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Health and Wellness Books By Black Women That Will Improve Your Life
*This post was originally posted on Wellanin Collective and has been partially reshared on this platform. It contains Amazon affiliate links that earn that site a small commission that goes towards keeping Wellanin Collective active.
In a recent IG post, we talked about discovering some new titles for Black History Month. Well, we’re going to get you started. Here is a list of 12 wellness books by Black women that are designed to uplift and restore you. In this listing, you’ll find titles related to overall health, spirituality, wellness, healthy eating, fitness, and self-care. You’ll also find journals that will help guide you along the way.
*Book descriptions are via Amazon
Vibrating higher daily is about making intentional day-to-day choices that lift us out of mindsets, habits, and lifestyles that don’t serve us and into ones that do. This book is an invitation to engage with everything that feeds our soul and raises our vibration and to simultaneously let go of the things bringing our energy down. Through poetry, mantras, and affirmations, Lalah Delia empowers us to live with higher potential and quality of being.
BUYOwn Your Glow: A Soulful Guide to Luminous Living and Crowning the Queen Within – By Latham Thomas
Own Your Glow is an inspirational, actionable, and wildly enriching companion for change. Celebrity wellness and lifestyle guru, Latham Thomas provides soulful principles that offer an illuminated path for examining life’s challenges, helping you curate your path to greatness while embracing your uniquely feminine attributes. Packed with rituals, meditations, and snackable lifestyle tips, Thomas provides a clear framework for harnessing your passion, developing spiritual fitness, and embracing true vulnerability. This guide is for anyone who wants to witness her own life transform and contribute to the positive change of the world around her.
BUYRachel Ama’s Vegan Eats: Tasty Plant-Based Recipes for Every Day – By Rachel Ama
Rachel Ama’s Vegan Eats offers brilliant plant-based dishes that make cooking and enjoying delicious vegan food every day genuinely easy—and fun. No bland or boring dishes, and forget all-day cooking. Rachel takes inspiration from naturally vegan dishes and cuisines as well as her Caribbean and West African roots to create great full-flavor recipes that are easy to make and will inspire you to make vegan food part of your daily life. Rachel’s recipes are quick and often one-pot; ingredients lists are short and supermarket friendly; dishes can be prepped ahead and, most importantly, she has included a song with each recipe so that you have a banging playlist to go alongside every plate of delicious food.
BUYContinue reading this post on Wellanin Collective.
Are there any health and wellness books by Black women that have been helpful to you? Share in the comments below.
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I Was Stretched Too Thin and These Are the Steps I Took to Overcome It
*I received a copy of Stretched Too Thin for the purpose of this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. In addition, this post contains Amazon affiliate links which earn this site a small commission.
Last year this time I was having a difficult time mentally and physically. I had a lot going on between work, the kids, my husband, and our home life. I was constantly aggravated and snappy, stressed to the point where I couldn’t think straight and tired beyond measure. Looking back, I now realize I was stretched too thin and didn’t even realize it.
What made this time in my life particularly frustrating was no matter how changed my eating and drinking habits and tweaked my night time routine I was still tired. Every day after I dropped the kids off at school I would come home and sleep all day. Mind you, this was supposed to be the time I should have been working uninterrupted. After all, I had waited two years after my first kid started school for my second to begin kindergarten. This should have been an exciting and fruitful time for my business. But instead of it flourishing, it floundered. Shit was bad and I was a minute from snapping.
In hindsight, I can see how my actions got me in a predicament where I would become stretched beyond my limits. If I hadn’t tried to do too much which ultimately left little time for family, friends or myself I could have avoided feeling like I was on the cusp of having a nervous breakdown.
What does it mean to be stretched too thin?
The meaning is simple, you have too much going on but not enough time to accommodate any of it. You know what this looks like, you and your family’s schedule is packed from sunrise to sunset. Most days you don’t know if you’re coming or going. You end up at one place thinking it’s Tuesday when it’s really Thursday and you should be across town. And as a result, you’re in a constant state of frustration and fatigue.
Now the easy thing to say is, well stop piling on so much shit. And that’s true. But you see, I didn’t realize I had taken on so much. I didn’t stretch myself thin overnight. Nah, son. I was doing it without realizing it. One too many extra projects here, taking the kids there, on top of keeping my house in order as a stay at home mom and trying to be a halfway decent wife. By the time I realized what was happening to me it was too late. Shit had already spiraled out of my control.
How I regained control of my life
The first thing I did was say no to every request in my inbox. This was not something that I was used to doing cause if I thought I could do it I would. Which was my number one problem. I needed to realize just because I could it didn’t mean I should. After that, I went into my inbox at all my pending things and told folks it was gonna take longer than promised due to overextending myself. Thankfully, I work with nice people who understood and sympathized with me as they too have been in my shoes.
With projects completed and my whole schedule clear going forward I needed to make sure that I prioritized my family and myself above all else. Instead of working 7 days a week I cut it down to three – four tops. Friday, Saturday and Sunday were my personal days. Monday too if I could swing it. The impact of this new schedule was a game changer. I no longer felt overwhelmed or exhausted and I had more time for me. It also made my family happy cause I was fully present. Things were looking up and I couldn’t be more excited for lay ahead for me.
How do you avoid finding yourself in a similar situation?
I’m telling you right now you don’t wanna end up like me and how I was last year. You don’t want to walk around in a state of heightened stress all the time yelling at your family for every little thing cause you’re tired and can’t think straight. It’s no way to live. So when I knew I had to make a change this is what I did to pull myself back together:
Plan shit out
I have never been a planner but over the last year, I’ve come to realize how important planning is. I used to think it was silly, now I don’t make a move without checking my calendar. This is a great way to keep yourself from having too much going on at once. You can look ahead to see if it makes sense for you to add on another activity or project, and it also shows if you need to remove things. Simply put, planning keeps you balanced.
It’s okay to say no
There is no rule that states you have to do everything. You don’t, and you shouldn’t, because you can’t. Don’t put your mental, emotional and physical health on the back-burner for nothing and no one.
Make time for you and your loved ones
When you’re being pulled in so many different directions it leaves very little time to enjoy being around those whom you love and care about. Now that you’re planning out your schedule and learning to say no you’ll see how much free time you have. Use that time to reconnect with family and friends, and most importantly, yourself. You’ll notice those around you will appreciate that you’ve not only have taken the initiative to spend time together but that you’re also present enjoying the moment creating meaningful long-lasting memories.
Get Jessica Turner’s newest book Stretched Too Thin
I’ve been a fan of Jessica’s since her first book release Fringe Hours. I considered it my favorite self-care book, that is until I read her newest release, Stretched Too Thin. Reading this book following one of the most stressful year’s of my life helped me fully understand the depths of what I put myself through, the negative impact it had on those around me and to see how far I’ve come since then.
What makes this book special is the fact that it doesn’t read like a book at all. It’s more of a manual and in it, Jessica gives you the tools to: work and parent guilt-free, invest in your marriage and friendships, establish home and work boundaries, and home management solutions – just to name a few.
What separates this book from other self-care books is that Jessica isn’t suggesting or sharing shit that she hasn’t done or gone through. You can tell as you read or listen along that she knows and understands the struggle a lot of us moms face and is committed to helping us find solutions that will not only be beneficial to us but to our families as well.
But my favorite aspect is the journal like reflection section at the end of each chapter. This allows you to dig deep to identify areas of your life that may be stressful or problematic and improve those areas using the tips laid out within the chapter.
While it took me less than a week to read it’s a book that I will keep handy to refer back to as often as necessary to ensure I don’t end up back in the space I was a year ago. For this reason alone it makes Stretched Too Thin worth the read.
Stretched Too Thin along with Jessica’s previous titles, The Fringe Hours and My Fringe Hours are available at your local bookstore, Amazon, and on Audible.
Have you ever felt stretched too thin? How did you go about putting yourself back together again?
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‘In Intimate Detail’ Is the Only Lingerie Guide You’ll Ever Need
*This post contains Amazon affiliate links which earn this blog a small commission. That commission goes towards the maintenance of this website.
A little background
There was a time I didn’t know shit about lingerie. My knowledge didn’t extend beyond knowing my bra size and attaching thigh highs to garter belts. I’m talking basic, that is until the innanets introduced me to Cora Harrington, founder, and Editor in Chief of the world’s largest lingerie blog, The Lingerie Addict.
Finding her blog was mindblowing for me. Cora and her writers opened my mind to a wealth of information regarding underwear and the lingerie industry as a whole. What did I learn you ask? I learned about different types of lace and how it’s used (cause not all lace is the same), to discovering new indie brands from her in-depth reviews, as well as general history about lingerie as a whole.
Aside from everything I’ve learned these last couple of years, the thing I’ve come to love most about her blog is the idea that: lingerie is for everyone regardless of shape, size or sexuality, and lingerie is for you. Meaning, you don’t have to have a partner to buy or wear lingerie. Lingerie is and should be for your personal enjoyment. That’s not saying you shouldn’t wear it for your partner but it shouldn’t be the only reason why it’s worn.
The book
Over the last year, Cora has taken all of her knowledge and poured it into her debut book, In Intimate Detail. Y’all, this book – perfection! Cora teaches you everything you need to know about underthings and how to care for them. Its masterful breakdown, pretty watercolored pages, and beautiful illustrations by Sandy Wirt instantly make this the only lingerie guide you’ll need, in life.
“Beautiful lingerie… is a signal that you love yourself enough to take out the good stuff and feel special even on the most mundane of days.”
—Dita Von Teese, from the foreword
See what I mean. The details. It’s going to change the way you view and purchase your intimates. It’s changed mine. In Intimate Detail is out now so do yourself a favor and get it.Do you read and/or follow The Lingerie Addict? Have you purchased In Intimate Detail? Share your thoughts in the comment section.
Photo Credit: The Lingerie Addict