The Past Year in 10 Points + A Bit About What Now

I promised a personal update about the past 11 months, so here it is!

11 months ago, I wrote about how I was at a high. I had just been to Italy for a few days, lost a few kgs, and was exciting to start cooking again, be more active and try new things.

And well, I’m happy to say I kept that up!

Of course there were still bad days (weeks), but looking back, generally, it was a good time, filled with accomplishments!

• I’ve kept going to the gym, building up my strength and confidence.
• I started walking more and even hiking – leading to a 4-day hiking trip to Northern Ireland in September, where we walked 54 km! (That’s where the picture above is from.)
• My eating has been a lot healthier. I’m cooking more and trying new recipes and foods.
• As a result of all of the above, I’ve also lost 16 kgs.
• In the past 11 months, I’ve traveled to Northern Ireland, Budapest (twice), Hannover, and Dublin!
• I’ve also been to 4 Dermot Kennedy concerts (in 3 countries) in total in the past 11 months (#spoiled #fangirl).
• A personal milestone: I asked someone on a date (he misunderstood, said yes, and then talked about his girlfriend) and had a handful of dates with someone else (who then ghosted me, but we’re forgetting about that).
• I worked my ass off in November/December! It was super busy at work and it gave me quite a lot of stress, I wasn’t feeling great back then, but I’ve also learned some things and have a better idea of how to balance it next time.
• I finished my therapy in September!
• I’ve gotten a lot better at setting (and keeping) boundaries. Because I have more confidence, but I’ve also learned a lot about what I like and dislike, and what I’m not comfortable with. I’ve learned I’m worth taking care of.

Now, in the corona-era

I’ve lost my job and we can’t travel and the government prefers us not to leave the house either. And that’s hard for me.

When I got my burn-out, it felt like it took a lot from me. Living abroad, working a lot, going to the gym, a busy social life…

I worked really hard to be able to travel again, to work more than a handful of hours, to see my friends regularly, to go hiking and work out at the gym, to try new things and now it’s like I’m thrown back in time and all these corona measures are taking these things from me again.  I struggled with it for a while, but someone told me:

“Sometimes we put external things in the hands of our success and mind, but know that it’s you that actually actions it.”

And that was an eye-opener. I’m the one who’s in control of my mindset. I know being active and productive helps with feeling good. And even though everything is closed and we can’t travel anymore, I can still;

• Go for a daily walk and get my steps in (early, before the other people come out)
• Do a home workout and yoga
• In lieu of actual work, I can do some of those courses I’ve been wanting to do for ages
• Plus instead of waiting for my job to return to me, I can try and find other work (and not listen to that voice that asks me who the fuck would be looking to invest in content marketing when the entire world is on lockdown)
• Read more books
• Talk to friends on the phone (I’m lucky enough that one of my best friends has been in isolation with me for three weeks!)
• Work on habits like less screen-time and more sleep
• Try new recipes and eat healthy

I know these things help me feel better about myself, so that’s what I’ve been focusing on. Taking care of myself doesn’t stop because the world stops.

And what’s gonna happen when the world starts turning again? Hopefully I’ll have a fun job again (freelance or ‘normal’), I can resume my driving lessons, and work on living on my own again (preferably abroad, but that depends on the job situation. My best friend and I are currently manifesting living in The Hague!).

If you want, feel free to share with me something that you’re proud of that you did in the past year, and one of your goals for the near future!