Executive Director's January 2023 Message

Happy New Year! After a year of navigating through returning to work at the work site, lifting of mask mandates, continued COVID surges and dips and the new bivalent COVID vaccines for what was touted as our year of recovery and returning to normalcy, I am more than ready to welcome and embrace 2023.

Don’t get me wrong. 2022 has taught me a lot. The biggest lessons were to plan ahead but be flexible. We have to plan ahead because the pandemic created a huge backlog for events and services from weddings to doctors’ appointments. If you’ve reached out to your doctor’s office for an appointment this past year, you may have noticed the next available appointment was two to six months out, and this is likely to continue into 2023. Even if you’ve just had your wellness exam or dental cleaning, I strongly recommend you take time now to schedule your next appointment.

I can’t even count how many times I’ve had to modify or change plans for one reason or another. I have meditated my way through constant changes, and you know what really helped? Resetting my expectations and being flexible with my plans. If something gets cancelled, I dive into my book of the month. If plans change, I just go with it. Getting into the flexible mind set helped me have a more enjoyable year where I traveled again and spent quality time with more friends and family.

Many people like to set lofty New Year’s goals, but personally, I’m a fan of micro-goals. If you can break down all your big goals into a series of micro-goals that you can realistically achieve, then you’re more likely to succeed. Our Well-Being team has been hosting their annual Live Feel Be Better campaign every year for as long as I’ve been here, and I recommend you join the campaign this year.

They’ll guide you through setting micro-goals with milestones and celebrating your achievements. If we make 2023 the year of small wins, then all those small wins will add up to something really BIG that you’ll be proud to look back on this same time next year.

The new year is a great time for a fresh start, so let’s make 2023 count by prioritizing your health.

Be well,

Abbie Yant, RN, MA