Every New Year, people try to have a New Year's resolution like losing weight, having better health, eating healthier, starting a gym membership, etc. The intention is excellent, and people can do it for some time. After a while, the enthusiasm is lost, and some go back to their usual behavior.

Year after year, month after month, many of us are still the same: our anxiety is still there, the hate is still there, the grudges are still there, the sadness is still there, and our frustration is still there. The list is endless.

What if we change our New Year's resolution to see if we can make some progress? What if our new resolution might be "Making Peace with Myself?" If we can make peace with ourselves, our minds become clear and calm, we make the right choice for our life and health.

We can effectively manage our stress. Making peace with ourselves, with others, our peaceful energy can affect others positively and may spread throughout the world.

I have been seeing patients all my life. I started seeing female patients; I then saw both females and males, then the older population, children, and even babies. I realized that 99 percent of the patients are looking for external help from all kinds of therapies.

Some have tried every type of therapy but still live in a Yo-Yo situation: up and down. About 1 percent of my patients have found healing wisdom and healing methodologies, and start to make changes internally. These patients are doing well long term. No one is perfect, but everyone can be happy when they find inner peace.

Find the Dao Way

It is not easy to be "Living in Peace," but it is possible with the daily practice of Dao, by going with the natural flow. We can establish a healthy mind by letting go of the past, unnecessary or useless thoughts, and fear created by incoming words such as negative news or other negative information.

Caution, preparation, and dealing with negative news in a positive way are all powerful and healthy strategies. Fear can prohibit us from moving forward and is an obstacle to happiness. Losing happiness for a long time leads to losing health.

In Daoist healing, I often tell my patients, "There is always a way." Not everyone is looking for that way, but our energy changes once we find that way. As our energy changes, we feel more joy in life, more vitality, mental clarity, and an increased inner ability that will guide us to succeed in things we enjoy doing.

At this time of welcoming the New Year, I am sharing ways to help with some common worries:

I worry about my children

If you teach your children well, they will grow up well. There is no need to worry about it; only guide them. Let them find their way and deal with life, allowing them to learn and grow. If they choose the wrong path and don't follow your advice, you can do nothing, and worry does not solve any problems. Therefore, enjoy your life, let kids learn life's lessons. Eventually they will find their way.

I worry about Covid never ending

Covid is the name of the virus, and the virus is everywhere. The virus is more intelligent than you think, and there is no way anyone can destroy the virus on this planet. The virus mutates as it multiplies and divides. This is the nature of viruses. Most viruses don't kill people nor make you sick if your immune system is balanced. But you can become very ill if your immune system is weak or unbalanced for whatever reason. Instead of worrying, you can find a way to strengthen your body and immune system, such as practicing Qi Gong, Tai Chi, making peace with yourself and others, being cautious about sanitizing, distancing, and wearing masks in crowded places. This way, you can live in harmony with the virus and not get sick.

I worry about losing my job—not being able to pay bills

Your chance of losing your job is less if you do your best, learn and increase your skills, be friendly with people at work and be helpful to whoever needs it. Losing a job can be expected in a capitalist system. But people can always find another job. Some jobs may not be what you like to do, but will pay the bills. Eventually, you will find the thing you want to do. Or you can always do something you enjoy doing outside of work and keep the job that pays bills. Worry makes you tired, distracted, which may affect your performance at your job. This increases the risk that you will lose your job.

On the other hand, it is a good time to practice simplicity. Be natural, relax, appreciate your work, go with the flow whatever happens. One of my friends was a family physician, but did not like her job. She did this job because it paid well. After a while, she finally realized the negative impact of this stress; her health was going downhill. She quit and found something else she liked to do. Her health and happiness were restored. Practicing simplicity gives you peace, time, and tranquility. There are so many benefits to simplifying your life.

I worry about elderly parents

We will be elderly someday, and this is a natural process. No matter how much you worry, all people age, including yourself and me too. If your parents are into health, they already know how to age. If they are not into fitness and have multiple illnesses, there is nothing you can do except provide whatever they need.

Your worry does not help anything; it only drains your energy, even causes harm to your health. Therefore, do what you can to provide assistance. You may not be able to meet all of their needs alone. Help for caregivers is available. At the same time, take care of your health physically, mentally, and emotionally.

I worry about my health

Worry about your health? That is a waste of your energy. Do something. Make changes in your life, your diet, your activities. I believe you are smart; you should know what to do. If not, you can schedule a consultation with me.

The above is an original article from Dr. Aihan Kuhn's winter newsletter, 2022.