Starting Where You Are

A New Year for Health and Wellness

By Dr. Rachel Hill

The burden of living with a chronic illness can be overwhelming—especially when you want to feel better.

Conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, chronic pain, obesity, migraines, hormonal changes, and autoimmune concerns do not simply affect the body. They affect motivation, confidence, hope, and the belief that change is even possible. 

When you do not know where to begin, it is easy to feel defeated before you ever get out of the starting gate. 

I speak with people every day who say they would gladly exercise if their back pain would ease or if the migraine that has lingered for days would finally pass. Others share that they once had consistent routines—walking, gym time, yoga—until an injury or illness knocked them completely off course. Many describe having no physical or emotional energy to do much of anything at all. 

These stories reveal something important: there are many valid reasons why tending to health concerns can feel overwhelming.

None of them mean you have failed.

When Health Feels Like an Uphill Battle

Living with chronic illness often means carrying uncertainty alongside symptoms. Pain, fatigue, and limitations can create fear about the future and make even small goals feel unattainable. 

I have experienced this personally, when physical injuries interrupted my routines and delayed progress for much longer than I expected.

What made it harder was not only the discomfort, but the lingering question of whether this would become my permanent reality.  Hope can feel fragile in these moments, especially when setbacks accumulate.

Menopause, Change, and Identity

Menopause introduced another personal chapter of uncertainty - it's not a chronic illness, but it can sure feel like one! 

Moods, weight gain, temperature regulation will make you feel that your body was taken over by a puppet master who doesn’t like you one bit. I spent lots of time wondering whether I would ever feel like myself again was deeply unsettling.

Hot flashes layered on top of already intense physical activity, unpredictable sweating, and feeling both overheated and chilled at the same time created a sense of chaos within my own body. 

These experiences reminded me that health journeys are not linear. They are shaped by seasons, hormones, grief, stress, and life circumstances.

A Wake-Up Call That Shifted My Path

In 2024, routine lab work revealed that my hemoglobin A1c was borderline, and I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic. That moment stopped me in my tracks.

I had watched family members live with the impact of diabetes, and I knew I did not want that to become my story. As a healthcare provider, I strive to model healthy behavior, yet life had happened—menopause, grief, stress—and I realized I had not been caring for myself with the same intention I offered others.

That diagnosis was not a punishment. It was an invitation.

Wanting Change While Living in Reality

At my next well-woman visit, I set clear goals for myself.

I paid for a gym membership, but most days I lacked the energy to use it after work. Instead of motivating me, the pressure added stress. 

What became clear was this: health does not live in a gym. It lives at home, in daily choices about movement, nourishment, hydration, rest, and self-compassion.  I did what I could do, made the best choices that I could make at that time. 

For anyone who feels pressure to join a gym or invest in costly programs, it is important to know that meaningful health changes can begin right where you are.

Doing What I Could, Where I Was

I committed to a structured challenge that required daily movement, hydration, intentional eating, reading, and refraining from alcohol.

If I missed any part, I had to start over. 

And I did. Several times. 

By the end of the year, I had restarted three times and completed the challenge twice. I fell, regrouped, and continued.

What mattered most was not perfection, but persistence.

Finding Movement Beyond the Gym

Without relying on a gym, I found creative ways to move. I walked through my neighborhood. I danced on my front porch and in my backyard with music playing loudly.  I slowed down enough to notice the environment around a small tree in my yard that had quietly grown over the years.

That tree reminded me that growth often happens gradually, even when we are focused on surviving day to day.

Living What I Teach

Over the past two years, I have committed to caring for myself authentically. That meant no longer advising others to do what I was not practicing myself. 

I followed through with preventive care I once postponed. Being self-employed and paying for insurance reframed the value of attending to my own health rather than assuming I was fine. 

There was also a deeper lesson that I could only learn from personal experience-  when we feel we don’t have time to do what is best for us, that is the very time to do it. 

Take the walk, don’t skip the meal, and go to sleep!!! 

Health, Community, and Reality

In every community, from urban to rural, small town or city block- people make constant decisions about what gets our attention/resources first, and what must wait.

And when budgets are tight, wellness trends become relatively unrealistic.

That reality does not mean people do not care about their health- it means they are living responsibly. 

The truth remains: you do not have to be wealthy to be healthy. Health has always been lived in everyday life, shared spaces, and community care. 

I have found so many resources for individuals who have been able to accomplish so much just by watching YouTube or downloading an app that might be far cheaper than a gym membership and its annual fees.   

Growth, Progress, and Hope

That pre-diabetes diagnosis became a turning point.

I lost between fifty-five to sixty pounds, regained mobility and flexibility, and restored balance.

This year, my hemoglobin A1c is in the normal range, and my lab results reflect meaningful improvement. More importantly, I feel connected to my body again.

My health changed not because I did everything perfectly, but because I stayed with the process.  I remember running a marathon a few years ago and seeing a woman who was wearing a very loose t-shirt that read, “If you think I’m fat, you should have seen me 200lbs ago (or something to that nature). 

She had to start somewhere- and the beauty is not in her reaching her current size, but in her starting. 

I think that idea was a challenge for me to let soak in when I had felt like I'd "let myself go" so far from where I had began. But sure enough, I started anyway- and each day I showed up for myself since has led to how good I feel today.  

Closing Reflection

If you are living with chronic illness, pain, fatigue, or emotional exhaustion, you are not broken and you are not behind. 

You might feel guilty and/or even ashamed of where you are mentally, physically, and spiritually- but health grows slowly through realistic, compassionate choices made over time. 

Start where you are.

Use what you have.

Ask for support when you need it.

Health belongs to everyone—and it grows best in community. 

If this resonates with you and you’re feeling ready for support, I invite you to reach out. 

As a board-certified Holistic Nurse Practitioner and a board-certified Holistic Wellness Coach, I offer whole-person support that honors your lived experience and helps you create realistic, sustainable steps forward.

You don’t need to have everything figured out—we’ll start where you are.  Reach out to me at hello@doctorrachelhill.com to schedule a discovery call and explore how I can support you moving forward.

--Dr. Rachel