Change is Hard
I hope this doesn’t sound too defeating. But there is a lot of evidence to show that, while change is possible, there are a host of factors that make change hard. Being aware of these natural barriers to change can guide you toward sustained change.
Did you know that obesity and unhealthy lifestyles are connected to industrialization? It appears that one of the casualties of living in our modern societies is that we drift away from healthy behaviour. Modern environments pull for unhealthy behaviour and we are hard-wired to follow this pull. If you are pressed for time doesn’t picking up food through a drive through make perfect sense?
This information is helpful in that it allows us to help the person establish realistic expectations about what he/she will face in making changes. It also helps us avoid unnecessary feelings of failure. Think about the following statement: “I really, really want to lose weight!”
To what extent does this reflect true readiness to change as opposed to hope or wish? Well, if left at face value we wouldn’t know. But imagine, in response to this statement you stated:
“Sounds like you have a strong desire. Do you understand why you have not been successful in the past?....Are you aware of the typical barriers people encounter?....Can I inform you about what the evidence shows concerning the most likely strategies?
Imagine that this conversation leads to the understanding that the behaviours most likely to be successful for the individual are stopping snacking on high fat foods in the evening when relaxing and getting up 60 minutes early to do some form of exercise. In this case the real test of readiness to change (motivation) would be the person’s ability to endorse the following statement:
“I really, really want to get up early and stop myself from eating after 8 pm!”
Now we are talking about behaviours more likely to lead to beneficial outcomes.
Let’s balance this with a positive note. Check out the video below that reviews several recent studies showing the positive benefits associated with having a healthy lifestyle.
Given how challenging change can be the patient provider relationship is essential to helping people find the motivation to do all of the work of change. So change-based relationships are critical. Check out the video below:
