Health + Wellness
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Self-Healing through Moving Meditations: How I found sanctuary on the Danforth
In January of 2018 my life was changed. I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Since then, I have experience one of the worst years of my life—and one of the most transformative. MS is a chronic illness, classified as an autoimmune disease, where the immune system flares up and attacks the central nervous system. I understand it as a mutiny, where my soldiers (immune system) have risen up against me to attack the most central part of my body. The central nervous system is so important that, when damaged, it has the ability to affect everything. It can affect your mental health (causing stress, anxiety, depression), as well as…
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How Are You Feeling? A Community That Cares
Although those trendy “self-care” activities like flower-picking and taking more naps may seem tempting, self-care and mental health is really more serious than that. Did you know that according to Statistics Canada, 1 in 3 people experience mental illness in their lifetime? This is frequent enough for that person to be someone you see every day—a family member, a classmate, a co-worker, a friend, me. I have struggled with mental health my whole life. At the age of eight, my parents decided against taking me to a child psychologist because nothing was really “wrong” with me. At the age of ten, I was vocal about wanting to die. Age eleven…
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Mineral Magic: Buying into the Gemstone Dream
Have you ever really looked at a gemstone? The facets sparkle and shift colours as you turn them around in the light. It’s like holding a miniature rainbow. Even unpolished crystals and igneous rocks are like pieces of magic. But why are we so fascinated with them?
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Don’t Underestimate the Importance of Body Image
Tattoos can boost self-confidence, make people feel more at home in their bodies, and help set them on the path to healing.
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Choosing the Gym that’s Right for You
New Year’s resolutions may be long-forgotten, but with summer fast approaching, many people will find motivation to start working out again—and maybe even join a gym. With so many different gyms and ways to workout, this can be a daunting task. It’s easy to get roped into paying more for extra services when you don’t even know if you will enjoy them. A good place to start is comparing the differences between working out alone versus joining group workout sessions. In the Danforth community, there are two different big-name gyms, each with very different ways of operating. One of them is GoodLife Fitness. At GoodLife Fitness, each member has access…
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It Actually Happened and It’s Not a Big Deal
Following the Cannabis Act, stigma around legal use prevails in the Danforth community.
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How to Host your Own Solo Wellness Retreat
Life is stressful. Between work, school, the rain gutter you were supposed to clean last weekend, and the third delayed train this week—we all have increasingly packed schedules with little time to ourselves, little time to just stop and breathe. After a while, the constant movement of it all becomes too much, and we begin to toy with the idea of having an Eat Pray Love moment: casting aside all of our attachments and responsibilities to find peace and quiet at an ashram in India. Sadly, not many of us lead lives that we can just walk away from. But thankfully, a rising alternative to skipping town with Julia Roberts…
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How to Make Rose Oil and Rosewater
Show your hair and skin some love with nourishing rose petals.
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The Evolution of the Pet Food Industry
Curious about raw or grain-free doggy diets? Here's the background on these pet food trends.
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Herbs That Heal
Growing up in a small town, I am used to the accessibility of locally-produced goods. The Danforth is one of the few hubs of Toronto that praises sustainability and ensures the continual growth (pun intended) and development of their community. Each year, farmers’ markets pop up like bulbs, ready for the residents to consume the products they’ve tended to whole-heartedly. I say, take it one step further: grow your own. Support farmers and your locals, but apply their knowledge to something you can create and encourage with your own hands. Digging your fingers through dirt, planting microscopic-sized seeds, watching something pop through the soil is so vital and important to…