Off Map Living

Surviving January (BARELY)

First of all…. CONGRATS. We’ve just about survived the first week of January. A month that somehow manages to feel both completely empty and emotionally exhausting at the same time. January doesn’t feel like it moves.. it LINGERS. Hanging around like a VERRRY awkward conversation you simply cant escape…. no matter how badly you want to.

My First Week Of January (HONESTLY)

Before I dive into the big rant that is incoming… let’s reflect on my first week of January…. (TRANSPARENCY IS KEY HERE).

Its been quiet… VERY quiet.

I haven’t really left the house much this week. The idea of going for a walk around the block feels like a CHORE… and honestly, the weather plays a huge part in that. This is exactly why I miss the summer SOOO much. Summer gives me purpose. A reason to be AWAKE. A reason to get out, feel alive, soak in the sun and warmth. Winter just doesn’t offer the same motivation… it’s dark, dull and thats usually when the January blues creep in… and just to be CLEAR… i’m NOT lazy… i’m MENTALLY EXHAUSTED.

I also think I needed this week to recover from the grand Amsterdam trip. It was genuinely such a good getaway for the New Years, but WOW….. it took it out of me. I don’t know what the helly happened to my sleep while I was away, but I was running on little to none for three nights straight. So… this week has really just been about catching up on some very over due rest.

That being said I did notice how slobbing for most of the week negatively affected my mood and headspace. Instead of beating myself up for not being “productive”, I decided to call this my REFLECTION WEEK.

This week has been about thinking. Reflecting on what I actually want this year. Reflecting on new things I want to try. Reflecting on what genuinely helps me feel like myself.

From that reflection, i’ve actually planned a really good week for myself.. full of gentle, selfceare things to help me push out of this January slump. Ive got a sound bath booked (Solo, must I add!) To help untangle some negative energy ive been carrying, something i’m genuinely excited about. Im also getting my nails done, slowly easing myself back into a routine that doesn’t feel overwhelming.

The smallest things count right now, even a short walk around the block, sitting in the garden with a coffee reading my kindle, just doesn’t something that makes me feel a bit more connected to life again. I know i’m rambling bit i’m all trying not to feel like SHIT for spending the whole week doing basically fuck all. When you’re juggling poor mental health while also knowing what will make you feel better is hard, the hardest part is starting. But… every single time I do the thing my brain tells me not to do I never regret it (One thing I want to get better at this year is just doing it. Going for the walk, going into town, sitting in a coffee shop, journaling in the park, feeding the ducks, meeting friends because every time I choose action over isolation I feel SOOO much more better for it).

New Year, New Me (And Why This Grates On Me)

Which brings me VERY nicely onto what this blog is really about, New Years, New ME, and the ridiculous amount of pressure that comes with it. The second the clocks strikes midnight theres suddenly this unspoken expectation that we should suddenly have our lives sorted. That something flips inside us overnight we just suddenly become motivated, disciplined, healed, organised, glowing and thriving… ALL because a fucking calendar flipped.

Its almost as if

• Growth works on a schedule.
• Healing has a deadline.
• Discipline magically appears on January 1st

Social media feeds this narrative relentlessly. January is framed as the month to rest, rebuild, fix everything and finally “GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER”.

While some of it might be intended to motivate, what it really does is creates this constant level of panic that you’re already behind if you’re not immediately doing something productive. It turns New Years into a fucking performance.

Instead of easing into the year, we are expected to hit the ground running. Setting goals, sticking to routines, waking up early, exercising more, “eating better”. Thinking positively, being grateful ALLL the time. Theres no space to just arrive in the year. No space to admit you might just be tired, overwhelmed or still processing the year youv’e just survived.

What really grates me is how normalised this pressure has become. We’ve accepted the idea that if you don’t change yourself at the start of the year, you’re failing. That staying the same or moving slowly is wrong.

Real life isn’t as easy, people don’t transform with switch, we don’t wake up healed, we don’t suddenly gain clarity. Most of us are still carrying grief, burnout, anxiety and habits we’re unlearning straight into January with us.

I don’t want to live like that anymore, I don’t want to start the year comparing my goals to others, I don’t want to prove progress on a timeline that doesnt belong to me and I DEFINITELY don’t want to mix pressure with growth. Change can happen at any point in the year. Growth doesn’t need an announcement. Most times… the healthiest thing you can do is slow down reflect and give yourself permission to not have it all figured out… ESPECIALLY IN JANUARY.

January, Diet Culture & Pressure To “Fix” Yourself

One of the most uncomfortable parts of January & one that doesnt get talked about enough is how normalised diet culture becomes. Every year almost collectively, society decides that January is the month to “Get Back On Track”, to undo December, to shrink, restrict, discipline and control. Its so ingrained that we barely even question it… its just expected.

Suddenly everything is about summer bodies, meal plans, detoxes, “burning it off”, as if enjoying food, rest and celebration over the festive period is something that needs correcting. What makes it worse is how casually it’s framed. Diet culture rarely announces itself as harmful, it hides behind words like wellness, discipline, health and motivation. It presents restriction as self care and control as success, because it’s EVERYWHERE, from conversations, online, in jokes. It becomes so normal. A little TOO normal.

January becomes the month where you’re praised for eating less, moving more, pushing harder regardless of what your mind or body actually needs. Theres no space to ask WHY you want to change. No space to question whether the motivation is rotted in care or shame.

Bodies are NOT seasonal trends. They DON’T need fixing for the summer. They DON’T need punishing for surviving winter & they certainly DON’T owe anyone a transformation. Whats unhealthy isn’t gaining weight, slowing down or eating more over the holidays. Whats unhealthy is the pressure to erase joy, to treat nourishment like something you need to earn.

Opting out of January diet culture isnt giving up, it’s protecting yourself and sometimes that the bravest thing you can do, its time we STOP normalising this as apart of our January resets. #FuckDietCulture

Toxic Positivity

Toxic Positivity I EVERYWHERE in January specifically.

It shows up wrapped in pretty fonts and motivational quotes. Stay Positive. Start Fresh. This I Your Year, Good Vibes Only. On surface it doesn’t look harmful. It looks pretty encouraging and supportive!

But…. thats exactly why it’s dangerous.

Toxic positivity doesn’t make space for real emotions. It doesn’t allow for sadness, exhaustion, fear, grief or uncertainty… especially not at the start of a new year. It quietly suggests that if you’re struggling, you’re doing something wrong.

January is already heavy, the days are short, the weather is MISERABLE and reflection isn’t always comfortable… yet social media tells us we should be grateful, excited, motivated and hopeful all the fucking time.

There really is no room to say: actually I’m NOT okay.

Instead of validating feelings, toxic positivity rushes to fix them. It skips over raw emotions rather than sitting with it. Phrases like it’s a new year, new start, focus on the good, can feel incredibly dismissive when you’re genuinely struggling….

Sometimes you just gotta say it

• Im fucking tired
• Im not fucking inspired
• Just fucking TIRED

We should be allowed to express ourselves instead of suppress!

My Vision For 2026 (Without Pressure)

This year, I decided to create a vision board that doesn’t come with pressure. There are big goals on there, things that genuinely matter to me and there are some small ones that mean HUGE things to me. No comparison. No competition. No rush.

Im also doing something new: two cork-boards

• One for my 2026 Visions things I want to achieve
• One for what I end up achieving

At the end of the year, I can look back at everything I’ve achieved!

Anyways… January update/ first rant COMPLETE. Were a week in and ive done fuck all… no glow up, no reset, no life epiphany. Just existing. Loudly. Tiredly. Honestly. If that offends the algorithm? GOOD.

-AK