As we welcome in the new year, it’s natural to reflect on the past and consider ways we can improve ourselves in the future. What isn’t natural is diet culture’s intense obsession with you becoming an all “new you!” As if you are an appliance, not a living, breathing, human being!
The diet/wellness world takes advantage of the natural new start to ram some disordered ideas down your throat. The New Year’s Resolution train is a large binge/restrict cycle we all go through one a year and it is toxic! You are encouraged to binge through the holidays because the looming “resolutions” will restart the clock and you’ll cleanse all your “past sins” with your new habits.
This promotes not only an unhealthy relationship with food, exercise, and goal setting, but promotes the narrative that in order to live the life you want you to need to change all of you. It’s so much pressure and filled with so much inferiority rhetoric.
Again, I am all for personal growth, self-reflection, trying new things and setting goals to get there, but it doesn’t have to come with the all-or-nothing, black and white, thinking of the New Year’s Resolution world. Change can happen any day of the year, and you don’t need a “new you” in order to live a life that feels good to you.
Instead of stressing out about large goals and drastic “lifestyle” changes, why not try being kind to yourself, giving yourself permission to fail – failing is a crucial part of learning – and remember that change is a process, not a destination. It can be messy and uncomfortable, there will be setbacks, but when you see every day, every hour, every moment as a chance to begin again, you can be present with your growth.
Instead of becoming a “new you,” maybe we should focus on being more loving and accepting of ourselves as we grow, change or maybe stay the same. All options are ok.
As we enter the new year, remember to be kind to yourself and embrace who you are. You are enough, and you have the power to make positive changes in your life every day, not just on January 1st.
So here’s to a happy and fulfilling new year, filled with self-love and acceptance.