Friday, 22 May 2020

The reality is Covid-19 has become a part of our WW journey, whether we accept it or not.


I usually write these posts when I’m inspired to share an idea I think might inspire others too.  I hear or read something that clicks and I start my writing process: for several days I write thoughts on used envelopes, on the back of grocery lists, receipts and occasionally in the middle of the night, on an empty toilet paper roll…with an eye brow pencil.  Last week during our WW workshop we talked about feeling out of control living life as we know it today and the word “acceptance” kept coming into my head.  And then, as it always does, life starts to bring images and quotes about whatever I’m focusing on into my view.

“Accept – then act.  Whatever the present moment contains, accept it as if you had chosen it.  Always work with it, not against it.  Make it your friend and ally, not your enemy.  This will miraculously transform your whole life.”  “Realize deeply that the present moment is all you ever have.”      Eckhart Tolle

Last Monday was to be the day I started taking my thoughts off the bits and pieces of paper and formulate one single, hopefully coherent, message. But Easter weekend was not great for me: I was alone, I talked with family members who live in Las Vegas, scary enough at the best of times but now very scary, I facetimed with my son who is well but whom I’m unable to hug and also with a childhood friend who was just diagnosed with pancreatic cancer 2 weeks ago.  And then, of course, there were the 6-foot-fear-driven conversations with people on my walks that lodged themselves into my already overactive brain. Sunday night my dreams were full of fear, worry and hot flash-producing anxiety.  So Monday I did everything to avoid writing.  I even resorted to cleaning and cooking which at least made me laugh. It made me laugh because I was doing an exceptionally good job of not accepting my present situation. I was refusing to accept what is.

I’ve been doing that with my WW plan too.  By not accepting the way it is now, I’ve been unconsciously putting myself, my plan and my life on hold until “things got back to normal.”  And that made me wonder if any of you, my wonderful WW peeps might doing the same?  Are you refusing to accept what you can’t control and putting your WW plan on hold? I know we all can’t wait to be together in our studio’s again but we are SO lucky to have our virtual workshops! One thing remains the same: just like our in-studio workshops, the virtual workshops will be what you choose to make of them. As WW members we have always known in order to be successful in reaching our weight loss and wellness goals we’ve had to accept what needed to be done, and when we went one step further and EMBRACED what needed to be done we were not only more successful but we were joyful along the way.  Even during this difficult time members are continuing to have success and that means those members are accepting what they need to do in order to be successful.  They accept they need to track, get some activity in, prep plan friendly meals, nourish their positive mindset and connect in whatever way they can. They understand that success not only comes from purposefully accepting what they need to do but also from lovingly accepting that they might not be able to do it every day.

I believe if we want to control what we put into our mouths, we must control what we put into our heads first. Once we accept, and embrace, what we need to do and focus on what we can control, life has a chance to become easier and more peaceful.  




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