We all know that at the end of another year, a little reflection on the past 12 months plays on our minds, and welcoming in the new year brings new expectations, goals and hopes.
2017 seems to have flashed by in a blink of an eye yet again - I honestly don’t know how it went so fast and how much happened in a year that I thought wouldn’t be as intense as the previous one.
Looking back it couldn’t have been further from that, from personal achievements, great moments I’ll always look back on, and some I’d like to just bury in the back of my mind and forget about, 2017 was insane.
There are always going to be some pretty shitty lows, and the most significant for me was my mama's cancer growing and her having to go through chemo all over again, bringing some new, horrid side effects and just more cancer shite being thrown her way. My mental health took a huge hit towards the end of the year, and whilst I’m glad I’ve got the most amazing support network around me, it has made me realise that I want to make some life changes in order to reduce my anxiety and stress levels, and try and bring back some normality and positivity in my mind and body.
More on that shortly.
As I mentioned, 2017 bought some great moments that I never thought I’d experience, let alone achieve. So, I thought I’d share a mini round-up for you, as well as some changes (see how I’m not saying goals?!) coming up in 2018.
TRAVEL
Towards the end of 2016, I started a new job - a huge step up in my career and something I have to say I’m pretty darn proud of. With the new role, came a lot of traveling, and my first trip of 2017 was to Sydney, travelling in Business Class with Emirates which was an experience in itself. Albeit I was only there for 3 nights, but I managed to see the city and have a mini-adventure before hopping on the plane home. A trip I’ll never forget.
Next came Paris in March and April, followed by Chicago in June, which was a city I fell in love with and can’t wait to visit again this year. July saw me head back to Paris to celebrate my birthday (no work involved!) before heading to Berlin in August and Madrid in September.
In October, I finally managed to pin my husband down and book our honeymoon! We visited Sweden and had the most amazing trip - it was the first time we had both visited the country and found it to be so beautiful.
CAREER
As I said earlier, I started a new job in the latter part of 2016, so 2017 was a big year for me and my career. Travelling played a huge part, but I finally felt settled and found myself really enjoying my job and feeling valued by my team and peers.
CH-CH-CHANGES...IN 2018
When you go through some pretty horrid shit, it really does put things into perspective. As I said earlier, I want to make some life changes in attempt to bring back some normality and positivity in my life. I’m not calling them goals, as I personally think calling them that adds a little pressure to achieving them, which I don’t need right now. I’m going to try and make one small life change each month, building up to the Summer when I have the strength and confidence to tackle the big ones I’ve got my eyes set on.
If you’re a regular reader, you’ll have noticed I started to post less towards the end of 2017. This year I will be posting regularly, but not as often as I have done previously. I want my content to be something I love talking about, and that feels natural to me. I’m also prioritising spending time with my favourite friends and family.
Over the last six months, I’ve really struggled with putting my wellbeing first. I’ve noticed my body has really taken a hit from it all - it’s crazy what stress can do to you and your body. So, I’m going to try and put myself first more, and look after myself by eating well and having an exercise plan in place - heck, I may even join a gym!
I’ve started to realise that it’s ok not to be able to control everything that life throws at you, and although I’m still taking baby steps with this one, I am starting to just take these sort of situations as they come and just go with it.
Something I want to change is not taking on everything at full-speed. I have a pretty busy life and I know I need to slow down and not stress out thinking about how something could have gone, and what it could have been and also not overthink plans that are coming up in the near future. I want to try to acknowledge the present a little more, enjoy what is going on around me and think less about the ‘what ifs’. This is probably going to be the hardest change of all, but I know I need to be patient.
So, 2018 come at me!
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