The New Year always feels like a new chapter is about to begin. Like when you wake up on January 1st everything will change. That your life is going to be dramatically different, that you are going to be a new person and that you will have new routines and habits.

I never believed in this. I never set New Year’s resolutions. I always saw it as a continuation of life. Although, this year I want to see it as being similar to reading a new chapter in a book. Leaving behind all those terrible memories and trauma in 2022. But taking with me what I have learned in that book. I want it to make me stronger, help me handle situations better and provide me with the tools to cope with many circumstances. As for the rest of the book, that can stay in 2022. 

The New Year provides the platform to reflect on the year that has just passed. As I look back and reflect on the last 12 months, it is easy to only see the hurt, the hard times and the tears. I still feel the scars that 2022 has given me. But I am also able to see the progress. I know where I was, the dark places I experienced alone and felt the lowest I ever have. I also see the progress. I recognize the work I have put into getting myself out of a dark hole and the improvements, although it still isn’t where I want it to be. I am proud of myself for stepping out of my comfort zone, for being brave to get help and for admitting to my struggles. I know 2022 has given me the ability to have new tools and strategies that I have never had before.

As we transition into 2023, I look forward to the next chapter for the first time in a while. I know there will be more challenges that will come my way and I look forward to navigating through these times with my experiences and tools from 2022. Here’s to the next chapter…