One of the best life hacks I’ve ever stumbled upon has been focusing on my mental health, which then improved my physical health. I love a situation where I can kill two birds with one stone. I’m sure you do, too — so let me tell you how I did it.

Health and your digestion

I first learned about the many effects the gut health can have when I was becoming a yoga teacher in India. Our instructors emphasized this a lot. Everything was related to the digestion. Everything.

Do you experience depression? Anxiety? Skin problems? It’s all linked to your gut health —…

Elena finished revising her client’s article around 1 pm. Peering out the window, she saw that it was sunny. The sky was blue, full of hope. Now was her chance. She quickly got dressed and put on some very light makeup. She knew it’d be ridiculous to try too hard for this simple errand, but she also wanted to feel good today. She approached the new full-length mirror her husband had gotten her. She’d been wanting one since she’d moved here to be with him; they’d been mirrorless since the pandemic began. Looking at her reflection, she frowned. …

Money and the pandemic

My partner is a small business owner whose business hasn’t operated in almost a year. His is a story like so many others since the pandemic erupted across the globe.

Needless to say, money has been extremely tight. The silver linings are that:

1. He’s a great saver.
2. He got engaged to a freelance writer — a solely digital profession.
3. Once a businessman, always a businessman. He’s like a phoenix who comes to life again through his own ashes, and he will create something again COVID or not.

Now, if you asked me whether I’ve been actually feeling that tightening of…

We all have certain mental, physical, and emotional needs — things like feeling safe, attention, love, appreciation, solidarity, routine, consistency, being challenged, etc. Beyond the basic necessities we require in day-to-day life, though, there are deeper thirsts that must be quenched.

It’s just like that plant on your windowsill that you care for, watering it and trying to make sure it stays healthy and green. In the same way, you must also take care of your soul.

The problem is that it doesn’t actually come with a manual. So, how can you know what your soul needs?

These deeper needs…

“A man [or woman] cannot be comfortable without his [or her] own approval.” — Mark Twain

I just had this sort of eureka moment while cooking breakfast for myself and my fiancé. Judgmental people might just be insecure. I know this may be common knowledge, but it also might give you some kind of self-illumination like it did me.

But first, let me explain the thought process from its inception to a fully blossomed realization.

When the seed was planted

I’ve finally been getting back into my yoga practice lately. I haven’t been able to teach since COVID hit. …

Have you ever met someone who seemed that they were completely at peace?

Maybe they were super easy-going, and it made you want to be around them just to get a glimpse of what it feels like. Maybe you could just sense that nothing in this world or beyond it was gnawing at them inside.

That’s what it feels like to not be at peace — it’s like something is constantly gnawing at you. And until you come to terms with it, that incessant and bothersome feeling will continue until it eventually consumes you.

The thing about peace is that…

Lockdown number two has begun in the UK, and I wasn’t ready. I. Was. Not. Ready.

Yet, here we are. And so far, I’m surviving. By surviving I mean not totally losing my shit. I’d say that’s going above and beyond by today’s standards, so I’ll take the win (and gladly bestow my success upon anyone else in need of a win, too).

This pandemic has been tough on the mental health of so many people around the world. …

While not much feels safe anymore, I think it is safe to say that 2020 has been a year filled with anxiety, fear, and loneliness for so many people.

Depending on where you live in the world, lots of us still can’t mix with other households. This means a huge limitation on socializing with both friends and family, plus dating and trying to find love for the single population.

Our interaction with others has become so seldom and sparing that it almost hurts, and this is coming from an introvert here. …