Welcoming 2021: Resiliency, not Resolutions!

We believe that mental wellbeing is more important than ever and that includes our emotional, psychological, and social wellbeing. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others and make choices.

We want to point you toward the road to resiliency!

Here are relevant resources to inspire you and our community to take action in supporting each other's mental health and to commit to resiliency instead of resolutions this year.

The AHA is challenging people across the Bay Area to create bold boundaries, redefine happiness and give yourself permission to #TakeAbreak to make mental and heart health a priority.

Take a few minutes and ask yourself these questions:

What did your body do for you today?

Did you know you take about 8 million breaths a year? Your feet can take you up a mountain; your arms can hold someone you love (even if you need to wait to do that right now). Take a minute to marvel at the finely tuned machinery of your body and thank yourself for the steps you take every day to keep it safe and healthy.

What did you feed your body to nourish yourself today?

Was it an old favorite, something you made or something new and different? If you eat three meals a day, you’ll eat about a thousand meals this year! Take a minute to savor an especially yummy meal. Every nutritious meal you eat helps you build a resilient body.

Activity: What did you do that you really enjoyed today?

Did you give it your all when exercising today, or find a quiet moment while sitting in traffic to reflect? Take a minute to think back on one particularly awesome moment. Even during the most stressful day you can find moments you’ve enjoyed and that is helping to build your resiliency.

Relationship: Whom do you look forward to connecting with?

Connecting during a pandemic is hard! Are you looking forward to connecting with someone who sets your heart on fire, always has a smile for you, has your back or makes you laugh until you cry? Take a minute to smile as you think about this special person. Then make plans for a virtual meet-up. Nothing helps build resiliency like good connection through a difficult time.

Time: What are you doing right now?

Every single day you wake up with 24 brand new hours. The past is history, the future is a mystery and today is a gift. That’s why they call it the present! Take a minute to be thankful for the gift of time, including any extra time you have right now for your family or yourself.