If you’re like me, starting a new challenge feels a bit like waiting for Christmas morningāexcept, instead of excitedly dreaming about presents, I’m lying awake stressing about whether Iāll embarrass myself publicly or fail spectacularly. Welcome to “Christmas Eve’s Disease”āthat special anxiety you get right before something big and meaningful.
š Sleep? What’s That?
Every night for the last week, that anxiety hit me hard. All I could think about was this 100 Days of Not Being a Fat Ass Challenge and how I’ve basically announced to the entire internet that I’m going to transform my health. So naturally, sleep became impossible. Last night, I caved, took two Benadryl, and drifted off. I woke up this morning feeling rested, albeit with the cognitive speed of a dial-up modem. Grogginess is apparently the price of admission for decent sleep these days. Speaking of, I created a 100 days of better sleep challenge I’m looking forward to taking.
š· The CPAP Saga
Peeling that overly tightened CPAP mask off my face reminded me exactly why Iām doing this. The thought that soon I could be ditching that Darth Vader-inspired sleep torture device for good genuinely made me smile. Sure, I tried sleeping without it last night, only to start choking dramaticallyāturns out breathing is kind of important. Who knew? But each uncomfortable moment with that machine only fuels my determination to push through this challenge and reclaim my health.
š¦ Twitter Spaces: Vulnerability on Display
To tackle my anxiety head-on, I’ve been doing something way outside my comfort zone: hopping into Twitter Spaces. Honestly, introducing myself and openly discussing my goals and fears around health feels like standing naked in Times Square. But surprisingly, these conversations have been incredibly encouraging. They’ve been a chance to humbly admit that, no, I donāt have it all figured out, but yes, I’m willing to publicly fumble my way through figuring it out. Each interaction helps chip away at the anxiety and turns it into excitement.
š¤ Embracing the Anxiety
If you’re also dealing with pre-challenge jitters, just know it’s completely normal. Embrace the uncertainty, prepare realistically, and practice some self-compassion. It’s okay to be a little terrifiedāactually, that probably means you’re doing something right. Anxiety isn’t a sign you’re going to fail; it’s proof you’re pushing your boundaries and growing.
Let’s keep going. Anxiety be damned.
Drew Karriker is a self-proclaimed professional tinkerer, self-experimentation enthusiast, and lifelong learner with an inability to sit still. A former nuclear engineer turned DevOps architect, heās built a career (and a life) out of breaking things, fixing them, and then making them better.
Despite wrestling with ADHD, anxiety, and an unrelenting need to optimize everything, he transformed his career and life in just a few yearsānot because heās special, but because he figured out how to turn obsession into execution. Now, heās doing it againāpubliclyāone 100-day challenge at a time.
His past projects? Some were successes. Some flopped spectacularly. Each one left him a little wiser (and probably a little more caffeinated). Now, heās on a mission to document his transformationāmind, body, career, and everything in betweenāso that others might pick up a thing or two along the way. Or at the very least, be entertained by the chaos.
Follow along at RewiredWithDrew.com and get inspired, get motivated, or just grab some popcorn and enjoy the ride.