One of the hardest things to defeat during COVID is depression. We all have goals; personal, career, and when something gets in the way of those goals, it can be devastating.
Things as simple as maintaining a gym routine can feel like defeat when gyms close. I for one have struggled to get up a steady motivation to attend weekly yoga. I was finally doing it. I felt so proud of myself for going every Wednesday after work, no matter how tired I was, I still showed up. Then COVID happens and I can't go to the gym anymore. This totally threw off my routine. Yes. I can do yoga at home. I can follow my gym's online videos, but it just didn't feel the same. I slowly got out of the habit and found it even harder for me to get back up and running. Hard to find that motivation to make that first step. It is normal to fall out of these routines and it is normal to feel a struggle to get back into them
When something gets in the way of the goals in your life it makes sense that you would feel angry, frustrated, and down. To lose motivation, want to quit, and even feel like you are back sliding. At times we just don't want to try. We are not ready to get back on the horse. And that is okay. It is important to allow yourself that time and to resist that urge to beat up on yourself for not accomplishing your goals today. Life is hard and this pandemic has made things feel even harder, so it is natural that you may feel like you are back sliding. Self-compassion means recognizing how this makes since for your life. Recognizing how your feelings and struggles are real and taking a few minutes to give yourself kindness. Knowing that you may not be ready for changing today. Maybe today is a binge watching TV kind of day. Maybe your not up for planning your new gym routine and that is okay. Life is hard and you deserve a break. Give yourself some loving compassion during this time, like you would do for others whom are struggling.
Then, when your ready, maybe even tomorrow, or the weekend, focus on just one little step to get you closer to that goal. Getting you closer to success, purpose, and happiness.