging it and think objectively how to manage stress under control so it won’t affect my performance and mental health. I know this is coming because I felt some stomach pain while running. It has happened too many times for me to know that acid reflex is a reflection of my stress level. I’ve been care free about it since July, eating spicy food (not too spicy), fruits, as I feel like. But no more. I will have to be implementing the protocol to minimize flare up which will make it worse:

• meditate every morning
• do breathing exercise throughout the day, in the toilet maybe when I’m in the office, 4x4x4 is effective technique
• eliminate triggering food for acid reflex: fruits in general, especially citrus, spicy food, cold drink
• shut down work mindset by 6pm latest
• dive into reading, not 10 min before bed, but good solid hour after dinner. I find reading calming
• hold my girls and husband for longer
• have top 3 things on my to-do list for the day. I know those to-dos will be mentally demanding so I should leave plenty of space to rest and recover
• write things/emotions down, blogging or morning pages. As they come out, somehow I am more conscious of them and can manage them better instead of going unconsciously about them and manifest in other ways
• let the family know that I’m in a survive mode, so bare with me with not making the most fun weekends, making new recipes, I just want to nest and comfort when I can

Unrelated, or related point about my parenting philosophy: putting the kids into discomfort (safely), challenges. They’ll struggle, they’ll overcome, many times so they know they can deal with discomfort, they know what to do about it, and they know eventually we can go over it. This applies for sport, music, academic tasks. This is exactly the same mindset I have for me, and I see this occasion, the start of a stressful month, just another of these experiences of discomfort that I am confident I’ll overcome. I have my tools, I know they work, just need to be diligent in implementing them.

Next post will be September books and movies recap. 🙂 Maybe I’ll do it after my today’s hard to dos.