An easy nourishing soup š², a can't-put-down book š, and a feel-good project
Packing in quite a bit here, friends, because wellness is multi-dimensional (and I have a lot on my mind!)
This weekās newsletter will be a tad different from what youāre used toā¦because I decided to start a new series for Lighten in addition to my health and wellness writing (and Iām really excited about it!).
(Wellness will still be a big part of these, but just less about the deep dive and a little more random.)
Starting this series is something that has been on my mind lately, and the idea has come up in response to some thoughts that have been gnawing away at me a bit.
Weāre living in a world where a lot of people are wearing metaphorical āmasksā.
Blogs and posts are being heavily written by AI. Iām seeing wellness influencers carrying the same cheesy (excuse my snarkiness for a minute as I get this all out) vibe. The āfollow these tips and youāll be setā vibe š. You guys, I donāt know why this is eating away at me so much, but it is driving me CRAZY. Becauseā¦ what happened to authenticity and humanness? What happened to finding and using our truest voice? It feels like vulnerability has gone out the window. And I get how hard it can be, but vulnerability = connection, and without it, weāre all closer to being a bunch of cyborgs.
I have this memory of a blog I used to get lost in when I was working my advertising and marketing job at a book publishing company in NYC. During my breaks (some official, some self-selected), I would indulge in devouring a blog written by a woman who was essentially sharing her day-to-day life experiences. Her random thoughts, reflections, and storytelling allowed me to have my own thoughts and reflections on a matterā¦ and it just opened up another outlet of thinking. A way out of my own dang head. And I LOVED it. I think because it was so raw.
It reminded me that weāre all in this together. That other people are out there living their own challenges. That these perfect, edited versions that we see of people on screen are not REAL.
Her posts werenāt about anything life-changing, and she wasnāt offering her readers advice per se. But it felt so, HUMAN. Because we all just desire connection at the end of the day.
What Iām looking for right now in my life is real connection. Real sharing, unfiltered stories and thoughts. Basically, just relatable, real-life.
That leads me to what I DO want to do here.
I do want to genuinely, authentically, and wholeheartedly connect with other humans.
I DO want to share things Iām doing that I feel like are making me a better person, and to write about things Iām working on. The mini challenges Iām setting for myself (and how they turn out š¤), the way Iām moving through the world as a mom of threeā¦ and the pieces of the āwellness puzzleā that are actually worth focusing on (in my opinion). Because, genuinely, 80-90% of our health comes from basic foundations. Not how many supplements and health biohacks we take on.
Iāve had some serious struggles over the years as I tried to figure out what to take from the research and health conversations out there. And I can (in a proud-of-myself kinda way) say that I think Iām finally overcoming the health-world-hole I was falling in. On the verge of orthorexia, compulsive tracking, ridiculous 28-ingredient recipe printouts, etc. Yikes. I want none of that for anyone.
The beauty of life is LIVING it, challenging ourselves to be better people, but not in the way magazines or society tell us to. Iām talking aboutā¦like getting up and stretching in the middle of a workday. OR adding in a tiny habit-stack to meet an intention. Or just a small tweak to change your mindset. That kind of stuff.
I want to write about how Iām still living an imperfect life (thank goodness). I STILL, as a nutrition professional, struggle to get meals on the table (Iām working on this!), and I most certainly still eat ānot-so-healthyā food when my heart desires it. My workouts are far, far from perfect, and Iāll never pretend that I have all the answers. (Butā¦I do love going and seeking them out. š¤)