Early Results
I don’t want to celebrate too early, but I’ve been going out to dinner three nights in a row, and I’ve actually been having fun, which is a really big deal for me.
For context: I’ve always hated going out to dinner, and it’s one of my most consistent anxiety triggers. Even when I’m generally fine, that one trips me up and makes me very very stressed. It’s been the cause of many arguments in my relationship, because my partner – with a full-time day job – can often only meet his friends for dinners and/or drinks, plus most people actually like going to dinners, so there’s that.
I’m really proud of myself, and really happy that I seem well.
I can’t tell for a fact if it’s related, but I didn’t have any panic attacks during my last sugar challenge either, so I’m hopeful I’m making real progress.
Writing Dates
I love to write, but it’s an inherently lonely activity, so my partner and I have been doing writing dates to make it a little more social, and it’s been really fun!
In short:
We choose a time and a place, make snacks and tea/coffee/any drink that sounds good, and write together.
We talk about our goal for the next hour or so, write in silence while snacking, do a midway check-in, and at the end we share our progress and proofread each other’s work.
In Mallorca, we did two writing dates with a new friend, and it was really lovely!
We wrote stories, read poetry, ate fresh fruit, and watched my favourite TED Talk of all time: The Museum of Four in the Morning. (It’s here, if you’re in the mood for romance and poetry.)
(Yes, the chocolate is sugar-free!)
With a (slightly disconcerting) absence of panic,
Flora
Change Your Mind with Flora 