5 Ways to Feel Better in 2022

1. Roll with what you can’t control. Nobody likes uncertainty, but that’s where we’re at. I’m learning to take it day-by-day, not to set timelines for things that are out of my control. Rather than planning something a month or two down the road and setting myself up for disappointment, I’m taking more of a wait-and-see attitude. I know there will be adventures down the road, but I’m not wasting energy trying to pin down the ever-moving target of when.
    
2. Create a should-free zone. You should go out. You should stay in. You should have fun. You should have more energy. You shouldn’t be sad or mad or glad or bad. You should feel this. You should feel that. You shouldn’t be feeling this, that, or the other thing. Cut yourself some slack. It’s okay to feel our feelings instead of trying to talk ourselves out of them. Our feelings don’t have to be pretty, just real. And I think it’s a good idea to extend that same kindness to other people. Even if we really don’t agree with them.
    
3. Start or stop a habit. The way I like to think of it is that a practice is the repetition of an activity to improve a skill. A habit is simply an action done on a regular basis. I believe that every habit either adds to or subtracts from our lives. A morning walking habit, a voracious reading habit, a centering meditation habit, a healthy eating habit all add to our lives. Pandemic day drinking, maybe not so much. All by way of saying that the new year is a great time to take a good look at our lives and see what habits we’d like to add or subtract. One single change over the course of the next year could make a huge difference.
    
4. Start a daily creative practice. Find something you love to do, or want to learn to do, and commit to doing a little bit of it every day. Start a blog. Write a book. Learn to draw or play an instrument or start taking photos with your phone. The biggest thing a daily practice does is to take away the decision, as well as the stress associated with making that decision. You don’t try to do it. Or hope you’re going to do it. Or decide you’ll do it tomorrow instead. You just do it. A daily practice will enrich your life, help you find joy and purpose, and give you a soothing routine. And when we finally find our way to a new normal, whatever that might be, we’ll be able to look back and feel good about what we accomplished despite the challenges. (Make sure you read, or reread, Life Glows On for ideas and support for your daily practice.)
    
5. Think all you need is love. As I was typing this heading, I remembered another quote:
    
   “The world is violent and mercurial—it will have its way with you. We are saved only by love—love for each other and the love that we pour into the art we feel compelled to share: being a parent; being a writer; being a painter; being a friend. We live in a perpetually burning building, and what we must save from it, all the time, is love.”—Tennessee Williams
    
   So that’s what I’m hanging on to: love. How can I show it in big and little ways? How can I add value? How can I touch hearts? How can I find a little bit of love in each and every day to help get me through it. 
    
   And now The Beatles are singing “All You Need is Love” in an endless loop in my head!

Talk to you soon!

CLAIRE COOK wrote her first book in her minivan at 45. At 50, she walked the red carpet at the Hollywood premiere of Must Love Dogs, starring Diane Lane and John Cusack, which is now a 7-book series. Claire is the New York Times, USA Today and #1 Amazon bestselling author of 21 fun and inspiring books for 40-to-forever women, including Life Glows On: Reconnecting with Your Creativity to Make the Rest Of Your Life the Best of Your Life.