#heatlhandwellness – City Insight Magazine

Combat Seasonal Depression

Tanushree Kanungo — Thu, 16 Jan 2025 17:00:12 +0000

Depression is a mental health condition that hits harder than most people can realize. As someone navigating through our adulthood, we encounter many daily challenges to balance our lives. A lot of us do not even realize at times why we feel sad over very basic situations.

Depression isn’t just about feeling sad. It can be due to lack of energy, difficulty concentrating, and even changes in our eating or sleeping habits.

Many of us probably experience seasonal depression during winter. While the winter season can make us feel dull and lackluster, there are effective strategies to help combat these feelings and reclaim joy and productivity.

1. Identify
It’s essential to identify what you’re dealing with. Seasonal depression often includes fatigue, difficulty concentrating, changes in appetite, irritability, and a sense of sadness. Recognizing these signs will help to address the problem.

2. Sunlight
Winter months deprive us of sun, so finding ways to soak natural light is critical. Try to sit near windows, or go for a walk outside whenever possible. On cloudy days, light therapy lamps can add more brightness to the room, and our mood and increase our energy level.

3. Physical Activity
It’s hard to motivate oneself to go out to the gym in winter, but even on dull days when it’s hard to find motivation, a quick workout can lift your energy levels. Science says movement releases endorphins, and it’s the body’s natural mood boosters. Workouts can be anything simple like yoga, running, or simply dancing in your living room, as staying active keeps both your body and mind healthy.

4. Stay Engaged
Many people feel isolated during winter months because they socialize less. This only increases sadness. Try to stay connected with friends and family through a simple phone call or text. This simple connection reminds you that you’re not alone and creates hope that you’ll meet them soon.

5. Eat Well
We often crave soups or our favorite beverages during winter. It’s equally important to balance indulgences with comfort and nutritious meals. Foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon, avocados, and walnuts, often help regulate mood. Drink lots of water. It’s important to stay hydrated even when we are mostly indoors.

6. Seek Help when Required
Winters can feel overwhelming, but at any point, you are overwhelmed and feel you are unable to balance and look for professional help. A professional can understand your exact situation and help you navigate through medications or necessary help.

How to Handle Critique and Rejections

The City Insight — Fri, 08 Nov 2024 18:00:00 +0000

We constantly encounter critique and disapproval, whether it’s in the form of uninvited feedback from others, or input we’ve specifically requested. We bottle up what we are doing and avoid letting it out sometimes because we’re afraid of rejections.

On the other hand, reinvent ourselves from what others seem to be approve or disapprove. Because of this, we may feel that we are stifling our own potential.

1. Regularity is Key. Persevere; it’s the daily grind that keeps you inspired, connected to others. Big moments, victories, and defeats will pass. Having a consistent routine that you can always return to can help put any negative feedback into perspective. You get to pursue your passions once again today.

2. Stay Concentrated. Remember where you’re going and why you’re doing things at all times. In doing so, you will be better able to see in plain sight and avoid becoming bogged down by the individual obstacles.

3. Be picky. Carefully consider the feedback you’ve gotten and be prepared to let go of any negative comments once you’ve decided how to implement it. In any case, it’s a mirror of that person’s personal contentment, mood, and pleasure, not necessarily related to you.

4. Keep Pushing. Keep in mind that you are part of the source of your own sense of value. Being self-confident allows you to more readily recover from any negative critique you may get, regardless of who or what provided it.

5. Be Optimistic. If you think positively, good things will come to you. That is speaking it into existence, and it’s something I can attest to from personal experience. Remember the encouraging comments people have said to you anytime you feel the need.

6. Be Precise. Make sure you approach constructive criticism with a level head and not let your internal critic obscure your judgment. Use it as a springboard for personal development; after all, you have to be satisfied with your work for it to be worthwhile.

7. Show Love. Show yourself and your critic unconditional love. Indulge in some self-care. You are deserving of it no matter what happens!

8. Embrace Gratitude. Show grace to those who have been critical of you, take criticism well, and sit quietly to let it all sink in. Thank goodness you have overcome your fears and other obstacles and are actively growing.

9. Show Responsiveness. Instead of answering with whatever comes to mind, give some thought to how you want to handle comments before you respond.

10. Keep an Open Mind. If you’re working on something you might be looking for a certain response. When you put your best effort into something and then get negative feedback or criticism, it’s natural to feel like you’ve “failed” and find it difficult to look on the bright side. Keep an open mind; this “failure” could be guiding you to something better than what you were hoping for.

Puppy Yoga: The Fluffiest Wellness Trend

Mariah Bennett — Mon, 16 Sep 2024 15:59:41 +0000

Downward dog just got a lot more literal with the hottest new wellness trend: puppy yoga.
“Puppy yoga” is one of the hottest new wellness trends that has taken over the internet. It takes
the calm experience of a yoga class, often at a beginner’s level, and adds an exciting twist by
releasing puppies during the session to play with attendees and fellow fur balls.
Depending on the host organization, these yoga classes can consist of multiple types of canines,
from ten week old golden doodles, to a loveable group of adoptable rescue dogs.
But how is this wellness trend actually good for your health?

Here are the top three reasons:

1. Puppy Yoga can help reduce stress

The combination of the relaxing nature of yoga and the playful nature of a dog can help reduce
human stress levels. Despite the chaos associated with a litter of puppies, their comical antics
during class can help participants worry less about how well they are doing at yoga, and take
themselves less seriously. Scientifically, the act of even petting a dog is shown to reduce stress,
specifically the cortisol hormone, and increase oxycontin, the bonding hormone, according to
John Hopkins Medicine.

2. Classes encourages socialization, for humans and canines

A puppy yoga class can be the perfect place to find a fellow animal lover friend. Most likely,
the other attendees also have a soft spot for furry friends. The puppy’s friendly attitudes, and
chaotic running, can also help “break the ice” of an awkward introduction. This positive social
aspect of puppy yoga extends to the furry friends themselves. Socialization is crucial for dogs
around 3-14 weeks, it helps dogs develop into friendly adults.

Puppies need to socialize just like humans do, whether it is through horseplay or pets. During
most sessions, classes mark out time for participants to just play with the dogs, making it the
perfect time for attendees to socialize with both humans and puppies.

3. Puppy yoga is a unique way to practice mindfulness

The practice of mindfulness, or being completely in and aware of one’s present, can be a
challenging task. While practices like yoga are already a popular way to implement mindfulness,
adding some fluffy friends to a session is an entertaining and unique way to deepen one’s
mindfulness. It’s hard to not stay present when there is a hoard of puppies running loose!
Puppy yoga is more than a temporary trend.

Puppy yoga is a fun way to combine care for one’s physical and mental health through a fur ball
filled hour long class. Puppy yoga is spreading nationwide and cementing itself from trend to a
lighthearted activity for yoga lovers, dog lovers, and those looking for a paw-fect place to find
positivity.