2024 - A year of change and transformation with a touch of chaos
2024 was a wild ride!
It was a year of big change for me, especially physically and mentally.
I finally decided to get my act together! I set a goal to prioritize my health and fitness. I wanted to evoke an era of care for myself. And, let’s be honest, with type 1 diabetes, ADHD, and a history with dodgy knees, I need all the energy and focus I can get!
Professional drag performer and Omnipod® Ambassador, Grace Shush, reflects on their 2024 year with an important message about self-care and starting the year off with intention... Read on to find out more...
*Grace has been paid a fee to produce this content
Living with Type 1 diabetes
Living with diabetes is a little like performing a circus act. In fact, they say the average person living with diabetes must make an extra 180 decisions per day.1 For me, it’s like driving around a roundabout, constantly adjusting your steering (while juggling!) to avoid crashing... the funny thing, honey? I don’t even have a driver’s license!
Also, living with ADHD makes my mind whirlwind of activity – a popcorn machine that never stops popping.
I told you, for me, it’s a circus!
However, even with these challenges, I have found ways to cope. Two key changes I made in 2024 were:
- Settting small, achievable goals
- Meal planning
Setting small, achievable goals has been a game-changer, especially when it comes to my ADHD. By breaking down big tasks into smaller steps, I can focus more easily on what’s in front of me and that helps keep me motivated – especially by celebrating the small wins! And giving me the dopamine I am missing.2
Meal planning has become my new best friend. Planning in advance and batch cooking has simplified my life significantly. Mostly being one less thing for my already overloaded brain to worry about.
And honestly, I couldn’t do it without help from the awesome app MyFitnessPal and my amazing personal trainer, Mark. Introducing tools of accountability has empowered me to take charge of the wheel, of my diabetes management, and live a more fulfilling life.
Being adaptable is necessary
Big changes also occurred in my work world.
And that can affect every facet of your life.
The nightlife scene, especially cabaret, has struggled since the pandemic. People are also now keeping their pennies closer to home. Which often means entertainment is a luxury. And this has changed my income. Bit of a bummer for a showgirl like me, creating stress and worry in places – also, does anyone go out anymore or is everyone at home binge watching?
Thankfully, my ADHD homosexual self is adaptable! I have found ways to keep moving forward and figure out what to do next. Like setting and achieving a small goal. And next for me is more content creation. I am still finding my feet, but I am proud and celebrating what I am producing. My content goals are to be informative, fun, and engaging – a spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down (pun intended)!
Connecting it all together
2024 was also the year I started to prioritise what is really important to me.
I realised how much I value my family and friends. And how much value they add to my life. Which helped me see and understand the changes necessary to hold onto those things.
I also put great focus on my mental health and took advantage of Talking Therapy offered by the NHS for those living with type 1 diabetes - it’s been amazing having someone to talk to about the challenges of living with diabetes. Even better it has been a space to talk about all the other areas of my life.
And that helped me remember, diabetes doesn’t define who I am. It’s simply one ingredient in the fabulous recipe that is me!
I also dived deeper into spirituality in 2024, learning about Saturn Return3 years – it's a time of big change and growth. Think of it as a cosmic makeover, honey! But I think some of my growth was delayed because I hit my Saturn Return during the pandemic, hello universe, we’re in lockdown!
As they say, better late than never.
