It’s Okay to Change

I had so many things that I wanted to do once the COVID-19 pandemic was over. I was going to see all my friends! I was going to go out dancing! I would NEVER say no to a party invitation again!

In reality, the reopening process has been slow, at least for me personally. The pandemic gave me a lot of time to think about who I wanted to be, and how I wanted to nourish myself. And what I came to realize is that some of the things I thought I’d be thrilled to get back to won’t be right for this person anymore. And that’s okay.

If you feel exactly how you thought you would as you start to resume a kind of “normal” - that’s great! But if you feel that you have been changed, transformed, or altered by this collective experience, I want you to give yourself permission to feel that way. It is okay to come out of this experience as a different person than you were when it began.

In fact, I encourage you to slow down and spend some time thinking about stepping back out into the world with intention. Don’t be afraid to embrace the ways in which you’ve changed, and allow yourself to handle the next few months in a way that feels right to you.

This feels especially salient to me now, but it is also true of any other change. I have people tell me all the time that they feel ready to make a healthy change, but they are worried that their friends will feel alienated if they don’t want to split a dessert, or their spouse will feel judged if they decide not to have a drink. So take this period of intense, communal change as a time to focus on what YOU want - I promise, the right relationships will fall into place.