Our feature story this month by Carrie Jackson, “Personalized Nutrition, Fine-Tuning the Dinner Plate,” brought to mind a quote that is often attributed to Hippocrates, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” In this article, Jackson discusses how personalized nutrition is transforming health care; with smart technology, AI, and gut health research driving a shift away from one-size-fits-all diets toward tailored approaches that optimize well-being and performance.

Reading this led my thoughts toward a different area of ingestion I’ve been trying to be more mindful of: the mental diet. Having developed the habit of paying perhaps too close of attention to world affairs, I recently found myself all-too-frequently steeped in the addiction of breaking news.

Over a period of time, I’ve discovered that when feeling overwhelmed at work the tendency to escape by scrolling social media or even worse, checking the day's breaking news, became more of a mindless habit. Thankfully, I found a tool called a Brick that locks my phone from whatever apps and websites I choose. So far, it’s been a game changer in helping curb the addiction to what’s going on in the world, or even cute but ever-so-distracting puppy, kitten or laughing baby videos on social media.

In contrast to blocking exposure to things that either stress me out or distract me from responsibilities, I’ve been cleaning up my mental diet by adding more of what I consider to be what’s good for me, too.

So last month, I gifted myself a 21-Day Nervous System Reset (NSR) with a few Australian ladies from an Instagram page (I know – ironic!) called The_Reconnected. During the NSR, participants practice setting an intention before a guided, 15-minute gentle breathwork session. Many of my intentions over the course of the reset revolved around growing Natural Awakenings which led me to realizing the negative impact distractions and procrastination have had on my work.

What came up most profoundly is a greater awareness of the impact we have on our community and how by playing small, we’re failing local businesses and readers by not providing more options and resources.

In recognition of the significance of the work our advertising partners do in the world as they assist others on the path to healing and thriving, I recommit myself and our publication to our collective growth and well-being.

The goal has always been to expand, far and wide, the ripple effects of healing that occur when even one person feels better physically, emotionally or spiritually.

Our mission is to support you on your wellness journey through the information, practitioners and businesses you find within these pages and the knowing that the ripple effects of what helps you, touches everyone around you in a positive way.

If you visit our advertisers, please remember to tell them where you found them. In this fast-moving digital age, it’s easy to forget.

In gratitude,