As the year closes and a new one is near, I take the time to look at what has been: the ups, downs and all the in-betweens. Reflection is important and this year, as I do, one aspect resonates true. 2016 was a year of vulnerability: something I pushed away for so long, with the feeling it showed fragility. Yet, that couldn’t have been further from the truth; with this vulnerability I’ve discovered strength.

"With 2017 so close I am taking that vulnerability with me for good; the growth that has come with it is beyond what I expected."

What I’ve learned is each that step into vulnerability releases fear and allows everything else to flow. The process has meant opening up, sharing the ride, feeling emotions run wild, thinking, acting creatively and simply letting go. Sometimes we hold our greatest assets so close that no one can see them but us. We do that out of fear: fear of exposure, fear of judgment, fear of failure. And yet the only person judging us is ourselves. We are the greatest critics of our own worth and when we let that go, open up, reveal our truth and step into the unknown, we discover so much more of who we are and our magic within.

I’ve never felt so vulnerable as I did throughout 2016 and I couldn’t be more grateful for it. So, with 2017 so close I am taking that vulnerability with me for good; the growth and strength that has come with it is beyond what I expected. For the past year I made no concrete resolves, but in the year ahead this feeling – of opening and allowing vulnerability and growth– is my resolution. For me this is a new-found understanding in health, and I invite you to come with me on this path; knowing and believing that each step into the unknown will reveal more in life than we can ever imagine.

Jacqueline Alwill is a qualified, practicing nutritionist, whole foods cook and director at The Brown Paper Bag.