2021 highs/lows

[dove]

Reflecting on the year, what are your highs/lows?

What are you looking forward to in 2022?

Low: my dad got COVID really bad, was in the ICU for about a month, and was >< this close to a ventilator. We really thought we were going to lose him. 

High: We just found out earlier this month we are moving again! And see above - dad pulled through!

Looking forward: This move should be our final move and I am looking forward to finally settling down and finding a “forever” (or at least more long term) home.

[gummybear]

Highs:
I’ve worked really hard on my mental health and have come out stronger and healthier than ever!
We met and exceeded some very ambitious financial goals earlier than we expected.
PUPPY

Lows:
I’ve let myself go a tiny bit physically. It’s hard to juggle so many balls at one time and I did not prioritize this. But it’s OK!

I’m looking forward to getting back on track with my exercise and starting my new job in 2022! Also getting older DD in high school and closing out her grade school chapter of life.

[Patsy Baloney]

High: watching my kids grow. My job offer. My trip/run with my friends. Finally completing some not-sexy yard and drainage work that resulted in new flower beds and a huge garden.

Low: my marriage and finding out about my H’s extracurricular activities.

Looking forward: my new job, starting a new chapter with the ability to be independent if I need to, getting back to good with my H, focusing on running more and reframing my emotions and time so I’m more productive and less stuck in bad feelings.

[konapoppy]

2021 has been a challenging year. I am lucky for my family’s health

Lows:
- dog attack and my sweet girl dying
- whole family got covid and I couldn’t smell for 10 months
- having to have 2 root canals and surgery on the same tooth
- rough spot in our marriage
- my kid essentially getting kicked out of daycare

Highs:
- home renovations completed
- my kids are adorable
- promotion
- my friends are getting all kinds of great jobs

Looking forward:
- kids finally getting vaccinated
- leaving our house and going on vacations
- creating a home gym in the garage

[mcmel]

Oof.

Highs-
I swam with sharks
I purchased a camera and have been enjoying that hobby
I got a job at my dream business. It's not my dream position, but I'm right below the dream position and have to finish one class to be qualified for the dream position

Lows-
My sweet cat passed away and I miss her every day
I gained even more weight and was diagnosed pre-diabetic
My family’s relationship (mom, dad, brother, SIL) is crumbling bc they all hate each other

[Susie]

2021 was definitely a year that was great on paper for us, and felt awful to live through.

Highs
* Sold our old house for a great price, and bought a new one that I think we will be happy in long term
* Brought in a major new client at work

Lows
* Absolutely no work life balance for much of the year.  Wound up anxious, depressed, exhausted, insomniac, and pre-diabetic as a result.  Got some of that under control, but not all of it.
* Lot of covid-related anxiety and probably depression.
* I still have an unvaccinated child (<5), and no timeline for hope on that changing, so we are still pretty isolated.
* A lot of pressure from relatives to get together in ways that we're not yet comfortable with (due to bullet point above), which causes more stress.

[noodleoo]

Good prompt, thx! 

Lows:
* Diagnosed prediabetic in the spring. That was a scary wake up call, it runs in my family so something I needed to take seriously. 
* Work is a shit show. They laid off my boss a few months ago, who is the only person I actually liked at work. Lots of turnover and changes and it is all still in flux. I’m not sure how it is going to work out, I’m going to give it a few months next year before making any decisions. I was pretty happy until this all happened in the fall, so that sucks. 

Highs
* After the diagnosis, I got serious about losing weight and lost 30 lbs last year. It’s amazing! I still can’t really believe it. 

Looking Ahead:
* Hoping for a vaccine for DD2 in the spring so that we can finally put Covid behind us (as much as is possible anyway). Finally go visit my parents in Fl who we’ve only seen once in almost 2 years. 

[macmars45]

Highs:
H and I got vaxxed & boosted
I've been in counseling for 4 months now
DS5 is thriving in kinder, overcoming/facing some of his fears
DS got vaxxed

DS got diagnosed with ASD (so many things finally make sense)

We bought our first EV and love it

Lows:
I gained even more weight
Extended family issues that I'm still coming to terms with
Our kitty passed away 6 months ago (fuck cancer)

Dealing with the behavior challenges that come along with ASD

Lots of covid related anxiety

Looking forward to:
Getting DS in activities when he's 6

[TR]

Highs:
Graduated with a job offer in hand
Continued to be consistent with my strength workouts and I feel strong
Got vaccinated and boosted and none of our family members have gotten Covid

Lows:
Losing my beautiful cousin to ovarian cancer at 37 years old
Honestly, nothing else feels low in comparison to that.

Looking forward to in 2022:
H's business continuing to grow and we're hoping he can start taking a salary this year which will let us feel more comfortable with our spending.
My annual bonus gets paid out in April & I think I'm going to get a Peloton bike when it does
I'd like to get a new role at work (or a new job altogether) because my current one is really boring. I can apply to new roles in May.

[thebreakfastclub]

I really can't complain about 2021.

Highs:
*Worked from home all year, I like it.
*Had one covid scare for my son, otherwise no impact.
*Negotiated myself an off-cycle raise.
*In best shape of my life, got pretty active and challenged myself especially with weight training.
*Crappy director was demoted and is out of my life.
*My kid is thriving at school and all is well with him.
*My mom relocated to my city in retirement and found a condo in this crazy real estate market.

Lows:
*Good work friends all quit, so now I have no one to eat lunch with if I ever go back. I know it sounds dumb but I loved my lunch bunch.
*Work is stressful at times and I'm fearful I will lose one of my colleagues and pick up some more responsibilities.
*Sucky VP in a related business area annoys me to no end. It is going to be hard to attend in-person meetings with her going forward.

Looking forward:
*Nothing specific, just some travel by car and taking it one day at a time.

[abs]

Um. The high of 2021 is that it is almost over. I'm looking forward to a fresh start in 2022 and hope for more normalcy.  We have a few trips on the book I'm looking forward to as well as sporting events and theatre shows.

There actually were good things that happened this year. DH got a new job, DD is crushing school and finding confidence, we've gotten some house things taken care of, everyone in my house is vaccinated. Mostly though...eesh. Goodbye and good riddance 2021. In ways it was worse than 2020.

[tacokick]

HIGHS:

Taught myself how to weave and placed at the state fair 2 months later!

Husband got a promotion and bonus

Have some exciting work projects lined up for 2022 from relationships I made during 2021

Saved a lot of money by not traveling or eating in restaurants

Did go to two Broadway plays on tour

Finished my mom’s estate and helped my dad set up his wishes

Lots of good sleep

Made a lot of fun meals

Still enjoy spending time with my husband even though we are together 24/7 lol

No Covid! As of today, anyway!

Saw friends again!

The puppy is now one and very good.



LOWS:

Still a pandemic

Missing travel and going out to eat!

Hearing my husband’s many boring work meetings each week yet still only have a vague idea of what he does

My agent is not doing a good job at all

So many meals made at home!


Looking forward to—
I’m scared to say! I’m not sure 2023 will be much different TBH. Hopefully my work projects go well.

[calamity]

Highs-
FIL beat cancer
I negotiated working from home 3 days a week
Kids back to school and swimming and they are happy

Lows-
Haven't seen my parents the whole pandemic
Dad just diagnosed with prostate cancer
Work has been hard for my H
Diagnosed with a rare disease, coming to terms with it
$$$ woes

Looking forward to-
Moving to an area with better opportunities

[wildrice]

Highs:

- H and I both started new, better jobs toward the end of the year.
- We got vaccinated!
- Got to see my immediate family, my grandma, and my BFF on separate trips
- My parents came to visit us here for almost a week and we had a lot of fun plus did a bunch of house projects
- Spent a week in Cancun!
- Got A's in all of my classes, so between that and the new job I'm finally starting to feel like my career is on a decent trajectory after a LOT of ups and downs in the last 7 or so years.
- Oh and BIDEN became president and the other guy stopped having power.

Lows:
- I had a blood clot in January, which led to a series of tests and some potential cancer scares. Thankfully everything turned out to be a false alarm, but only after 2 surgeries and a lot of tests/hassle. Still no explanation for the blood clot, either.
- I had to go back into the office every day in my old job and my commute sucked - it stole many hours of my life this year
- Because of those things, COVID, and school, I feel like I saw friends a lot less than I would have liked to
- One of my favorite friends here moved away

Looking forward:
- I am hoping this coming year is mostly just steady. I like my life so mostly I just want things to continue on the path they are on. I am looking forward to traveling to Croatia and hopefully visiting Turkey later in the year, too - I have missed the sort of exploration/adventure travel that we usually try to prioritize. I am also hopeful that by this time next year we won't have to talk about or think about COVID every day anymore!

[notoriousmeg]

Highs:
We are all vaccinated and H and I are boosted.
DS is thriving in school.
I’ve gotten an ounce of work/life balance back (last year I had zero)
Until last week I was back in my office 3-4 days per week (I hate working from home full time)
We bought a new apartment that will have amenities we don’t have now

Lows:
Mom had crazy surgery complications and was in the hospital for a few weeks.
H has been out of work since early on in the pandemic
Aforementioned new apartment construction completion keeps getting pushed back

Looking forward to:
Watching DS thrive
Being able to visit my parents with less anxiety than pre-vaccine

[basilosaurus]

Dec 29, 2021 15:11:22 GMT -5 gummybear said:

Highs:
I’ve worked really hard on my mental health and have come out stronger and healthier than ever!
We met and exceeded some very ambitious financial goals earlier than we expected.
PUPPY

Lows:
I’ve let myself go a tiny bit physically. It’s hard to juggle so many balls at one time and I did not prioritize this. But it’s OK!

I’m looking forward to getting back on track with my exercise and starting my new job in 2022! Also getting older DD in high school and closing out her grade school chapter of life.

I read *juggle* as *jiggle* if that tells you anything of my mindset!

As the year ends I've had people important in my life fill me with words of affirmation, spontaneously, unrelated. Maybe they're doing their own year end reckoning, although they're of various cultures for whom Dec 31 is not year end. I feel valued and inspired to do the same to others. Words are my least exercised expressions of love.

[icedcoffee]

2021 was a real doozy. I started the year hopeful and ended it on lexapro and in therapy. 😭

I’m surviving though.

[wambam]

High: I finished teacher training and was hired to teach yoga at my studio

Low: my mom was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer

[starburst604]

2021 feels like….a long flat year if that makes sense? Not a lot changed in my personal life, we got to relax more about Covid. There were no real highs or lows. We just sailed along I guess? That’s probably a good thing even if it feels slightly uneventful.

[flex]

Lows:
Stressful, stressful job duties. Especially when the Governor decreed all school workers must be vaccinated in order to keep their employment.

Highs:
Fabulous trip to NYC
Winning an airline sweepstakes: 100,000 air miles and a cash prize, which arrived just before Christmas.

[bluestreet]

Highs:
Went back to my old job with a better role
Got engaged to a wonderful partner
Sold my house and got under contract for a new build
Got my eldest off to a college we are all happy with
Started a medication for my psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis and now seeing clear skin on my knees and elbows that I haven’t seen in literally decades

Lows:
I and my youngest got covid, despite me being vax’d
Blending my new family has been challenging—teenagers are a lot
Have been struggling with mild depression ever since I had covid in July. Just can’t shake it.
Gained weight and feeling very low about my body despite working hard on body acceptance
New build is delayed by four months, and feeling very cramped in my partner’s tiny home
Dealing with XH’s engagement to ex-friend has been stressful (she was always a difficult friend and now she’s going to be my kids’ step-mom. Sucktastic)
Threw out my back last week and it’s made my mood plummet

[heygrey]

Highs:
- We bought our first house at the end of 2020, but having the full year here was wonderful.
- Nearly having Canadian citizenship! I applied in January and am now just waiting for the formal ceremony. Everything is done and approved!
- Our little family is just in a really good place. The older R gets the easier it is for H and I to find balance between work/personal/family.

Lows:
- Realizing we're going on 3 years of not seeing any family and not sure if summer 2022 will even be a possibility.
- My parents' best friends/neighbours of 35 years died hours apart in April from Covid complications. They weren't able to be vaccinated before they got sick and it was many awful weeks in and out of the hospital for both of them. I'm thankful they were able to be together in a room for their final few days. They were able to talk and add really random things to their will, which had questionable legal validity, but brought a lot of laughter to the people to loved them.

[Deleted]

Dec 29, 2021 17:32:44 GMT -5 flex said:

Lows:
Stressful, stressful job duties. Especially when the Governor decreed all school workers must be vaccinated in order to keep their employment.

Highs:
Fabulous trip to NYC
Winning an airline sweepstakes: 100,000 air miles and a cash prize, which arrived just before Christmas.

Congrats!  this is awesome!!

[cleo29]

I will start with the lows.

WE had a lot of loss this year; we lost my MIL in February, Oscar in June and now Jake. I need a few years off at least.

Highs: We are starting a great home renovation and really taking steps to make this house truly ours.

[isabel]

Highs:
-10 year anniversary trip to Iceland with DH (and we didn't get covid!)
-DH, DS1, and I are all vaccinated.
-DS1 is doing so well in school and has learned so much.
-We completed a basement renovation so DH would have his own office.

Lows:
-DH and I feel kind of off. I think it's job related. See what I'm looking forward to below.
-It's still fucking covid...
-We had to replace our sewer line, which kinda sucked financially.

Looking forward:
-Excited to get DS2 vaccinated
-Ski season and a spring break ski trip with all of my boys.
-Hoping for a trip to Spain with the family next summer
-Crossing my fingers DH can find a great, less stressful job next year. He's not doing well and really needs to get into something else.

[underwaterrhymes]

Highs

Everyone in our family is vaccinated and boosted.

We were able to take the boys to Costa Rica for their first time to see our family and to Florida to see mine, after a very long time apart.

My sister had to start chemo, but she wrapped it up and she looks really good physically. Hopefully it buys her another 5-10 years before she needs to do treatment again.

Lows

H’s stepmom was diagnosed with cancer and his stepdad has had some health problems as well.

N got COVID (which led to a 24 day stacked quarantine since we couldn’t isolate him, meaning we had to cancel plans to see family for Thanksgiving.) And my sister currently has it too, which is bad news because of her health status.

I’m continuing to have scares on my breast scans, so I’ve made the decision to get a double mastectomy. However, it’s been postponed due to lack of beds because of COVID, which is a super big bummer, but not unexpected.


Looking forward to:

Getting the mastectomy over with.

Getting out of very significant credit card debt (over $100,000) as of May 2022. We’ve been working hard to pay it down and I’m so proud off us as it wasn’t easy.

Hoping to take the boys out west to see Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons this summer.

[katfco]

My highs and lows are all intertwined

Highs:
--DD is slowly improving
--she's still with us and hasn't been hospitalized since March (we're throwing a party once she hits a year)
--my class this school year is the best I've ever had
--I feel such a sense of relief that I've decided to leave my school district

Lows:
--DD still has a long way to go
--did I mention the hospitalization last March? Yeah, still a scary thing.
--it's a bit stressful knowing this is my last year in the school district and I have no idea where I'm going to land

[seeyalater52]

Highs: absolutely everything related to my perfect sweet baby. He is the ultimate light and watching him grow this year has been incredible.

Starting an amazing new job for a boss I adore and boosting my salary substantially.

Buying a gorgeous house that is everything we could have dreamed of. Making a pretty amazing profit on our home we sold.

Lows: covid isolation and not getting to do normal family stuff.

The drama around my old job and feeling undervalued by the way they left things after I put in notice.

Missing friends who have been challenging to stay in touch with during lockdown and all my life changes.

Looking forward to: my son being eligible for vaccination.

Hopefully being able to do some normal family stuff in the coming year.

[circa1978]

High:
I'm so proud of my son and the young man he's becoming.

The chance to work from home and be around my H and DS and the dogs every day.

I'm starting grad school in a few weeks. Better really late than never?

We are all vaccinated.

Mixed:
I had a tumor in my labia that while rare was thankfully benign. The surgery wasn't fun but it's in the past.

I got diagnosed with Hashimoto Disease and I am feeling better on the medicine.

Low:

My dad's cancer prognosis is not good. I don't know what 2022 will bring and I'm not sure I'm ready for it.

I've been struggling a lot with my GAD/OCD. Christmas has been really hard and not much joy for me.

ETA: I'm not sure what to look forward to. I guess being healthier and possibly doing some remodeling on the house.

[lilypad1126]

Highs:
Got a new, fully remote job
Moved to a much better city due to new job
H and I are vaxxed and boosted and so took a vacation over thanksgiving which was definitely needed.
I’m as fit as I’ve ever been, and I’m super pumped about that.

Lows:
H has had some back pain issues, which has caused us to be more snippy with each other than usual, which is tough.
It’s been a weird year with a cross country move in the middle, during a pandemic.
My sister blew up her relationship with my mom and it’s hard to watch from the sidelines.

Looking forward to:
H and I hope to take an international vacation in 2022.

My mom and I are going to take a mother/daughter vacation in 2022.

My job should continue to go well, and I’m looking forward to continuing to grow In this position/company.

I hope to keep my new fitness level up.