Do you incorporate new routines?

[dreamer54]

I mean incorporating new good stuff in your life and getting rid, or trying to, the bad routines.

I feel this is key to fight negative symptoms, or medication secondary effects.

At the beginning, they are hard to incorporate. But give it time: you may get surprised on how much of the good stuff you can do with ease.

@shutterbug I believe you have something to say about this!

[keepsimple]

I recently started reading the book Atomic Habits on audiobook. It’s really good.

He says the keys are often making tiny habits that are done consistently instead of trying to make huge painful changes.

Habits should be:

1. obvious - have a cue or some signal for you to remember to do them… you can also link it to another habit you already do

2. attractive - there should be some component of the habit that is enticing, pleasurable or satisfies a craving

3. easy - reduce the difficulty, friction and obstacles as much as possible in carrying out the habit

4. satisfying - some kind of reward so that it will reinforce the behavior to encourage you to repeat it in the future. You can also use a habit tracker to record your daily progress on the habit.

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One habit that I do now is every morning is to clean up after my brother in the bathroom sink because he usually leaves it messy when he goes to bed.

1. obvious - the cue is seeing the dirty sink plus I go to the bathroom in the morning and notice it then

2. attractive - I use fresh scrubby sponges which are nearby the sink and comfortable to hold, plus I use warm water which warms my cold hands in the morning when I clean

3. easy - I don’t rush or tense my muscles and sometimes use a little soft scrub to make it easier to cut through the grime, I realize I don’t have to do the perfect job on it and try to limit my time on the task or stop if I feel any pain. The scrubby sponges and soft scrub are easy and fast to get to and not tucked away in drawers.

4. satisfying - seeing the clean sink is satisfying and giving myself a tiny bit of credit for doing the task helps. Plus I sometimes take a sip of energy drink afterwards as a reward.