Over the last month, I’ve been focused on taking care of some huge projects. But that’s just one step in a complicated journey, and I’d like to take some time to talk to you about what that journey will look like–and how this blog will be a part of that journey.
What I’ve Been Up To
In my last entry I described how, as one of my 2015 projects, I would be focusing on a reclamation of my health and sanity. While I’ve made several steps in that direction, I still felt like I had something of a wall in my path: My incomplete thesis.
Now, I won’t go into the details of this thesis or the other schoolwork I’ve been trying to clear. Suffice it to say that, while I still have a ways to go, I’ve gotten things to a point where my stress levels are lower and my time is far more free. Having the space to truly focus on my health, and of making that process a project I can actually leave open time for, is now far more plausible.
And that project shall be called …
Rob’s Epic Quest for Health and Sanity
This is not a new project for me. For the last two years at least, I’ve been making steps toward better health and sanity. Last year was largely about building a safe landing place and then quitting the amphetamine-based medication that I was so dependent on. This year is about reclamation.
Right now, I want to head toward the exploration and application of three topics:
- Replenishment (engaging in activities that help revitalize my body and mind, reducing my stress and increasing my resilience)
- Nourishment (feeding my body in ways that energize, care for, and empower it)
- Play (moving, playing, stretching, exploring, and otherwise doing things my body enjoys)
I keep going back and forth in deciding which of these to focus on first. I also wonder about adding other categories. How do we … face the dominant culture of shame? Keep stress low as opposed to managing it after the fact? Deal with stress stemming from relationships or money or school? Effectively form habits? Build a more diverse and resilient social support system? Stay motivated?
These are all difficult questions that feel integral to my quest, and I’m looking to explore this topic holistically. As a starting point, however, I want to think of this project as exploring the categories mentioned above.
REQ’s Home on This Blog
I’ve backburnered a whole lot of projects on this blog. In fact, I’ve backburnered this blog. That’s the truth. But rather than keeping my blog here as a hypothetical, beautiful resource I never use, I’ve decided to let the blog be a representation of whatever I’m pursuing at a given time—even if it make it all a bit less pristine.
That means this blog will be a bit spastic. It means that I’m going to have to get comfortable with the fact that I’ll be posting imperfect, unpolished content sometimes. It means I’ll have to accept the fact that some of my current readership simply won’t want to hang around.
But right now, this blog seems to be the absolute best place for me to talk about what’s going on in my life, what my mind and time are occupied with, and what I learn in my pursuits. If you want to join me on my epic quest for health and sanity, stay tuned. I’ll be trying to write at least one entry a week on this topic.
My question for you: Which of the topics above should I focus on first? Leave your thoughts, questions, or ideas in the comments, below.
The post This Year: Rob’s Epic Quest for Health and Sanity appeared first on Rob Blair Writes.