Lessons Learned So Far

Well here we are 3 weeks into the new school year and 11 weeks since I woke up and pulled myself out of my pity party and things are going very well. Not without a few bumps and bruises but all in all, things are good. I have learned a few things over the course of the past few weeks and thought I should write them down before I forget and so I have something to reference in case I stumble back into the dark place again. None of this is rocket science, most of it is things most of you already know but as I have demonstrated in the past, I can be a slow learner at times. Some lessons were big "A HA" moments and some have been more of a subtle observation.

Lesson #1

Controlling your eating and increasing your exercise does in fact result in weight loss and a need for smaller pants.....who knew?? I stepped on the scale at the end of July and had what I like to call a "Holy Fuck are you kidding me?!?!" moment. I made a choice right then to get a grip and make every effort to turn things around, and through healthy food choices and the support of my close friends and family, things are slowly turning around. I am down a size and am feeling great. I have a long way to go but am hell bent on getting there.

Lesson #2

Sitting around feeling sorry for yourself results in your feeling even shittier. Getting up, getting moving and getting on with things results in one feeling much better and much more optimistic about the future. Another shocker.....

Lesson #3

Being unhappy about your current situation, be it your relationship, job or whatever, complaining about it but not actually looking into a solution results in nothing changing in your current situation. Ask for what you want. You would be surprised how many times you get it.

Lesson #4

Happiness is a choice you make. You can choose to focus and dwell on all the things you don't have, all the things that aren't working out the way you want them to and all the things that only increase your unhappiness or you can make the choice to look for the positive and see the good. I can almost promise it is all around you.

Lesson #5

I am in fact the only person in my house who knows who to change the roll of toilet paper. It is what it is, no amount of ranting, or fuming is going to change that fact. Accept it and move on.

Lesson #6

There is absolutely nothing wrong with spending an entire Sunday in bed watching Netflix. So what if I didn't wash the floors or clean the bathroom. Nobody died - except maybe a character or two on Grey's.

Lesson #7

Being a doula is my passion. I LOVE being a part of that experience and watching someone go from being pregnant to a mother in the blink of an eye. It never ceases to amaze me. I need to continue to make time for that passion in my life.

Lesson #8

No one is coming to take all the recycling off my deck - I actually have to remember to get it out to the curb every other Tuesday.

Lesson #9

When you are all dark and gloomy and behave like Eeyore nobody wants to hang around you very much. Turns out when you are happy and smiling you are a lot more fun to be around.

Lesson #10

I cannot operate a curling iron or curling wand. It is outside my skill set. Thankfully my daughter seems to have figured it out and can manage her own hair and does not need to rely on her mother to help her out.

and last and very importantly....

Lesson #11

There is no acceptable, healthy, low fat, low cal, low sugar, replacement for the Pumpkin Spice Latte. Either skip it completely or check your guilt at the door of Starbucks and just go for it and enjoy it in all its spicy, sweet, whip creamy glory. The occasional indulgence isn't going to make or break you.