Friday Oct 20 Post 115 Big goals often seem unattainable, unreachable, eg. get fit, lose weight, sharpen my memory, improve my concentration, etc, etc. My favourite (sarcastic tone alert) goal to hear from a client is: I want my life to go back to what it was before...the accident, the divorce, the loss, the disease. This is where empathy and support fall short and I have to look my client in the eye (on the computer monitor) and say, “we can’t turn back time. The best we can do is learn to live well with the way things are now.” I find setting SMART goals is a way to help clients move forward. S – specific M- measurable A-achievable R-relevant T-time sensitive For the client with Multiple Sclerosis who says, “I can’t live like this. I want to run half-marathons again, like I did before the MS,” setting SMART goals might look something like this. S(pecific)- walking my dog M(easurable)-marking on the calendar every day that I take my dog for a walk A(chievable)-yes, this is something I can do R(elevant)- it gives me a sense of accomplishment and Rover loves it T(ime sensitive)-this is something I can do every day between 11 and 12 noon for at least a month. If I achieve this every day for a month, I can consider firing my dog-walker and doing this chore myself. NB: the use or non-use of mobility aids to accomplish this goal isn’t relevant to the actual exercise