My life improved so much when I started forcing myself to do things: forcing myself to exercise, to cook from scratch; forcing myself to go to the movies or to museums alone, to wear that really cute outfit just to run errands; forcing myself to read a book, to strike up a conversation with a stranger, to ask for a raise.
Once you begin forcing yourself to do the things that you had been too scared or too lazy to do, you feel a sense of accomplishment that gives you momentum to do even more. It gets easier to get out of your comfort zone & to do hard things.
i convince myself through conversations with my cat, as it can feel gentler than saying i'm "forcing" myself to do something i don't want to do. because ultimately, the healthy choice will be worth it. so i will turn to my cat and say, "should i get up now? head to the gym? do the laundry? wash the dishes? take meds? go to therapy? call the doctor?" and we go back and forth and i imagine she's reminding me why i do want to take care of myself and make my life better. now i look at my cat and we both just know.
