The Snowball Effect

Everyone has heard the phrase "the snowball effect" and I'm sure we have all experienced this phenomenon at some point or another. Often, it refers to negative things. If one thing goes wrong, then it "snowballs" and other things follow in its wake, making it larger and larger. In this post, I want to discuss a different kind of snowball effect - a positive one. I have said time and time again that I need to get my life into balance, and in the past months, I have taken steps toward achieving this. I have started exercising regularly, eating better, and finding my passions again. I don't find that any of these things are mutually exclusive though.

Once I started to see the effects the exercise and a better diet on my body, I began feeling happier by the day. I am able to fit into my pre-baby clothes more easily all the time, and I just plain feel good. For me, this kicked off that snowball I mentioned. Because I was feeling better about my body and held a sense of achievement for obtaining a goal, I started to feel better about other things in my life. I have always thought of myself as a creative person, but somewhere along the way, I lost my creativity. It was buried under low self-esteem, exhaustion and just plain feeling unhappy. Everything I had was put into my children and my job, and I had nothing left for myself. Then I started to take something back, and I found that other things came with it. One positive thing ended up breeding more.

Now, I can't say I've got everything magically pulled into balance in my life. I can say however, that I can see it coming. I can see things falling into place as I take small steps in each area. I have lost 32 pounds, and that feels fantastic. I don't cringe when I look in the mirror anymore, and I feel so inspired to get more fit and healthy. In being inspired to live a physically healthier life, I am inspired to live a healthier life in all realms! As I said in my last post, I am rediscovering my greatest passions in life, and have now completed almost seven chapters of a novel I have always wanted to write! This inspires me to keep going, keep pushing, keep working out, keep letting happiness make its way back into my life. I find I am better with my kids, and happier in my marriage. I enjoy my dayhome more, and I have more energy, despite being just as tired as always. Things are snowballing.

I took one step toward taking back my life, and other things are falling into place. I started writing this blog with a feeling of loss - for all the things in my life I no longer had. Now, a month in, I can see my perspective changing, and my life becoming more of what I want it to be. I keep telling myself "I am taking back my life" and I truly am. One positive thing breeds another. Inspiration breeds inspiration. Motivation breeds motivation. Success breeds success. Let's take a step in the right direction today, and let the snow fly. It can be as simple as making a promise to yourself to treat yourself better. What step are you going to take right now? I think I deserve a positive, happy, healthy life where I don't have to mourn things I miss like they're dead. Don't you?