2018 Resolutions

The New Year often serves as a time to reflect on ourselves and allows us to consider all the triumphs and struggles that we have had during the past year. The start of a new year also allows us to think about the person we would like to be in the coming year and create a plan to live up to our own expectations. Here are some of the resolutions that we at CAPCO have made for 2018:

Not make assumptions about what others think of me.

This year, we will not make assumptions about what others think of us. Disclosing one’s HIV status is a very personal decision and something that deserves a lot of thought. However, we often go through life assuming that others would judge us if they knew our HIV status, and this often leads us to stigmatize ourselves and can affect our self-esteem. This year, we are letting go of the assumptions we make about what others think of us.

Do things to make me feel happy.

When we are dealing with so many different things at once–our physical health, mental health, finances, family life, work, school–it is sometimes hard to remember to take the time to care of ourselves. In 2018, we will spend time on things that make us happy and that make us feel good, both physically (like exercising, eating healthier, or getting a massage) and mentally (like reading a book or spending time with the people we love).

Dwell in the present, not in the past.

Life is not always easy, and many of us have gone through some difficult times over the course of our lives. While it is certainly important at times to reflect on our past and to learn from our own experiences, it is never helpful to stay stuck there. This year, we will not focus on our past but will instead choose to live in and enjoy the present for what it is. Instead of focusing on HIV and how we came to live with it, we will focus on the lives we lead today and how wonderful our lives can be while living with HIV.

Let myself and others make mistakes.

Everyone has made mistakes in their lives, and we are certainly no different. But while we may have negative feelings about the mistakes we have made in our lives, it is important to remind ourselves that mistakes can be great learning tools for ourselves and others. No one is perfect, including ourselves, and we should not hold anyone to the standard of perfection when it is something unreachable. In 2018, we will allow ourselves and others to make mistakes because we know that no one is perfect, and that is the beauty of life.

We hope that you may take on some of these resolutions in 2018, or that this list has at least influenced you to create some resolutions of your own. For more ideas for resolutions, check out Tyler Curry’s 2015 resolutions that inspired this post here or check out Very Well’s list of top 5 HIV-related 2018 resolutions here.