Big T, little t…

What begins with T?  According to Dr. Seuss, “Ten tired turtles on a tuttle tuttle tree,” (Seuss, Dr. Dr. Seuss's ABC. New York: Beginner Books, 1963.)

When I completed my first well check-up 5 years ago, I resonated with the description “tired turtle” 🐢😞. I had lost a good amount of weight (again) over the late winter/early spring  months through good habits that were working for me. Though I was feeling pretty good about my Physical Wellness, I was fearful about being able to sustain progress as my new self. I had been on the weight loss rollercoaster too many times. But to my surprise, the well check-up revealed something unexpected.  Of the 8 Wellness Dimensions, my Emotional Wellness lagged behind. Why?

Six months ago, in December 2024, I began a personal experiment. One rooted in curiosity, healing, and a desire for something deeper. I wasn’t drinking every day, and I would never have called it a problem. But alcohol had become a social norm in my life - something I turned to out of habit, routine, or simply to fit in. And somewhere along the way, it stopped feeling aligned with the version of myself I was working hard to become.

If you are here, I have something so important to share with you that perhaps no one else ever has. 

You are enough. You are loved. If you are seeking your best self, it is right within you. You are smart enough, disciplined enough, organized enough and you do have enough time to be who you are meant to be. You may just not know how to find it. And what you think your best self looks like, I promise you are not thinking big enough. It is more than you can even imagine.

I never lost sight of her, that twenty-something girl in the mirror. I was in my early twenties when my wellness journey would begin. Plagued with infertility and hormone imbalances, there was little to know and understand. With no such innovation called “the internet”, you saw doctors and talked to family and friends about your struggles. All you could know was that you weren’t “normal”. As the girl in the mirror aged and took on various shapes and sizes, I was driven, consumed with finding her again. Where did she go, and why was this so hard to understand and “fix”?

Travel season is upon us, and while hitting the road can be exciting, it often throws our healthy habits off track. Rest stops, airport kiosks, and roadside diners rarely offer food that leaves you feeling your best.

Fueling your body right while traveling takes intentional effort, but with a little planning ahead, it’s totally doable. In my latest blog post, I’m sharing a real moment I had on the road (hello, fast food overload) and the steps I took to stay nourished and avoid the regret that often follows those quick-fix meal.

I’ll admit, the word “No” has a bad rap. It carries a lot of negative baggage. Our first encounters with it go back to early childhood when we are learning about our environment and how we are to behave in it. It set limits on our actions and often squelched our desires. And if challenged, usually came with some unpleasant consequence. As toddlers, it became one of our favorite words to express ourselves and try often not met with a good outcome. 

But as adults, “No” can be one of the best tactics for supporting your overall well-being by helping to create space for your mind body spirit balance.

One of the biggest obstacles we face on our health and fitness journey is motivation. It’s constantly shifting: some days you’ll feel unstoppable, like you’re on top of the world, and other days you’ll feel completely drained and question why you ever set such ambitious goals in the first place. When those low moments hit, it’s crucial to remember two things: 1) it’s a temporary feeling, and 2) you need to ground yourself in a deeper why – a reason that can anchor you when motivation fails.

Dr. Rangan Chatterjee is one of Europe’s most influential doctors with more than two decades of treating patients as a General Practitioner in the UK. In addition to hosting a successful podcast and widely viewed TED Talk, he has authored 5 Sunday Times bestsellers including The 4 Pillar Plan where he explains that simple small changes can have significant impact on health and happiness. At @Well, we couldn’t agree more! Chatterjee believes there are 4 focus areas that are as important to your health as any medication and encourages his patients to choose one area to begin improving their health and happiness:  Food, Sleep, Movement, Relaxation.

One of the greatest downfalls of social media today is the obsession with comparison. We do it consciously and unconsciously, constantly measuring every detail of our lives against what we see on our screens - whether it's home decor, the food we eat, our hobbies, interests, or family traditions. It's as if we’re all striving to be carbon copies of one another. But let’s be real…what kind of boring world would that be?