Habits are the backbone of our existence. What, when, and even why we do things all have some evolution in habits. To change something in our lives, we either create a new or change an existing habit.
Memory and the habits involved with it intrigue me and I’m digging into the mechanics of both this year. In looking at my own memory wellness habits, I’m learning so much. Some habits I’ve already changed or adopted with success. Others are new creations or tweaks of old habits I’m attempting to shift. Maybe you can relate to some of these:
Adopted Well: Every snack or meal I eat includes a brain food. This can be tricky as sometimes it’s a swap, other times it’s adding something. I’m 95% successful with this but am determined to get this closer to 100% by next month!
New & exciting: I’m always searching for better focus. My mind often whirls with numerous items distracting me from my original focus. I’ve started writing these down as they enter my mind. Very quickly, I jot down my thought then get back to my original task. It frees my mind of the interrupting thought by knowing I can return to it later.
Works in progress: Exercising in the AM. If I do this early, I feel so much better the rest of the day. But so often little things or early appointments creep in and disrupt my plan. I’m doing better, but need to tweak my routine more here. It’s a work in progress, but one I’m committed to!
More sleep. My routine of getting up early to attend to additional things on my plate needs to change. While this helps productivity, I need more consistent sleep. Managing my day by increasing focus as above and eliminating items off my plate will hopefully allow more sleep. I know how important sleep is for my brain and am making this a priority. Adequate sleep is ok, but more sleep (7-8 hours) would be better.
My memory wellness habits involve creating new by adding brain food to each meal or snack and improving my focus. While my exercise and sleep habits just need a tweak to the habit routine to keep their loop going.
But just like life in general, memory habit change or creation is a process. Assess your memory habits this week to see if there are any you could create or change to assist your memory and improve your mind wellness. Let me know what you’re working on with a comment or chime in on Facebook. Let’s change our habits and improve our memory wellness!