Physical activity, particularly running, helps the body process and release stress, and it helps the mind work through lingering problems with meditative silence. I have benefited from both in the past, which makes it all the more odd that I did not avail myself of running during the most collectively stressful year we have experienced in a generation. I intend to change that in 2021.
Traditions bind families together but also contribute to stress that can tear them apart. 2020 was anything but ordinary, requiring flexibility and patience from all of us. Working and learning from home pulled back the curtain to reveal how much really happens behind-the-scenes, making many moms feel more seen, especially during the holidays. In this two-parter, we will look at finding balance in an unbalanced year.
While buying local food is beneficial for local farmers, it doesn’t make that much of a difference to the environment. Transportation-related greenhouse gases are a drop in the bucket compared to GHGs associated with land use, farming, and methane produced by cows. Looking at the numbers shows that it’s what you eat, not where it comes from that makes the biggest impact.
Subscription services to healthy, farm-fresh produce promote health for the people who eat the food and financial viability for the farmers who grow it. Many people believe the biggest value of a CSA program is the low environmental impact of buying local, but this first post in a series on CSAs looks at whether eating local food is really the best way to save the planet.
Over many years and several D&D campaigns, I have reluctantly become more comfortable with the concept of asking for help when I need it and letting someone else revel in a success. Incredibly, participating in this game with friends has not only made me a better leader and team member in real life, but it has probably also helped keep me healthy through stressful times.
We’ve had a rough go of it in 2020, and the year isn’t over yet. Between pandemic, recession, violence, and political strife, people are experiencing chronic stress in the best of cases. What if I told you there was a way to work through unprocessed emotions, celebrate successes through diversity, and release brain chemicals that are designed to keep you healthy and resilient?
Halloween is the time of year when we think of death and of natural cycles coming to an end. But what is Halloween like when we’ve already been thinking about death all year? This post examines our attraction to the expression of death in art. Watching outbreak movies during a pandemic and laughing at dark humor during times of crisis may actually be a psychological necessity.
Staying with my parents for a month this summer was mostly wonderful and occasionally trying as personal politics clashed. We were often in agreement about whether or not to wear masks, but less so about the government’s response to the global pandemic. This week I describe my political crisis of faith as I observe a growing divide between myself and my party.
Our knowledge about the virus grows and changes with each new puzzle piece: who can transmit it, when and how it can be transmitted, how serious the resulting disease and lasting impacts can be, and how best to prevent the spread. During my own COVID-19 scare, we figured out what to do at home to protect our families, friends, and coworkers.
Choosing to stay home and limit contact with friends and loved ones can be incredibly difficult for anyone. The pandemic so far is the longest amount of time I’ve been away from my parents, with the exception of when I lived in Japan. While spending so much time apart from them has been terrible, I’ve been terrified of unknowingly passing the virus to them.