Overcoming Health Challenges

Achieving your life goals is something that can be easily doable when things are going well for you. But when something like your health is a problem, then it can impact your ability to reach your goals if you don’t have a plan in place.

When health concerns crop up, that doesn’t mean that you have to put what you want to achieve on hold. It just means you have to work around the situation.

Achieving Your Goals When Energy Levels Take a Dive

When you have a health issue, one of the first things that can happen is it can sap your energy. It can be difficult enough just to keep up with day-to-day stuff much less working whatever plan you have for your life on top of that.

Low energy can make it hard to have the physical stamina that you need to keep going. When you have a health issue that lowers your energy level what you have to do is to examine any habits that you can alter than can stop energy leaks.

You may not even be aware that you’re doing things that do dip your energy levels. People are creatures of habit even when they’re struggling with their health. They like to keep up the same speed and do the same things they do when they’re well.

But when your energy levels drop, you have to do what you can to conserve what’s left. Start by looking at your schedule. You’re probably overloaded with to-do tasks, especially at the beginning of the week.

When you’re experiencing health concerns, you have to prioritize your to-do tasks and only do what’s absolutely necessary to keep you moving forward. If you have a task on there that can wait a few weeks, then list it as a wait task.

Keep your focus only on what you know are going to bring in results. Or those things that must be done in order to take the next imperative step. You must look out for yourself physically.

You have to eat right, get the sleep you need and make sure you exercise as well as take time off to de-stress. Otherwise, this can add to the depletion of energy. Sometimes, the lowered energy isn’t a result of a physical health issue.

Sometimes it can be related to mental health. When you’ve made goals and you’re trying to reach them, it puts a high demand on your mental energy. If you add mental health issues, then that can compound the problem.

Certain habits impact your mental energy. These are things like not getting the right amount of sleep or emotional upheaval in your life. A diet that’s not good for you physically can lower your mental energy levels.

Stress can impact your mental health and so can things like anxiety or depression. All of these are common in an everyday life but can grow when you’ve set goals for yourself that you’re pushing to reach.

You can become emotionally and mentally exhausted. If you know there isn’t going to be a quick fix to your mental health concern, you have to determine that you’re going to keep going no matter what.

Perseverance can often be a good anchor to hold onto when you’re battling stress, anxiety, depression or emotional exhaustion. Decompressing is important when you have a drop in mental energy.

Let go of performance pressure. This is known to deplete energy. Take supplements that help boost energy both physical and mental and this can also help you to keep going when you’re not at your best.

How to Pursue Your Dreams Amid a Major Illness Diagnosis

When you get a major illness diagnosis, it can rock the foundation of your world depending on whether it’s short term or long term. Pushing through and keeping up the same pace isn’t realistic when you’re facing a major change.

That doesn’t mean that your desire or commitment is weakened. It just means that it’s best for your body at the current moment to make some changes to the way that you pursue your dreams.

You’ll still be chasing them, but in a manner that will keep what’s best for your health as the top priority. At the moment, you have to accept whatever limitations you’ve been given and know that in the future, you’ll be back to doing things the way that you used to.

The first step is to break goals down into steps that keep your health in mind. What’s completely doable when you’re 100% at your best health will be a struggle when you’re not.

And what happens when you keep trying to chase your dreams the same way when you’re that ill is that you set yourself up for failure. You might have the mental strength to push as hard as you have been, but your body won’t let you.

While it can be extremely difficult to be a can-do person in a temporarily can’t-do body, with some adjustments you’ll still be able to stay on course. Just at a slower pace. It might not be possible for you to meet the goals that you set for yourself within a month because of your health.

That’s okay. Adjust your timeline. Give yourself an extra few weeks or an additional month. Not only can you push out goal completion dates, but you can adjust what’s on your plate.

If you are currently juggling three to four big things that impact your dreams, drop cut it in half. You’ll still be making headway. Instead of focusing your attention on the big picture, take your life one day at a time.

Do what you have the strength to do every day and don’t sweat the things that you have to put off. Look for different ways that you can still pursue your dreams. This might be taking a path that you hadn’t planned to take such as taking college courses at home instead of in person.

Don’t be afraid to take whatever help you need to chase your dreams. You might need to use the services of an assistant. Or you might have to let family or friends pitch in and do what they can to help you keep chasing dreams.

That might not be the same level of progress you like but it’s still moving forward.

Learn to let go of what you wanted for what is at the moment. Don’t get so fixated on a mental picture of what you’d planned that you can’t accept that things are going to have to be different if you want to achieve your goals.

Give yourself whatever time you need to make adjustments and do whatever you need to do to keep striving forward. If that’s getting more rest, take it. If it’s taking more frequent breaks, do that. You will eventually reach your dreams.

Learn to Get Things Done Even with Everyday Health Struggles

The minute you get sick, it can be easy to lament and look at what you could be doing if only you felt better. The good news is that you can still move forward even when you’re dealing with everyday health struggles.

The bad news is that you’re still going to feel bad but at least you’ll be accomplishing what you want. These everyday health struggles are more common than a major illness and can hit you at any time.

But if you’re prepared for the times when your health might not be at its optimal level, you’ll still be able to get things done. You have to begin by finding balance and timing that works for you during the illness.

When you’re experiencing everyday health struggles you might have more energy at a certain time of day than another. You might feel energized at night and drained during the day.

Switch up your to-do list and work on your goals in the evening rather than when you first get up. Break the current goals for your dreams down into new achievable steps that take your condition into consideration.

You may have times in your life where your steps will shift depending on what your body or mind is going through. If you have a cold and don’t want to go out of the house, then work on what you can from home.

You want to take care of yourself when you’re ill but you also want to determine what you need to get done in order to keep proactive about your dream and keep moving toward that.

You have to decide what’s realistic and what’s not when you want to keep going. If you’re in too much pain to do the more physical aspect of reaching your goals, then do whatever step is not as physically demanding until your health returns.

Adjust when you have to. If your everyday health struggle is an issue, instead of traveling for your business, video conference if you need to. If your goal is to strength strain and you hit the gym for two-hour workout sessions, go to the gym but if your health is bothering you, cut the session to an hour or less. 

You won’t lose any momentum and you’ll be making progress versus simply staying home. Accept that you’re not in top performing condition and give yourself some grace. Don’t beat yourself up if you’re moving a little slower or a task is taking twice as long as it normally would.

Remember that your current circumstances don’t have to sideline you. You might have to be a little creative about getting stuff done to keep on track with your goals, but it can be done.