We are officially making our way to the end of January already, and by now I am sure there are many people binning their new years resolutions, promising themselves they will start again soon.

This January 1st I made the decision for the first time in many years to not make new years resolutions. Why? Because I never ever complete them and as a result end up berating myself for my inability to achieve what I set out to do.

For anyone chronically ill or not, resolutions can be hard to keep, so why do we bother doing them at all? Maybe it is because a resolution is a firm decision to do something and that can be too much of an ask especially on bodies that don’t play ball. This is where we enter the world of goal making.

If you are like me and have been to anxiety and depression workshops or spoken to mental health practitioners, you will know goal setting is a vital tool used in the management of anxiety and/or depression. You may have also heard of the theory of using SMART when it comes to setting goals to make them more achievable. Specific Measurable Achievable Realistic Time-limited goals are deemed easier to accomplish.

Goals are a great source of focus when it comes to dealing with mental health as a way of giving yourself direction, motivation and confidence when you can see your achievements taking place. But how useful are they in chronic illness?

As someone who has multiple chronic illnesses and someone who has suffered with mental health issues I find goal making a juggling act. My mental health needs a focus, to feel like I am working towards something, but setting goals also brings out the ‘pre-chronic illness me’ – the person who cannot stop until something is finished, the person who overthinks, over plans, who wants to overachieve, and therefore puts the ‘me of today’ at risk by pushing my chronically ill body beyond it’s limits.

Of course there is no ruling saying you need to achieve each goal on the day you say you are going to do it, yet it doesn’t stop me from trying. To top it off on the days when it is so physically impossible for me to do so, I play the blame game with my own body for not allowing me to tick it off the list.

So what is the answer?

I think goals are a useful tool for most people, but I think personally for me adapting the format they take in my life is key. Using the SMART goal system whilst useful needs fairly generous adaptations to fit in with chronic illness life that as many of us know is so unpredictable.

My adaptations include:

• Adjusting the goals on a regular basis inline with what my body needs at that moment in time. E.g. If I am struggling with my symptoms I will change my goal specifics each week (if indeed I am able to do anything at all) to determine what I am capable of each week/day.

• Taking regular breaks from goal setting – Having my mind constantly set on achieving goals brings out the ‘me’ before illness and whilst I believe it is important for me to have a focus, I also think it is important for me to have times where I am not preoccupied with trying to achieve something. At times it is nice just to be and deal with what is happening right now.

• Learning to be kind to myself – This really is a work in progress because I often find myself falling into bad habits, but reminding myself it is ok if I haven’t completed a goal on the day I had scheduled to do it, because it is not my fault can be helpful thinking.

In conclusion, goal setting is a great tool to have in your ‘medical toolbox.’ Goals can work wonders for your mental health and give you a sense of reward, however as always it is always vital to factor in your chronic illness needs in line with that. Pushing yourself is something your body won’t thank you for, so always be true to yourself and remember just because something didn’t happen today there is always tomorrow.