200 - Celebrating 200 & The Power of Intention in Healing

Welcome to a milestone episode! In the 200th episode of the Long Covid Podcast, Jackie Baxter rings in 2026 by sharing personal reflections on the journey so far and the evolution of the podcast from its origins during her own recovery from Long Covid.

Jackie explores:

• Lessons learned from recovery, including resilience, adapting to life’s unpredictability, and the importance of grace in setbacks.
• The difference between goals and intentions, with practical, science-backed advice on setting gentle, adaptable intentions to support healing and emotional well-being.
• A guided exercise to help you set your own intention for the day, with tips on grounding your intention and celebrating even small shifts.
• Gratitude for the vibrant community of listeners, guests, and supporters who have accompanied the podcast on this journey.

Plus:

• Jackie discusses the science behind intentions—how they can help filter what matters, regulate emotions, and encourage sustainable habits.
• She encourages listeners to reflect on and share their own intentions for the new year.

Action Items:

• Be sure to check the links below for free Insight Timer tracks for intention setting.
• Stay tuned for more inspiring guests and stories in upcoming episodes.

Thank you for being part of this journey! I wish you all a gentle January and a joyful 2026.

Connect:

• Share your intentions or feedback by commenting on social media, sending fan mail, or emailing via the links below.

Links:

• Setting an Intention for Healing (nature sounds): https://insig.ht/HtxqFUsWTZb
• Setting an Intention for Healing - shorter version with music): https://insig.ht/fcqF48xWTZb
• Quick intention setting (with gentle music): https://insig.ht/dPxkBUlWTZb 

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Chapters

• 0:00 Setting Sail Into Calm
• 3:19 Beach Visualization And Grounding
• 7:42 Boarding The Boat And Letting Go
• 11:19 Stars, Affirmations, And Safety
• 13:39 Arrival On The Healing Island
• 16:55 Hammock Rest And Deep Sleep Descent
• 19:03 Closing Blessing And Goodnight

Transcript

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

Hello and welcome to this episode of the long covid podcast. As this is my first episode of 2026 I would like to start by taking this opportunity to wish you all a very happy New Year. I hope you were able to find some peace and rest during the holiday season, whatever you were doing, and you've had a gentle start to this new year so far,

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

this episode today is actually quite a special moment for me, for the podcast and for my wonderful guests and listeners, because this episode is episode 200 a milestone that I would never have imagined reaching when I started this podcast in August 2021 I started this podcast during my own recovery journey at what was actually quite a dark time for me, this podcast felt like something that I could do when everything else was spinning out of control and everything felt completely hopeless. It feels like a different world to life now, but at the time, the podcast became a lifeline for me, but also for listeners all across the world.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

And although I am now fully recovered from long covid and have been now for over two years, this podcast remains one of the most important things that I have ever done. It has evolved over time, and it's something that I'm incredibly proud of and committed to continuing.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

One of the greatest things about this podcast is that I've had the honor of connecting with so many wonderful people, people who have been guests on the podcast to share their expertise and experience, listeners who have messaged me or commented with feedback, suggestions, their own experiences and thanks, people who I Now am privileged to call colleagues, business partners and friends and even the trolls, because they have taught me how to be more resilient.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So although I'm the one sitting here sharing this milestone as we gently arrive together in this episode, I'd like to extend a huge amount of gratitude to you for being a part of this journey, and it's my privilege to have been part of yours.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

One of the things that I discovered when long covid came along for me was that life didn't always go to plan. I'm not saying that I'd had a charmed life up until then, but largely things had gone to plan. I'd had to work hard for things, but they generally worked out. And then I got sick and everything changed. Life was definitely not going to plan. It was scary, and things that I did when things were difficult didn't work. In this case, I imagine you can relate to that on some level.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

At least during my journey, I experienced the unpredictability of something like long covid or MECFS, that complete loss of control of life, the grief of lost plans, all of those things I wanted to do, people I wanted to see, places I wanted to go to, even just the ability to sit in my house and not feel like total shit and constant recalibration, just as I thought I was getting a handle on things, everything changed, sometimes for better, sometimes for worse, and it felt like I had to start all over again.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

It was the worst experience of my life so far.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

Now, with the benefit of hindsight, I'm able to see some of the lessons that I was learning even right from the start when I didn't realize that I was that unpredictability doesn't mean failure, it actually means being human, because there's actually very little in life that we can control. And as a recovering control freak, I find that quite scary.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

And these were lessons that I definitely had to remind myself of over the last six weeks, I pulled a tendon in my foot whilst out running at the end of November, guys don't try this. It really hurts. It's much improved now, but it's still causing me problems. And then my partner and I spent the Christmas holiday with a horrible cold, which, alongside the foot injury, made for a fairly miserable and frustrating time.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

My first instinct was to be angry and frustrated, which I was, and then I realized that there wasn't really anything I could do other than surrender to it, which I largely did. And me from pre long covid would have pushed on through and made it worse.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

Now a few months of injury or a few weeks of an acute infection pales in comparison. To my long covid journey of over three years, but for me, it was a reminder that life doesn't always go to plan. Shit happens, and it really sucks, but the only thing that I can control in that situation is how I respond to it, and that is an important lesson that I learned during my long covid journey.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

This is why I think intentions are important.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So what are intentions and how do they differ from goals? So I see intentions as a direction, not a destination, so a felt sense, rather than a checklist, a way of orienting your energy, not measuring your productivity, which is what society has basically taught us to do. Intentions are a powerful, gentle anchor, not a rigid plan, but a direction.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

Goals are outcome based, and I'm not saying they can't be useful in some situations, because they are, but I think in a health journey like this, intentions are gentler. They're more useful. Goals can feel heavy. Intentions can help us to feel more spacious and free.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So for example, a goal might be that you want to walk 20 minutes each day, or you want to be back at work by summer. An intention might look like, I want to feel more connected to my body today, or maybe even simpler, an intention of calm or balance or ease, or words that I've used for intentions recently and that come up a lot with clients I work with.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So maybe you have a word or phrase that has come up for you already this year, or maybe it's come up while I've been speaking today, and maybe you even want to write it down see how it feels.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So why are intentions important? So there's a few reasons here.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So number one, cognitive priming. When we set an intention, we actually activate neural pathways that help to make us more likely to notice opportunities aligned with that intention. So it's giving the brain like a filter for what matters today.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So number two, our reticular activating system, or RAs, so this part of the brain helps to determine what information gets through. So intentions can help our RAS to prioritize what feels meaningful or supportive. So if we have an intention of calm, that information that gets through is going to be information that helps to back us up.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So it's a bit like when you never even think about seeing red cars, and then someone says, Have you seen all those red cars on the road? And suddenly you see red cars everywhere.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

Number three, emotional regulation, so intentions can help to reduce that overwhelm by narrowing our focus, that helps to support our nervous system, by offering clarity and a little bit more predictability, even when life feels incredibly unpredictable. So we're not getting tunnel vision, we're just coming inwards a little more, reducing that overwhelm.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

Number four, behavioral science. So small identity based shift are more sustainable than outcome based goals. So again, something like I am, someone who treats myself gently is going to be much more sustainable than the example I used earlier. I'm going to walk 20 minutes every day, because you might find that one day you can and the next day you can't. Intentions support self compassion as well, which improves follow through. And self compassion is important.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

And then number five, our nervous system so our intentions influence our posture, our breath, our tone of voice, to mention a few things, they can help to shift our nervous system towards that safety and connection and away from that danger, activation shut down.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So intentions aren't woo woo. They are a science backed tool which will help you. It's not a quick fix, it's not a magic pill that will fix you overnight, but it's a strategy that can help. You on your recovery journey, and I'm going to try to teach you how so how to set intentions.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

There are different intentions that we can set. So we might have daily intentions, weekly, monthly, yearly, or maybe you have a different time frame in mind, that's totally fine. And we can set all of these different intentions, and I think they're useful for different reasons.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So a daily intention, for example, it might be one word, one sentence. Keep it simple. It might be something like ease or presence or gentleness, I will honor my energy, particularly if you have a challenging day ahead, or you're waking up and feeling a bit sluggish, not very energetic, you can even pair this With a breath or a grounding strategy.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

our weekly intentions, so this might be more of a reflection on what you need more of or less of. You could ask yourself, what would support me this week? And remember to keep it adaptable, because we know that things can shift quickly, so it's important to be flexible.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

Monthly intentions give us a chance to zoom out slightly. You might have themes, rest, connection, creativity, boundaries. You might want to use journaling or voice notes if writing is too much, and you might find that these things change with the seasons, or as your capacity changes, or with life events

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

and then yearly intentions. I see this as a guiding word or phrase, a compass rather than a contract. And again, this can be revisited and revised as needed. It doesn't have to be fixed. Last year, my word was balance. I was trying to balance the ability to push and challenge myself with the need to be kinder to myself, so go for the run, but sit on the beach afterwards. So I found balance was really helpful for me last year. I'm not quite sure what I'm doing this year, so maybe you can help me out. Haven't decided yet.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So some tips for making intentions actually supportive. Start small, like really small, microscopic. Let those intentions be fluid. Let them be flexible. They can change with your energy. Use sensory anchors. So use the breath. Use that sense of touch. Use your sense of sound. Avoid perfectionism. which I'm guilty of. intentions are not promises. They are guides. Check in gently. How does this intention feel in my body today, and if it doesn't feel good, maybe it's not the right one for you today. And don't forget to celebrate the smallest shifts. Make sure you notice them and celebrate them in whatever way feels right to you.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So let's take a few moments to set our intention for today. You may wish to close your eyes, if it's safe for you to do so, relax your body and allow yourself to take a few rounding breaths and remember that you can come back to this another time, come back to it as many times as you need to. So allowing the body to soften and just giving yourself a moment, maybe it's the first moment you've given yourself all day, starting to gently notice sensations in your body. Notice what's going on in your mind. Notice any emotions or feelings that are showing up. Let's not judge anything. Just notice with curiosity. And if you find this challenging, that's okay. No one is good at something the first time they do it. So allowing yourself to take a couple more breath, and then let's tune into the body and ask, What do I need today? What does my body need today? Not what you want, not what you should do or you should be, not what someone else wants. What does your body genuinely need right now? maybe you want to take a few more breaths and ask yourself that question again, what does your body genuinely need right now? And as you do that, I invite you to choose one word or feeling. Don't overthink it. Whatever comes into your mind first is often the most useful. It might be a word, a phrase, a feeling or an image, whatever shows up for you. Let's take a few more grounding breaths as you breathe in your intention, then when you're ready, gently opening your eyes, easing yourself back into your space, maybe taking A very gentle stretch or wriggle if it feels comfortable. And taking your time and again, knowing you can come back to this anytime you need to, so you might find it useful to write down your intention, if it was me, I would write it on a post it note. You know me. Maybe you're feeling creative and you want to use it as a prompt for a poem or a painting or drawing or music. You might wish to reflect privately by using it as a journaling prompt. This intention is the lens through which you make your choices. Do they align with your intention or not? And if they don't, can you find a way to align with that intention a little more?

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

Remember, it doesn't need to be perfect. It can be flexible. It can change as it needs to. The important thing is that you've done it.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

I've got an intention set in practice on Insight Timer, which is free, so I'll link that in the show notes. You're welcome to use it if it's helpful to you.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

Remember that this intention can change. It's not set in stone, it's not a rigid structure. It's a guide, a compass, a direction. Help guide you forwards in your recovery.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

So thank you for joining me today for this 200th episode of the long covid podcast, 200 episodes of community learning and shared humanity. Thank you so much to you for showing up, for sharing, for your support of the podcast, and for being you because you're awesome.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

If you'd like to share your intentions, I'd love to hear from you. You can drop me a comment on social media, drop me a fan mail through the link in the show notes, or drop me an email. Remember, I can't reply to fan mails.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

I'll be back next week with more fantastic guests. I'm really excited to share some of the episodes that are going to be going out over the next few weeks, until then, know that you're doing the best you can, and that is enough.

Jackie Baxter: 1:55

I wish you a very gentle January and increasing joy for 2026. Take care. Bye.