Instead Of Making New Year’s Resolutions, Try Creating A Vision

At the beginning of each new year, many people make resolutions. Topics generally include health, finances, and/or relationships. Did you know that the majority of people who make fitness-related resolutions generally quit by February 15? That is not something I want to bet on – would you?

The idea of a resolution in and of itself is fantastic. For a neurotypical mind (someone without a mental illness), this process is pretty straightforward.

For a neurodivergent person living with bipolar disorder, such as myself, the process of making a resolution can seem daunting. My mind simply operates on a different level.

Fortunately, like most of the things in my life, I have created a new process to manage things around me.

Change Your Perspective

In order to properly interpret the external stimuli around me, I change the paradigm of my own mind. In this particular instance, I simply do not use the term “resolutions.” Instead, I focus on a “vision” for the coming year.

This may not seem like much of an epiphany, but the simple act of choosing the right words can completely change your perspective. Creating a vision instead of resolutions allows you the ability to refocus your energy.

Instead of making New Year’s Resolutions, I create a vision based on my long-term goals. I break down my vision into short-term goals to fulfill my vision for the year. For example, my vision is to better myself each and every day, given the constraints within my life at that particular time.

Goal Setting

My battle with bipolar disorder has caused my own mortality to come into question many times throughout my life. It has put me in a position where I live life day-to-day. I look at the world with a unique perspective. That being said, I want to assure you that YES, you can create both realistic and achievable goals.

I have always been a proponent of goal setting. However, if you are in the middle of a mood episode, goals are the last thing on your mind – safety and survival are your immediate concerns.

When you are no longer in the midst of a mood episode, you can focus on other things besides your survival. During periods of stability, and when your bipolar disorder is in remission, I suggest you make at least one short-term goal and one long-term goal.

If a long-term goal feels too daunting, just focus on a short-term goal. You can even make many short-term goals to reach your one long-term goal.

It is important that your short-term goal be specific to what you want to accomplish, include a reasonable time frame to accomplish it, and actually be realistic and attainable.

Specific To What You Want To Accomplish

The best way to be specific about what you want to accomplish is to use numbers. For example, I have a goal to write one blog post each week. One blog post each week is the specific accomplishment.

Reasonable Time Frame

Make your timetable realistic. If you make it too short, you risk getting overwhelmed. If you make it too long, you may actually get bored, lose interest, and end up not following through with your goal.

My goal of writing a weekly blog article is time-specific. Each week, I publish an article on “New Post Wednesday.” My specific time frame is one week.

Make It Attainable

Is your goal realistic and attainable?

I love living a healthy lifestyle. Exercise is a part of my daily routine, so let me give you an example about weight loss.

Generally speaking, you can lose 1-2 pounds of healthy weight per week. Therefore, it takes anywhere from 5 to 10 weeks to lose 10 pounds. If you are just starting a new workout program, it may be in your best interest to make five weeks your goal – with 5 weeks being an attainable goal in this example.

Now, let me give you a few examples of some of my goals:

Goal #1

Enhance My Treatment Plan

My treatment plan is in a constant state of evolution. It changes based on how I feel, external factors, stress, and my physical health.

My treatment plan is successful because I take a proactive approach in the treatment of my bipolar disorder. This provides me the ability to manage my bipolar disorder and, in turn, the rest of my life.

To maintain stability, it is imperative I follow my treatment plan. I do this through:

• Medication management
• A healthy lifestyle
• Healthy sleep hygiene
• Exercise
• Making good food choices
• Increasing my water intake

Enhancing and improving my treatment plan is one of my primary goals because I always seek ways, strategies, and tools to better my quality of life.

Goal #2

Follow A Healthy Lifestyle

A healthy lifestyle includes daily exercise, making good food choices, getting enough sleep, and enjoying some downtime. As I write this article, I already follow a healthy lifestyle. My goal is to continue my consistent healthy habits.

Goal #3

Improve My Time Management Skills

I have a tendency to get sucked into a project or idea, and it consumes all of my time and energy. This can be a good thing, but sometimes this hyper-focus neglects other aspects of my life.

My goal is to improve my time management skills each day. I plan to do this by prioritizing my daily tasks and increasing my self-awareness of my bipolar disorder.

Energy and motivation are two big factors that impact my functionality. It is imperative that I take a daily inventory of my projects and prioritize them accordingly. It is not in my own best interest to focus all of my resources solely on one project.

Goal #4

Increase My Advocacy Efforts

Along the same line, I plan to work smarter when it comes to my advocacy efforts. My focus will be on quality and not necessarily quantity.

Over the past few years, I have ramped up my advocacy efforts. In fact, I have earned a number of achievements regarding my advocacy of bipolar disorder.

At the end of 2019, I flew to Las Vegas, Nevada, and accepted the WEGO Health Award Best in Show: Twitter.

My blog was featured (and still is) as one of the “Best Bipolar Disorders BLOG.”

On March 27, 2020, I published my first book entitled “This War Within My Mind.” It made Choosing Therapy’s “17 Best Books About Bipolar Disorder.”

In April of 2020, I launched my podcast called The Bipolar Battle. It made the list of Feedspot’s “Top 10 Bipolar Disorder Podcasts on the Web.”

To increase my advocacy efforts this coming year, I hope to find some sponsors and new collaborations.

Goal #5

Get Creative

I love writing. Writing is a therapeutic tool I use to get my thoughts and ideas all in order.

Generally speaking, I type my articles directly on my Chromebook. I have a stack of college-ruled notebooks that I plan to take around with me when I’m out and about. That way, I can write when I’m inspired and transfer the articles later to my Chromebook.

Drawing is another creative endeavor that I enjoy. Luckily, my son enjoys drawing, and I have the wonderful pleasure of getting to draw with him.

I have all the drawing materials I need. Now, I just need to start practicing on a regular basis.

Last Thoughts

Creating an overall vision for my life has helped point me in the right direction regarding how I manage my bipolar disorder.

My suggestion to you is not to give in to the “new year, new you” rhetoric. It only increases stress, and we know that stress is a big trigger of a mood episode.

Exercise is always a big resolution. Get to the gym and work out, right? There is always a huge spike in gym enrollment in January. This spike sharply dips down and is back to normal by mid-February. Follow-through seems to be the biggest issue. If you do not have a clear direction or a game plan, you will wander aimlessly.

Creating a vision will provide you a clear direction and game plan. If you can articulate your vision, your goals will naturally fall in line. They will simply be steppingstones to propel you toward your vision.

It is important not to add any undue stress to your life. That is the big reason behind creating a vision in the first place. The body reacts to both positive and negative stress the same – your body does not discriminate.

If you are just getting out of a mood episode, ease back into the daily grind of life. Once you are in a good spot, get back to creating your vision.

The good thing about goals is that they provide hope and a reason to move forward.

Goals are something that you can do throughout the year. They can help provide a focus for your life.

Set yourself up for success and not failure.

Those of us with a mental illness have a different perspective. Remember, having a focus is key to living with bipolar disorder.