(Another) late reflection post tonight, as I’m about to head to bed—still very much sick.

It’s been over eight days of being congested. Our son is, too. And after being down on and off for a little over a month, one thing has become clear: something in my life has to change. My immune system feels wrecked—unable to withstand much, maybe even more fragile than our son’s.

So, despite still feeling sick, I’ve decided to make a few key changes. I’m slowly disconnecting from the noise of the world—not from my immediate family or close friends—but becoming more connected to myself. To my inner being. Maybe all of these illnesses have been trying to teach me that. That I can’t keep expecting more from my body than it can give.

Running life on 65–70% is no longer sustainable.

I think back to my days working as an RN in San Francisco. Yes, I still got the occasional cold or flu—but not like this. Not being knocked out for weeks at a time. Even then, I ran on that same depleted tank. Always doing. Rarely stopping. Or stopping without really letting go.

And yet—maybe I was a little healthier back then because I had structure. I had a routine.

Routines are critical. I have one for our son, but I’ve been sabotaging my own. Letting the world pull me out of my own presence. I’m still working on that…

But I remembered something recently: when I lived in SF, I used to walk every morning—up and down those steep hills from the hospital parking garage. That morning light? It likely helped regulate my cortisol and melatonin rhythms, helped me sleep. Helped me heal.

So, even with green mucus still (yuck), I’ve started walking again in the early mornings. Not just any walk—a nature appreciation walk. No phone. Just me, the birds, the sun, the breeze.

When was the last time you walked without your phone?

Being disconnected is so, so good.

My second change: the phone now sleeps in the kitchen.

Since the day I got a smartphone (nearly 20 years ago!), it’s lived beside my bed. Tempting me. Interrupting me. I used to take calls right before sleep—letting the world back in at the most vulnerable hour. But this small shift—just a few nights in—has already felt freeing.

My hope? That these two changes will help me sleep better. And that better sleep will help my immune system finally recover.

Change is hard. I almost didn’t get out of bed this morning. That early inertia—the one that tries to keep you stuck in an unhealthy routine—is so real. But if you don’t change your routine, you stay on the path you’re on.

And I’m tired of being on this one.