The Daily Apple™©: Take The Best Care™© of Yourself

The Daily Apple™© Volume 2, Number 6

Friday, June 28, 2013

PGY #40  Day #363

Take The Best Care™© of Yourself

From Dr. Mike and Infinity Health Solutions

 

For our final blast of PGY 40 I take you back to The Stress Management Workbook.  In fact, I take you to the end of the book, page 162, which I have reproduced here.  There is ONE critical point to make with regard to altering your life and lifestyle to promote optimal health and well being.  It takes time to do it right.  

This is true for many reasons, not the least of which is this: we are programmed to behave in a certain way.  Not completely hard wired, humans have the capacity to change and to change themselves, but the biology of change involves reprogramming the brain and nervous system and that does take about two years.  This is about a mix of genetics and biology that amounts to "plasticity" of the nervous system.  If you eat well, sleep well, and get proper exercise, your body will enable the necessary changes in the nervous system that facilitate your ongoing path to health. I will not dwell on the science of this phenomenon now, but ask if you have questions about it.

The point is this: You can change.  Don't give up.  Take the time necessary to make the change stick.  If you screw up, fall down, make a mistake, go out of line, fall off the track ... get back on track ASAP.  The more time you spend on track, the easier it will be to stay there.  Do not give up ... do not surrender.

Below is the relevant page from The Stress Management Workbook.

Enjoy!

Dr. Mike

162 THE STRESS MANAGEMENT WORKBOOK

PITFALLS ON THE PATH TO HEALTH,

OR WHY CHANGE IS DIFFICULT

Change is not always easy to implement. There are several reasons

for this. You have been practicing your present style of thinking and

behaving for many years. Much of your behavior and attitude has

become habit. You will have trouble realizing you have engaged in

the habit until after the fact. 

Do not make your goal the immediate

and total elimination of the old behavior or the addition of new ones:

You will set yourself up for failure and add to your stress. A realistic

goal would be to reduce the frequency of the behavior(s) or increase

the frequency ofnew behaviors over time so that one or two years from

this date you can recognize substantial change. 

You can change habits

faster by  

(1) asking friends to tell you when you are engaged in the

old behavior; 

(2) deliberately engaging in the habit in an exaggerated

manner several times a day so that you become supersensitized to it;

and 

(3) keeping a log with you and writing down each time you or a

friend notice the habit-reward yourself for specified reductions in the

frequency of the behavior.

Often people will not change even if the present situation is not

satisfactory because the discomfort of the known is not as great as

their fear of the. consequences of unknown behavior. If you become

more assertive, for example, you will have to deal with the reactions

ofthose around you, some ofwhom may prefer that you stay meek and

docile. If you discover that you seem reluctant to change even though

intellectually you believe you would be better off altering your lifestyle,

then list all the consequences you can think of that would occur

if you did make the specified changes. Which of these would present

new problems for you? How can you decrease your fear of being different?

If this problem seems to have you stymied, seek professional

counseling or medical care.

Refer back to your Action Plan for Change (page 158). Ifthe number

of changes you believe you have to make is substantial, where to start

and how to achieve so much may seem overwhelming. This may give

you the excuse you need to avoid beginning. Do not be upset if you

have found yourself with a long list of changes to make as a result of

reading this workbook. Look at it as a long-range plan. Make a list of

the priorities and work away at it over the next couple of years, rewarding

yourself at each step. Gradual change is better for you than

sudden major shifts in thought, behavior, job situations, etc.

Do not give up. You may review the material and revise your plans

repeatedly without harm. Take your time and remember to enjoy yourself

along the way to your goals.