Mind

TikTok is buzzing with a trend called “the winter arc” that encourages you to start your health and fitness goals in the fall to create a healthy winter. Let’s explore the viral winter arc challenge and whether it has potential to improve your self-improvement journey.

The basic principle of breathwork practices is to view the breath as a calming tool that accesses deeper states of awareness, healing and relaxation. Here are some techniques and benefits.

Maybe you feel like you’re dragging your feet or a step behind in the morning, or just wish you were more productive or active when you first get up. Becoming a morning person can be a hard adjustment but can be made much easier by setting yourself up for success by getting good sleep and changing some habits.

Feeling thankful for what you have can improve your life in so many ways. We’re sharing some tips for learning the art of practicing gratitude.

The mind-gut connection has been the target of increasing study in recent years. Not only has research shown the connection, but there’s been more awareness by people who battle depression and anxiety that they often have to deal with gastrointestinal conditions like irritable bowel syndrome, abdominal pain and stomach upset.

Taking time to check in with yourself is a powerful practice for your physical, mental and emotional well-being. Follow these tips to create a personal health check in:

Even if getting scared isn’t an enjoyable experience for you, you probably know someone who is a thrill-seeker or enjoys frights and scary movies, haunted houses or rollercoasters. What is it about getting scared that is fun or enjoyable for some people?

Eating a healthy and well-rounded diet can improve mental health and make mental health obstacles easier to deal with. On the other hand, a poor diet can be a catalyst for poor mental health and can make it more difficult to manage mental health struggles.

By current estimates, more than 7 million children and more than 8 million adults in the United States have ADHD. Here are 8 tools to better manage ADHD for both adults and children.

Decluttering our digital spaces can become almost as necessary as cleaning and decluttering living spaces and may even need to be done more often. Here are some helpful ways to start digital decluttering and some benefits you may see as a result.

Pebbling refers to the practice of sending or leaving little day-brighteners or “pebbles” for others in your life. It has been described as a love language, an appreciation practice or a ritual form of communication for couples, friends and family. The term comes from the behavior of Gentoo penguins, who will present pebbles to other penguins they are bonding with, to use in nesting.

In the hustle of everyday life, it's easy to overlook the importance of self-care. I know when my schedule picks up, I have a habit of prioritizing my responsibilities over my own wellness. However, I’ve made the conscious decision to incorporate self-care habits into my routine.

Supporting a sick loved one is something that nothing can truly prepare a family for. It can be stressful enough going about your day-to-day life and trying to be supportive of each other, but when you add supporting a family member through illness, daily life activities can become more challenging.

I think I can speak for almost everyone when I say that my smart phone runs my entire life. Staying connected with friends, listening to music, and mapping me to my next destination. As someone who grew up in a world where cell phones always existed, it is hard for me to imagine a world in which I am not dependent on my smart phone

Taking time to clear your mind of thoughts, judgments and opinions can help to reduce feelings of stress and anxiety. This practice is known as mindfulness.

Taking care of yourself and being mindful of your mental and overall health can be especially difficult when you are grieving. Self-care is important during times of loss, even though it may be difficult. Here are some ideas and tips for taking care of yourself and being mindful of your personal mental health while you grieve.

Mental health, anxiety and depression are topics many people shy away from because they can be uncomfortable to talk about. Breaking the stigma around mental health is extremely important because someone’s mental health is just as important as their physical health.

You may associate Labor Day with barbecues, fun and the end of summer, but Labor Day has long been tied to public health. The origins of Labor Day include movements for better workplace health protections and improved quality of life for workers. Here are some health benefits from Labor Day that may surprise you.

Mental decluttering is a process of clearing one's mind of excessive and unnecessary thoughts and worries to focus on the thoughts that matter. Individuals can use simple practices to declutter their minds. It just takes a few minutes a day to create healthy, sustainable habits.

When I imagined what life would be like in college, I never once considered I would be lonely. I had pictured an ideal movie montage in my head of staying up late, surrounded by friends and going to fun social events whenever I felt like it.

You may feel anxiety rising as summer nears its end and autumn and winter get nearer. This end-of-summer anxiety can be tied to a few causes. Learn how to recognize and deal with “August anxiety” or the back-to-school blues.

Are you looking for an activity that is good for all aspects of your health like physical, mental, and social? We have just the activity. Originating as a mixed martial art from China, tai chi is an activity that involves a series of gentle and slow movements, a meditative state of mind, and physical postures.

Reading out loud to your kids is a great way to spend time together and has multiple educational and emotional benefits for both kids and adults. Time spent together with books and stories can help kids’ reading and comprehension skills, as well as be a centering and calming practice for everyone involved, especially when reading together is part of a routine.

Alcohol is involved in cultural and social norms, including after-work decompression and socialization, but there are many ways to wind down after work and “chill out” that don’t involve alcohol.

While many women do fall in love with their unborn babies as soon as they see the two pink lines appear on their pregnancy tests, for others, it doesn’t happen quite that way. That’s OK; it doesn’t mean anything is wrong with you!

Adopting five new habits can help reduce your overall stress and have a positive impact on your life.

Trauma is an event or series of events that threaten your sense of safety or your life.

Music therapy experiences may include singing songs, playing instruments, writing music, or listening to music and analyzing the lyrics. Music therapy interventions can address a variety of health care and educational goals.

TikTok users are sharing their morning routines before settling down at their laptops at home or heading to work. Those using this trend are getting up earlier – 5 a.m. – to pack more into their days.

Ditching all the planning and your phone can alleviate stress and restore creativity. Giving yourself time on your vacation to restore your whole body will help you when you’re back home.

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is often associated with the coming of winter and loss of daylight, but it can also be brought on in warmer months and is known as summer onset seasonal affective disorder.

There are many products and games marketed as memory aids or mind-sharpening pastimes explicitly, especially for older Americans. Do these exercises really help with memory or have a noticeable effect?

On top of growing your own food and plants, you could be relieving stress and improving your attention span every time you get in the garden.

Working from home has obvious benefits, but many of us who work remotely know it can also breed loneliness. These tips encourage movement and socialization. They may help you break up the monotony of the remote work day.

Avoiding stress can be a tall task with the demands of life and everything going on around you. There are lifestyle changes or habits that can help to alleviate routine stressors or triggers for stress or panic.

Have self-compassion and don’t feel like you need to enjoy or recognize Mother's Day. Allow yourself to feel the emotions you have rather than pressuring yourself to feel happy or joyful.

It is common sense that being around nature, fresh air, and pleasant images or aromas from plants can be soothing. But are there actual healing benefits to healing gardens?

Ready to lower your blood pressure and feel more relaxed? Indoor plants might be a worthy investment. Let’s look at how they can make you feel better – and why.

I’ve noticed something about my anxiety over the years – that almost every year it feels like my anxiety heightens around mid-March/early-April. Each year, it comes as a surprise to me. Learn more about springtime seasonal mood changes.

Just like our bodies, our brains change as we age. But there are exercises and activities that can slow or even prevent some of that decline.

Mental health advocate and contributing writer Monica Drake shares why she decided not to drink this St. Patrick's Day — and her plans to celebrate the Irish holiday without the alcohol.

Feeding and eating disorders are considered mental health disorders and medical illnesses. Understanding the types, signs and symptoms is important, regardless of an individual’s age and gender. 

Have you heard of sleep syncing? This TikTok trend could lead you down a path toward better sleep. Here are the bullet points.

Who says meditation has to be solitary, still and boring? Get active in your practice with these five moves. Meditation takes many forms, and these five can be a boon for your physical and mental health.

Mental health advocate and contributor Monica Drake shares her experience with the let-down effect after planning and celebrating her wedding, and how she dealt with the feelings of listlessness after the big day.

Thinking about popping into a tanning bed to ward off the winter blues? Not so fast.

Did you know emotions associated with the “winter blues” can affect 10% to 20% of people this time of year? These tips can help you combat those emotions.

Most dogs are naturally happy and even excited to see their owners. They wag their tails, lean against their owner, stick close for a head scratch or a friendly greeting. It’s a welcome-home reaction that’s pretty hard to beat. It speaks to the bond most people have with their pets, and this relationship has lots of perks for the owners, too. Four-legged friends bring their owners both mental and physical benefits as part of their relationships.

Many of us can afford to shave down the amount of time we spend on social media. It's also a useful professional tool, and can be a boon to our social lives in small doses. Balance is key.

Cleansing your face each day has bigger benefits than just healthy-looking skin.

Here are six tips on tackling clutter and organizing. If you’re dealing with items inherited from parents and items your grown children have left behind, these pointers are especially helpful.

Clutter doesn't always refer to physical items. If your house and your life feel a little messy, it’s time to declutter for the New Year. Here are some tips.

Is your space running out of...space? Before you buy more organizational products, consider going the opposite direction and getting rid of some of the clutter. That can be easier said than done, so here are some tips.

Contributor and mental health advocate Monica Drake writes about how she is managing the holiday season while grieving a recent loss in her family.

When your weeks feel cyclical and repetitive, try treating a weekend like a vacation. Here's how to unplug, unwind, and get into that vacation mindset.

Integrative health expert, keynote speaker, radio personality, business owner and NASM Master Trainer Angela T. Moore talks about the pros and cons of New Year's resolutions. Are they bad? The answer might surprise you.

If stress has become an uninvited guest on your vacations or work trips, you may have travel anxiety.

This year, trade your big New Year's resolutions for small goals that will make you healthier.

If scrolling and swiping makes you feel less than festive, don’t let social media put a damper on your holiday celebrations.

Ready to add a little more zen to your life? Try these 5 kinds of meditations.

Mental health advocate and contributor Monica Drake shares how she learned the difference between impulsive and intrusive thoughts -- and how they affect her mental health.

If getting back from a trip gives you the blues, here’s how to overcome post-vacation depression.

Contributor Monica Drake shares what you can do if the holidays aren’t feeling so joyful right now.

Dr. William T. Beecroft has advocated against alcohol abuse for much of his 40-plus-year health care career. Here, he reflects and shares some candid thoughts.

Holidays can mean overeating to the point of stretchy pants and undoing some waistband buttons. But they don’t have to.

The holidays are as stressful as they are joyous. When it comes to shopping, traveling, decorating and family time, here are ways to mitigate the stress.

Contributor and mental health advocate Monica Drake writes about one of the biggest triggers for her anxiety -- change -- as she prepared to get married.

integrative health expert, keynote speaker, radio personality, and business owner. She's a NASM Master Trainer, PAngela T. Moore explains the different types of workouts available and how you can decide which one is best for you.

While it’s often thought of as an adult wellness activity, kids can realize the same health benefits by discovering their inner “yogi.” Why not start them early?

When you eat intuitively, you listen to your body. You trust it to let you know when you are full and satisfied. You also reject the new fad diet of the month. Here are the benefits and risks.

Booze before bed may seem like an OK way to help you doze off quickly. But the tradeoff is usually fragmented sleep, wakefulness and a very groggy day after.

Contributor and mental health advocate Monica Drake writes about what Suicide Prevention Month means to her and why.

Can what you eat slow down age-related cognitive decline or early signs of Alzheimer’s?

School is back and so is the juggling act that comes with life on campus for college students. BCBSM'S 2023 corporate communications interns recently shared their diet, exercise and self-care regimens.

Learn about WAIT, which offers simple suicide prevention advice.

Having trouble staying organized at school? Adding structure to our lives can bring out the best versions of ourselves. Here's what a routine-oriented approach can offer.

Recognizing and addressing the red flags in a friendship can be crucial to your mental and physical well-being. Start an open dialogue with your friend if you encounter these five red flags.

Since the unknown is one of the biggest triggers for my anxiety, it’s no wonder that dating had such an effect on me.

Swim in a lake, walk in the grass or lay on the sand and you might get the benefits from grounding.

When facing problems with breastfeeding, women may experience feelings of depression or symptoms similar to post traumatic stress syndrome.

Most of us spend too much time on our phones. You’d be surprised how much mental clarity you gain by cutting down on your screen time.

Summer intern Mike Merucci shares how writing one sentence per day helped boost his creativity and his mental health.

If you are a frequent social media user, you might have stumbled upon the latest health trend called a “dopamine detox.” But does it work?

It's a busy world. But when you take time to do nothing, you can passively check in on both your mental and physical health.

Contributor and summer intern Caitlyn Begosa writes about starting her first year of college out-of-state, and how she learned to adapt.

Contributor and summer intern Olivia Durkee shares how hiking has helped her mental health and become an outlet for her stress.

Contributor and mental health advocate Monica Drake shares how her pets have helped her mental health.

Reconnecting with an old friend can feel good. You being the one to initiate the contact can be good for both of you.

These six areas of social wellness can unlock a better, more well-rounded health profile.

Brain teasers are not only fun but good mental exercise that supports a variety of cognitive functions.

Summer intern Jenna Natwick shares how becoming a gym regular has helped her with her anxiety.

Ready to follow the new trend of #luckygirlsyndrome? Here’s how to start.

Licensed therapist, NASM master trainer and integrative health expert Angela T. Moore shares signs you're carrying too much weight — mentally and physically.

Contributor and mental health advocate Monica Drake shares her experience with panic attacks, and talks about the strategies that help her manage them.

A Summer Solstice meditation session might be just the thing to get your mind and body in sync for summer.

As more people lean into meditation, here’s what to know about creating your own meditation garden.

Men worry about their appearance more than you think. Learn how to improve body image and get rid of negative thoughts once and for all.

Contributor and mental health advocate Monica Drake shares how her anxiety has affected her feelings on having a family in the future.