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This diamond-shaped group of internal muscles work together to support our pelvic organs, including the vagina, uterus, bladder, and bowels. If the pelvic floor muscles are weak, these organs can literally fall out of place, known as prolapse. Weak pelvic floor muscles are also associated with urinary and bowel incontinence (for instance, leaking every time you sneeze), lower back and pelvic floor pain, discomfort during penetrative sex for vulva owners, and constipation....

This quote highlights the importance of awe, that feeling you get when you are overwhelmed by the beauty of a mountain, the miracle of birth, or a spiritual insight. You know the feeling is a good one, but you don’t quite understand it. It’s a feeling that can bring goosebumps, tears, or feelings of euphoria. And when it comes to emotional health, awe is also a natural stress-reliever. It expands our sense of time, and makes us less prone to impatience....

I’m an evangelical Christian dating an atheist physicist. Despite my attempts to evade it, I fell in love with someone whose worldview appeared opposite to my own. Our relationship has taught me more about unconditional love than any sermon ever did. Here are three lessons that have guided me in my interfaith relationship. Usually, we aren’t even aware of our resistance until it falls away. My partner and I have moments of experimenting with belief systems to better relate to each other....

Sure, people often leave relationships too soon, before they have healed their own issues that they’ve brought to the “relationship system.” However, there are non-negotiable signs that it’s time to leave your partner. Here are three urgent indications that it’s time to end your relationship: Abuse If you are in a physically abusive relationship, it’s time to leave. Period. Even if your partner agrees to get help, you need to leave until change actually occurs....

That being said, what you add to your treatment regimen is just as important as what you skip. To come, a few skin care no-no’s for those dealing with crepey skin. Bonus: They simultaneously help ease wrinkles, too: Your best bet? Alpha-hydroxy acids, or AHAs for short. “AHAs dissolve the bonds that hold dull, dead skin cells on the surface of the skin so the skin will gently shed, revealing smoother, brighter skin underneath,” board-certified dermatologist Hadley King, M....

As we enter into warmer months, we’d like to encourage our community to harness the healing power of nature by practicing wellness outdoors and giving back. So we’ve rounded up three of our favorite ways to use nature for wellness, each accompanied by an action that supports the Earth in return. We’ll also be dressing the part with Columbia Sportswear’s 100% compostable Break It Down T-Shirt—it’s the perfect eco-conscious uniform!...

Enter, yogurt face masks. The nutrients that make yogurt such a healthy breakfast, snack, or baking substitute are also what makes the gloop so great for skin care. Here’s how this probiotic-rich spread can give you glowing skin, with three different confections for you to try. And while Greek yogurt tends to have the best consistency for face masks, you can also choose coconut or soy yogurt for a vegan option—just try to find one that includes added probiotics, so your skin microbiome can still reap the benefits....

Despite this progress in epigenetics, I’ve found that if you start singing the praises of a vegan diet, you should prepare yourself for some pretty passionate backlash. (Think: John Belushi in the cafeteria fight in Animal House.) So, given that many of us are going to eat unhealthy meals occasionally, I wanted to look at what strategies can blunt the adverse effects of high fat foods and at least make the meal neutral to our health....

These recommendations are largely from my studies but can be referenced in almost any book on traditional Chinese medicine. (This is one of my favorites.) Spring is the ideal time for cleansing and rejuvenation for overall health and well-being. In Chinese medicine, each season has an element, color, nature, organ, and emotion associated with it. There are also certain common symptoms that arise in each season as well. These tools are used for proper navigation and preparation through the season and prior seasons: In the afternoon, enjoy your heartiest meal!...

At the 2014 revitalize conference sponsored by mindbodygreen, CEO Jason Wachob asked a panel I was on with Frank Lipman, M.D., and Mark Hyman, M.D., “Who’s a fan of gluten?” It brought the house down when I was the only one who raised my hand. I went on to explain the proven health benefits of eating whole grains for disease prevention. Later, I explained the medical research supporting whole-grain foods in an article....

And though condensation may sound harmless, it can actually put your home at an even higher risk for mold growth. Often seen on windows when the outdoor air is cooler and drier than the indoor air, condensation can eventually drip down into the inside of walls, causing mold to form. She’s always looking for new ways to make it easy to create a healthy home environment for her husband and daughters....

Here are the emotional and spiritual practices that I found most helpful during my yearlong cancer journey: I am happy to report that I’m currently cancer-free. I still put these tools into use in my everyday life and am so grateful for all they have given me.

His present, loving, grounded, joyful and patient way of being, impacted me more than any specific concept he taught. However, there was one thing in particular he said that resonated deeply with me … I felt the resonance of what he said in every cell of my body and continued to reflect on this definition of spirituality. Spirituality is about one’s capacity to be guided. What this means is that it’s not about how much we meditate, or how often we go to church....

So, that means, no screen time for at least an hour, a hot bath or shower, and possibly a pre-sleep relaxation meditation, she suggests. It’s also a good idea to avoid food and alcohol close to bedtime, as research shows both can negatively affect sleep. You can also specifically ask your dreaming mind to solve a problem, “or reflect on an aspect of your life that you would like some input on,” she explains....

From button to portobello to shiitake, your home-cooking menus are about to get a serious (and affordable) upgrade with these expert-recommended mushroom grow kits. With a mushroom kit, you also won’t have to worry about the animals and pests wreaking havoc on your outdoor garden. These kits make it simple to grow mushrooms right in your own kitchen (or even inside a closet!). Mushroom kits often include everything you’ll need to get growing....

Here are the benefits of switching to outdoor solar lights, a checklist to guide your shopping, and a list of the best options for lighting your way home. They charge throughout the day to turn on automatically at dusk and will give you eight solid hours of pathway lighting, helping direct you and guests throughout your yard safely at night. Tisha Domingo, chief marketing and product officer at Brightech, adds, “Whether you want to create a party-ready patio or your own personal retreat to relax under, adjusting the number of strands, placement, or length of the Glow Solar Hanging String Lights can really change the mood....

BV occurs when there is an overabundance of harmful bacteria (compared to good bacteria) in the vagina, and it’s often accompanied by an unpleasant vaginal odor and discharge. While BV isn’t typically as uncomfortable as a yeast infection, it does come with significantly more serious consequences if left unaddressed2 such as increased risk of certain STDs, reduced fertility, and early labor, according to the Centers For Disease Control And Prevention (CDC)....

In my practice, self-care and stress management are not luxuries, and regularly releasing hormones like oxytocin is a great way1 to help manage a hectic schedule, as this bonding hormone buffers against stress hormones like cortisol that can make you tired, old, and overweight. Oxytocin plays a role “in a wide variety of physiological and pathological functions such as sexual activity, penile erection, ejaculation, pregnancy, uterine contraction, milk ejection, maternal behavior, social bonding, stress, and probably many more,” write Navneet Magon and Sanjay Kalra in a study published in the Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism....

Spinal waves are one of my absolute favorite types of yoga poses to practice. Beyond the fact that they’re wonderfully mesmerizing to do (and watch), they also feel truly incredible in your body. Spinal waves (think: downward dog waves and child’s pose waves) are all about creating more mobility and flexibility in your spine. This is great for just about anyone to do, but especially for those of us who sit behind a computer all day long and experience stiffness or pain in our backs (also check out my other yoga flow for neck pain)....

A big part of that is what products I choose: I need a gentle, hydrating combo that nourishes my curls. Wellnesse’s Smoothing Shampoo and Enriching Conditioner manage to clean the scalp and strands with sulfate-free, plant-derived surfactants and then feeds the hair fiber loads of lipids and nutrients through a cocktail of botanicals. And in the case of these curl-enhancing formulas, it was. So recently I got my hands on another set, and Smoothing Shampoo and Enriching Conditioner were just as good as I remember....