{"id":37838,"date":"2025-01-23T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-23T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/?p=37838"},"modified":"2025-01-22T11:14:54","modified_gmt":"2025-01-22T16:14:54","slug":"setting-goals-when-mental-health-is-struggling-a-gentle-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/articles\/setting-goals-when-mental-health-is-struggling-a-gentle-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Setting goals when mental health is struggling: A gentle guide"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Living with mental health challenges can make traditional goal-setting feel overwhelming at best and impossible at worst. At the same time, setting and working toward meaningful goals can be a great way to improve mental health overall. If you\u2019re stuck in this very common catch-22, this guide offers practical strategies to help you take some steps, make some goals, and feel better.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Start where you are<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

On days when brushing your teeth feels like scaling a mountain, setting a long-term goal to save more money or drink more water feels defeating and out-of-reach \u2014 and that\u2019s okay. Your starting point is perfect, exactly as (and where) it is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes the smallest steps create the biggest changes. Getting out of bed before noon or sending the one text you\u2019ve been putting off aren\u2019t irrelevant changes but important steps in the right direction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The “Minimum Viable Goal” approach<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Instead of setting one big goal, aim for the smallest possible version of success. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, if you want to start exercising more, you might set a goal to just put on your workout clothes in the morning, period, with no pressure to actually exercise. Often you’ll find that you want to do more once you’ve started \u2014 but if not, you’ve still succeeded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2-minute rule with a twist<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When you’re struggling with mental health, even a five-minute task can feel overwhelming. So instead,: commit to just two minutes of any activity. Want to clean your room? Two minutes. Need to start a project? You guessed it (two minutes).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This approach respects your energy levels while still moving you forward. Some days you’ll stop after two minutes, and that’s a win. Other days you might find yourself naturally continuing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Celebrate without shame<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Got out of bed today? Yeah<\/em> you did! Sent that anxiety-inducing email? Best regards! When mental health is a challenge, these aren’t small victories \u2014 they’re proof of your resilience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When things don\u2019t go as planned<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Some days you\u2019ll feel like you\u2019re moving backward. But progress isn\u2019t linear, especially when managing mental health. A \u201cfailure\u201d is not a failure, but an opportunity to collect data, and each setback offers information you can use to adjust your approach moving forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe morning goals don\u2019t work for you. That\u2019s useful information!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Building your support system<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Goals don’t have to be a solo journey. Share your minimum goals and progress with someone you trust. Having someone say, “hey, great job getting dressed today!” can make a world of difference when you’re struggling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consider working with a psychotherapist or mental wellness coach who can help you set realistic goals and celebrate your progress. They can provide valuable perspective on what’s realistic and achievable given your current challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moving forward<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Remember: You’re not behind. You’re not failing. You’re working with different challenges than some others, and that means your goal-setting approach needs to be different, too. That’s not just okay \u2014 it’s exactly right for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Start small. Celebrate often. Be gentle with yourself. You’ve got this, one tiny step at a time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking for help with goal-setting while also managing mental health challenges? Our coaches<\/a> are standing by.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Living with mental health challenges can make traditional goal-setting feel overwhelming, but working toward meaningful goals can be a great way to improve mental health overall. This guide offers practical strategies to help you take some steps, make some goals, and feel better.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":37839,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[78],"tags":[21,183,90],"content_type":[39],"class_list":["post-37838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","tag-mental-health","tag-mental-wellness-coaching","tag-tools-tips","content_type-article"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37838","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37838"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37838\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37838"},{"taxonomy":"content_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adhdonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content_type?post=37838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}