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Reshape your life
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Check out this yearlong calendar for that sense of achievement
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THE DAYS just seem to be zipping past. All your time seems to be focussed on everybody but yourself. There are times when you just want to quit and flee! You don't seem to have any energy. Slowly, the joy you felt everyday when you woke up seems to be draining away. Well, time to take a good, hard look at yourself and take some time off to reshape your life.
Month 1: Take control
Take a good look at your health goals.
Schedule a doctor's appointment to have a baseline health check-up.
Outline a plan for a nutritious diet. Set an attainable weight loss goal for yourself.
Month 2: Weight management
Switch to healthy snacks.
A piece of fruit or a glass of low fat milk or buttermilk is healthier than fried snacks.
Make sure you drink plenty of water everyday. Hydration works wonders for your inner tissues and your skin will glow.
Eat five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. Dry fruits count!
Never go food shopping on an empty stomach. Make a low-calorie shopping list before you enter a store.
Month 3: Physical activity
Involve your entire family in household work.
Burn some of the calories you take in: use every opportunity to exercise. Start to exercise gradually and work your way up.
Walking is the easiest form of exercise. Make walking a daily routine.
Use the stairs at home and work.
Month 4: Stress busters
Allot 15 minutes for yourself each day (and guard it zealously).
Learn meditation/pranayama.
Surround yourself with music.
Get together with friends and family to cry, laugh and support each other.
Month 5: Ensure medical care for the family
Find the best health insurance package for your entire family.
Check your employee health insurance package — does it give good coverage?
Start a separate savings account for unexpected medical expenditure.
Choose a family physician/hospital for your family's health care.
Month 6: Your children: are they safe?
Make sure your children have received their immunisations.
Ensure a healthy diet for them; habits inculcated in childhood continue in adulthood.
Build in some exercise into their daily routine. Don't let them substitute TV for fresh air.
Always keep communication lines open with your children. Don't turn a blind eye when there's a drastic change in their behaviour. Drugs and sexual abuse are lurking dangers.
Month 7: The feel-good factor
Look at your achievements in terms of a happiness quotient.
Make a list of what you have done that makes you feel proud of yourself — and then bask in the glory.
Remember that what you have done with your children is a major achievement.
Measure success by health, peace and joy.
Reward yourself for all you do. You are a woman with multiple roles and nobody can do it better.
Month 8: Prevention: it's better than cure
Eat a well-balanced diet rich in calcium and vitamin D. It can help prevent osteoporosis.
Depending on your age, make sure you have regular checkups.
Don't forget to have an eye check-up, especially after 40 years of age.
You need to learn how to do regular breast self-examination.
A mammogram may be required — check with your doctor.
Schedule your pap smear test and pelvic examination.
Month 9: Spirituality: anchor yourself
Set aside a calm time of the day to get in touch with your inner self.
Individually or with the family, perform "random acts of kindness, senseless acts of beauty".
Explore avenues of spiritual experience; stick to the one that works best for you.
Month 10: Spread happiness; it will come back to you
Don't hold back on praise or appreciation. Even husbands need to be verbally told how much they are appreciated.
Don't hesitate to tell somebody how much s/he means to you — they might be gone from your life before you know it. There is no regret like the regret of unspoken words.
Smile: it is a great mental elevator for yourself and everyone around you.
Month 11: Say no to drugs
Don't self-medicate.
Avoid antibiotics for simple coughs, colds and the common flu.
Don't demand pills from your physician.
If you can't sleep well, use old-fashioned remedies like a glass of warm milk rather than reaching for a sleeping pill.
Month 12: Laugh and the world laughs with you
Spend time with your family. Shared laughter will bind you with love. Look at the funny side of every situation.
If you can't fight or flee, flow!
Don't let the small things bog you down. Learn to count your blessings; you always have something you can be happy about.
Dr. GITA ARJUN
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