Habits are everything! They shape our everyday lives and our health more than we may think about. After extensive health tests, founder Mette Skjærbæk had to have a closer look at her habits — and her bad habits. With a simple but effective method, she slowly began to turn the “big container ship”: her life.

Rainer Maria Rilke writes in Duino Elegies:

”...so we are left with, say, some tree on a hillside – one that we see every day; we are left with yesterday’s stroll and the pampered loyalty of an old habit that liked us so much it decided to stay, and never left…”

That line – “The pampered loyalty of an old habit that liked us so much it decided to stay and never left us again” – has stayed with me ever since I bought the book in New York in the 1990s.

Habits are everything! They are what, in the end, shape how our daily lives unfold — and our health. The good habits, the bad ones, and the ones we haven’t yet managed to create.

2025 became the year when I had to take a close look at my habits. I have many good ones: my daily dry brushing, my (almost) daily blends of nourishing smoothies. I brush my teeth. I remember to straighten my back and engage my core. I lift consciously, with respect for my body, when carrying heavy things. I cleanse my skin every evening and nourish it daily. I drink green tea. I prioritise seeing friends and family, laughing, and loving. I focus on eating a varied diet, staying hydrated, moving my body, getting daylight, and going to the dentist regularly — the list of good habits is long.

But – there’s often a “but” – there are also the bad habits. The sleep I meant to catch, ran off ahead of me. Supplements I forgot to take regularly. Lack of cardio training for my heart and, perhaps most importantly, lack of mental rest.

Extensive genetic and DNA-based health tests in spring 2025 revealed that my mind lacked recovery, both during the day and at night, in the vital restorative sleep.

I shed a tear sitting in my car after getting the “verdict” because, unfortunately, every word the practitioner had said made sense. I could see that the seven hours of sleep I aimed for rarely became a full seven hours. I could see that I never gave myself mental breaks during the day. I often multitask: driving, whilst having a phone meeting, and eating a sandwich. I knew I wasn’t taking vitamin D, which I’m deficient in, and so on.

Sometimes it takes a shock to wake us up. I was, indeed, properly awakened. I spent a lot of time reflecting on what I could do – after all, I had been told before that I lacked vitamin D, so why hadn’t I stayed consistent with such an important vitamin? And how could I make all these changes in my life and actually stick with them?

Many books have been written about how to change habits. I haven’t read them, but I know there are plenty of good ”hacks” – for example, “habit stacking”: before brushing your teeth, cleanse your skin first – so that actions connect naturally.

But I know myself – and the number of times I’ve promised to both brush and floss every day, only for the floss to disappear from my routine, is numerous. The ”strict boss lady” had to step in and create some structure.

I like spreadsheets. Something in me enjoys filling them out.

This spring, I made an Excel sheet: The horizontal rows with all the days in the months ahead, and the vertical columns with activities I wanted to ensure I did:

- Sleep – in bed by 10 p.m., aiming for 8–9 hours
- Meditation practice – 15 minutes daily
- Supplements – daily
- Movement – various types of exercise weekly
- Alcohol – track the number of drinks per week

…and the list continued.

Over the summer, the spreadsheet became my ”bible”, and every day’s checkmark had to be made – if not, the ”strict boss lady” wasn’t pleased. There was a tad of gamification - that worked well for me.

Instead of a spreadsheet, you can also use a paper calendar, a nice notebook by your bed or in the kitchen, or a digital habit tracker app that sends reminders – whatever works for you.

I also bought a ”smart ring”, which gave me insights into many aspects of my health. Smart rings aren’t 100% accurate, but I must say it hit me quite precisely:

”You had an elevated heart rate last night – did you drink alcohol in the evening?”

Uh, yes, I did. Wow. No hiding here.

”Your sleep latency was long last night.”

Ahem, yes – I was on a screen right up until I closed my eyes, and apparently, it took me longer than usual to fall asleep.

Especially in relation to the four stages – recovery, relaxed, energetic, and stressed – I learned a lot about how different activities affect my body and my mind.

Our physical appearance tells part of the story, and since I somewhat look healthy and work professionally with physical and mental well-being, some people around me had some resistance: ”Oh, darling, come on, you’re so healthy!”

I heard that more than once. And yes, I may look healthy – but we cannot see each other’s mental health, nor everything that goes on inside.

They say stress is the new silent killer. And even though I didn’t feel stressed and am a happy and content person, it doesn’t change the fact that we humans need rest and recovery as a counterbalance to being ”switched on”. I have a high energy level and an excellent ability to push my own limits – to the point that ”I’m tired” doesn’t really mean much to me once I’ve set my mind on something – and I usually have.

I describe my process as turning a huge container ship – it takes time. A long time. For me, it took several months. I was less social and spent more time with myself.

When I first learned that I wasn’t sleeping well, I actually started sleeping even worse. I woke up several times a night, worrying about whether I’d fall back asleep – which, of course, made it harder. Our minds are so impressionable, and what we tell ourselves matters because the soul listens.

Now it’s winter, and I’m in a completely different place than I was in the spring. I sleep more, drink less, take my supplements, take better care of myself, notice my boundaries, and say no when I need to.

I practice meditation almost every day, and it feels so good for the brain. Ironically, somehow, I only started meditating now, as a trained yoga instructor and one who has always worked with holistic health. But the things we find hardest are often the ones we avoid.

I used to tell myself that a walk by the sea counted as meditation – but my brain was still overactive, busy, problem-solving.

On the days I don’t meditate, my brain can suddenly feel a bit ”fried”, and I long for the calm that just 15 minutes of “switching off” brings. The thoughts still appear – just fewer of them.

I take my vitamins every day now. I made a system with 30-day packs in small reusable bags, which sit next to my blender – so I see them. That’s how the habit stuck: a system and consistency, strengthened by those daily checkmarks in the spreadsheet.

Now it’s winter. I’ve taken off the smart ring, and I no longer fill in the spreadsheet – for now, at least. I may need both again someday. I’ve built new habits, and I’m grateful for them. Now it’s about living with them without monitoring, because enjoying life is more important than anything. I don’t need to know the quality of my sleep every night, or have a ring tell me whether I’ve rested enough between activities.

The container ship is sailing in a new direction. I take better care of myself. I’m ”less strong”, in a way, than I was before – when I could ”do everything”, be there for everyone, and never run out of energy. I’ve gotten to know myself better at 51.

That’s quite beautiful!

Everything begins with the conversation you have with yourself – the conversation I had that day when I made the spreadsheet. What do I want to change, and how will I do it?
Are there habits you’d like to change? Or new ones you’d like to create? Then I wish you all the best – and I dare promise: you won’t regret it.

With love,
Mette