In recent years, I have taken more of a chance in celebrating the small wins that come across my life. For far too long I have pointed out the negative things in my life, always finding out the issues of what is wrong with myself, someone, or something instead of what could be the best things of the day.

It can be hard sometimes to see a what I would consider a “win.” Back a few years ago, everyone “won” when I took my medication because they got their way. But now I realize it wasn’t about them, rather, it was about providing me with the quality of life that I desired and that they only said what they said because they were concerned about my mental health.

So instead of being negative about my particular medication that I struggled with, and that other people were winning, I focused more on myself and the things that I did to make things better for me. Being in a better mindset, I now take more note of these things because it is realizing that while some of these things come second nature to many, they could be challenging to me. And that is why I don’t take them for granted.

Sometimes, it is simple things like being able to sit through a church service still as ever or realizing that I was able to get through the week losing some weight. It can be hard to want to celebrate things that can seem so silly, but sometimes it is the small things that matter the most to me that make me feel good. For wanting to always point out the negative in everything and I do mean many things and make visits and interactions with my loved ones challenging, I now do things to help me get through those challenging times and take note of the things that I may have to push myself through harder than what I would like to.

It can be hard to push through some things because of my anxiety but eventually I know that it is beneficial to do so because I will feel so much better in the end, even if I do not realize it initially. For the longest time, it was very challenging for me to go places I feared like church or my weight loss support group (ironically, they are in the same place), but eventually they became more comfortable to me, and I know that I am safe in those places, and I feel at peace being the person that I need to be.

There have been many new things that I have had to understand and get  through the past several years, I have even fought some of them when I didn’t see that they could be better for me in the end. There have been times when I had just wanted to give up and stay at home and become isolated, but eventually I realized that had been though the same thing I was about to do many years ago when it was quite different. I now realize that I am capable of anything and when I complete it, it is definitely worth celebrating the win. Celebrate the wins, large or small. They are all worth it.