It's January, and many are taking the first steps to follow through on their New Year's resolutions. Maybe that's more time at the gym, a diet, or a weekly reading goal. Regardless, almost anyone will tell you that sticking to your goals is tough. So psychiatrist Dr. Yalda Sophie has some tips for those trying to go the distance.
Number one, don't over do it. "Most people get too ambitious," she said. For example, if you've never worked out before, don't make it your New Year's resolution to run a marathon by January."
Not only is that probably impossible, your failure will discourage you from working out more regularly — which is the real goal, not running a marathon.
The best approach, she said, is to focus on small changes that can be made over time. "You can't create a habit overnight. You can't break a habit overnight. So give yourself time." In other words, it's about the process rather than the end goal.
That way, every time you make some progress, you get a little dopamine hit. This can create a positive feedback loop that will make the changes lasting, rather than blip in January.
Sophie said this applies to a common New Year's goal: dry January.
While every person has to assess their own drinking behavior, she stressed that it's best to cut down on alcohol consumption "little by little every day" rather than going "cold turkey."
"Once you start and get the momentum going, it gets easier in the process," she said.
UW-La Crosse Chancellor Joe Gow. Wisconsin-La Crosse fired Gow on Wednesday, Dec. 27, 2023, after learning Gow and his wife have been producing and appearing in pornographic videos. Gow maintains the firing violated his free speech rights.
The U.S. military is now putting independent lawyers in charge of its investigations of sexual assault and other major crimes, what Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III has called the "most important reform" to the military justice system in recent history.
A decades-old law bans Medicare from paying for weight loss drugs. Now, drugmakers and a wide-ranging bipartisan coalition of lawmakers are gearing up to push for that to change next year.
Barring a court order, in March Texas police will start being able to arrest people they suspect have entered the U.S. illegally, but increases in border crossings since a 2021 law authorizing some arrests shows the limits of that approach in the face of desperation that causes people to risk everything and travel thousands of miles to the U.S.
Mexico began clearing tents, both occupied and unoccupied, from the encampment in the border city of Matamoros, across from Brownsville, Texas, starting Tuesday.
Police in Indiana say a man was rescued after being trapped for six days in his crashed pickup truck and drinking rainwater to survive.
A caravan of thousands of migrants continues to trudge through southern Mexico, with some saying they expect nothing good from a planned meeting between American and Mexican officials about the migrant surge at the U.S. border.
The Powerball jackpot is sitting right now at $620 million ahead of Saturday night's drawing and depending on which state you live in, you may have a little bit of extra luck on your side.
Friday is set to be one of the busiest days of the holiday travel season.
