Experts Caution Against Harsh New Year's Resolutions: 'Less Egoic, More Enriching'
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- If you see more people than usual inside the gyms that are open, or in the produce aisles of the supermarket, it may be because of New Year's resolutions.
We all know they often begin strong and wane over time. But as CBS2's Dave Carlin reported Friday, it doesn't have to be that way.
William Chen and his 2-year-old daughter, Kelly, spent the first day of the year in a Midtown supermarket buying healthy food.
"I want to be a bit better, because I'm not getting enough exercise this year," Chen told CBS2's Dave Carlin.
His resolutions to eat well, get quality sleep and exercise were popular among those Carlin spoke to.
"I'm going to do a diet with my girlfriends," Brooklyn resident Jen Maurice said.
"Cooking, and I may be reading a few more books this year," said Nicole Charges, of Allentown, Pennsylvania.
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Mental health experts say people should not pick any resolutions that tap into shame they feel about themselves.
"Less egoic and more enriching," therapist and clinical director of Manhattan's Village Institute for Psychotherapy Josh Jonas said.
Jonas cautioned against setting goals that could cause people to judge themselves harshly.
"If we make certain resolutions and we don't accomplish them, that definitely can have an effect on our mental health, in terms of how we are recording our beliefs about ourselves," he said.
Psychologist and CBS News contributor Lisa Damour recommended a grateful mindset.
"Having a gratitude practice, thinking about what you're grateful for, is one of the simplest and most effective ways we know in psychological research to increase wellbeing and life satisfaction," she explained.
Midtown resident Marybeth Allen said she did not make any resolutions and she's content.
"We just had a new grand baby born. Life is good, we have good health," she told Carlin.
Matt Kearney said new fitness and other goals will come, but first he's settling into a period of soul searching about the crazy year he just had.
"It's just trying to reframe what this year is going to look like. Hope that 2021 is better. But you know, that's not going to happen right away," he said.
So in 2021, be positive, be patient and good to yourself.
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