7 Ways To Treat January As A Self-Love Reset, From A Professional Intuitive

In January, it's natural to think about our goals for the upcoming year or what tone we want to set for 2024. Some folks like to pick a word for the year, make a list of priorities, focus on how they want to feel, or set an intention with a ritual.

We are often encouraged to hit the ground running at the beginning of a new year and do all the things—get after it at the gym, make progress on that creative project, hustle to bring in more income or pay off debt. Yet, people are often drained from end-of-year deadlines, travel, and the emotions that holidays bring up.

Something about turning the page on a new calendar year feels like an exciting fresh start. No matter what challenges you survived in 2023, or what obstacles lay ahead in 2024, allow yourself to feel hopeful and optimistic about this new year.

Hope and optimism are necessary nutrients for our minds and spirits. Acknowledge your fears and concerns about the future while still reminding yourself that little miracles are always appearing out of the blue.

The winter holidays leading into a new year can be a corridor of time where people just feel more tender. You might be sentimental about the past or someone who has passed on, wishing there were more peace and love on the planet, or feeling a little vulnerable about another year coming and going.

There are so many reasons you may be feeling more tender than usual, so be gentle with yourself in your own thoughts, pamper yourself with your favorite affordable treats, and lean into any nurturing daily practices like a walking meditation or gratitude routine.

As we start a new year, it's nice to remember we're not starting it alone. Spend time playing with and snuggling a pet, have a phone or video chat with an old friend who lives far away, or invite a treasured co-worker out to a special lunch date. You might even feel nudged to write a letter to someone you lost touch with long ago or had a miscommunication with last year.

It's natural for a new year to encourage people to clean up their diets, dial in their supplements or medications, and get support if they're feeling anxious or depressed.

It might be a good time to schedule a checkup with your regular health care provider or look into a specialist for that nagging issue you've been putting off getting help for. Whether it's a functional medicine doctor, a therapist, a spiritual adviser, or a great masseuse you require, January energy may push you to put something on the books.

Most of us are all too quick to identify what we wish we'd done differently in the past, so we don't give ourselves enough credit. If 2023 had some tough life lessons for you, or some challenging circumstances were thrust upon you, or you experienced heartbreak, feel proud that you rose to the occasion and were present for yourself and others.

Find something to really celebrate about 2023 as well, like the endurance you displayed getting through a busy year of being of service to others personally and professionally, an important goal you made progress on, those many small acts of kindness to others, or any healing habits you leaned into.

Set the stage for a more soulful new year by spending sacred time connecting with your spiritual side in January. Each soul is unique, and our individual spirituality is unique too.

A soul date might look like honoring your connection to nature by visiting your favorite park, honoring your connection to mysticism by performing a spiritual ritual, or honoring your connection to a spiritual ideology by visiting a place of worship.

Where, what, or who makes you feel connected to your soul and the holy aspect of life? It could be a regular, daily date like putting on sacred music in the morning, pulling an oracle or tarot card on your lunch break, saying a quick prayer at dinnertime, or reading a spiritual book at bedtime.