Adventures

We all need to have little adventures to keep our lives interesting. I have decided that instead of having a mid-life crisis, I am going to have these "adventures" that are actually taking more energy than I anticipated.
Adventure #1: Trying yet another "diet" in hopes of finding the thing that I can actually stick with as a life plan. My naturopath suggested the South Beach Diet as something that has helped other people with my kind of weight, depression, lethargy kind of issues. I have known that I haven't been eating well but this is a whole new thing. It is midnight and I think I have finally gotten the things I need together for another day of eating. Eating healthy is hard work, in my opinion, and it is not cheap. I spent over $160 in 2 days and I will probably have to go back to the store in a day or two I think in order to follow the recipes - and I am following the menus pretty well. I need the structure of the menus. I might move things from one day to another or switch dinner and lunch, but I am keeping to it. And it's only day 2 of 14 days of the strict stuff. I still feel tired though.
Adventure #2: Going to a naturopathic doctor. This is in conjunction with my regular doc who I am happy with but I have been feeling for a while that it's one symptom at a time rather than a holistic view. Now I am popping supplements that are not covered by my health insurance and I am left wondering if it is really any different than popping pills. I hope so - given the diligence I am putting into trying to make sure that I am taking them at the right time in regards to eating etc. The funny thing is that I have yet to be weighed or have my blood pressure taken - perhaps she is leaving that to my regular doc and trusting my reports (which are trustworthy).
Adventure #3: Taking my licensure exam for social work. It's expensive and I think it's a silly test aimed at only a portion of social work practice that I am not really interested in. In fact, my progressive ideals get all in a frenzy over the stupidity of the test. Really the only reason I am doing it is because work is paying for a chunk of the license falderah, with the changes that have been made this year in WA State, I will be able to not have to do a ridiculous amount of documentation - but only for a short window. And finally, because some jobs I may want to have in the future may require it and I don't want to shoot myself in the foot. sigh. The plan is to take and pass the test by the end of the year.
Adventure #4: Life Coaching. Although I actually have to pay for this, it seems worth it given all the stuff I am trying to do right now. Done counseling, and though I may feel the need for more of it in the future, now I need structured and practical guidance. Perhaps this is the adult version of the High School Guidance Counselor. Changes need to happen in my life right now and I need the help of someone external to my life to help me prioritize activities and help keep me accountable for what I say I am going to do. Doing it long distance over the phone but on the recommendation of a dear friend and I feel good about the fit thus far (1 session into it). I really need the structure and accountability. That's something I have a hard time giving myself and I lose it even more when there are this many things going on.
Adventure #5: My job. This is huge and warrants a post all it's own. But for now let's just say that I am burned out. I start the week with a bad attitude and it gets progressively worse. My co-worker is back and that is helpful but the job remains the same, as does the boss and so many other things about it have just worn me down over the nearly 7 years in this position. In talking to a friend a couple months ago - I realized that I have been working with challenging populations for roundabouts 20 years! In that time my self-care strategies have been used inconsistently at best. Now I am looking at doing a 180 to something completely different. Goat wrangling.