Inclusivity in Action

Inclusivity in Action

Writing  by Ava Fleisher Artwork by Zoe Stevens As Wendy Belzberg strolled through the quaint streets of Rhinebeck, something suddenly became obvious: Every town should be doing this. Rhinebeck had established a concrete initiative to tackle the issue of inclusion by creating accommodations for people who are neurodivergent – an issue that is often swept under the rug. In nearly ...
Seasonal Sadness

Seasonal Sadness

Writing  by Gia Miller Artwork by Zoe Stevens No matter how much you love snow, a roaring fire or a hearty bowl of stew, less daily sunshine, more layers of clothing and icy roads that force you to stay indoors can make anyone feel a little blue. But for some, a biochemical imbalance in their brain causes a seasonal depression ...
Helping Teens Develop a Healthy Relationship with Food

Helping Teens Develop a Healthy Relationship with Food

Writing by Aerin Atinsky Artwork by Justin Negard If you are a teen, live with a teen or work with teens, you’ve probably suspected that eating disorders have significantly increased since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The good news is that your guess is correct. The bad news is that your guess is correct. Towards the end of last ...
Reimagining the Future

Reimagining the Future

by Gia Miller Artwork by Greg Muenzen Riley* began preschool at three years old. After school, she’d ask her mom to paint her nails. She also liked to play dress up, and she requested Barbie dolls and mermaids as presents.  “I remember even before she could really get the sentence together, she would take her blankie and hand it to ...
Reframing Your Mental Health Condition

Reframing Your Mental Health Condition

by Rich Monetti artwork by Andrea Jaffee If you deal with the symptoms of anxiety or depression, you might view them as scourges that hinder your day-to-day well-being. But it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, if you’re able to view your symptoms in a different and more positive manner, you may actually learn to live with them ...
Understanding the Key to Longevity

Understanding the Key to Longevity

by Ava Fleisher It’s easy to use the phrase “we’ll all die someday” as an excuse to neglect your health. But the truth is, it’s really not that easy. Sometimes, if you focus on the right things in the right places, the average American lifespan of 77 years can be more lively and even lengthened. Ask yourself: “Wouldn’t I rather ...
What to Know Before You Begin A New Exercise Routine

What to Know Before You Begin A New Exercise Routine

By Emma Richman Studies show that regular exercise is good for you. It helps prevent excessive weight gain, improves your mood, boosts your energy, can prevent certain health conditions and even helps you fall asleep faster. Plus, recent research from Kaiser Permanente in southern California has shown that regular exercise also helps decrease the severity of COVID-19.  But exercise also ...
Stop Dieting and Start Eating Well

Stop Dieting and Start Eating Well

By Gia Miller Diet – it’s a four-letter word that makes a lot of people cringe. Some people spend their life uttering that word, others do it before milestone events so they “look good in the pictures,” and there are those who avoid it altogether. Regardless of which category you fall into, most of us know diets don’t really work ...
How to Be Present

How to Be Present

What does it mean to be present? Simply put, being present means to gently rest our attention on what's happening within and around us in that moment. When we’re present, we’re both alert and receptive; we’re able to observe our thoughts, emotions, sensations and experiences. “Being present means being fully available to our lives, not ruminating endlessly about what was ...
The Basics of Meditation

The Basics of Meditation

Did you know that meditation can actually change the structure of the brain? According to researchers, it can enhance the part of your brain that governs learning and memory, and it can also promote emotional regulation and self-referential processing. That same study also found that regular meditation practice can decrease the number of cells in the part of the brain ...
Saving lives, one kidney at a time

Saving lives, one kidney at a time

In the summer of 2007, South Salem resident Jennifer Flood, received a call from her sister Heather. Their father, who was diagnosed with chronic renal failure, needed a kidney within the next six months or he would need to begin dialysis. He was on a national waiting list, but the list was long – it would take two to six ...
Westchester Meditation Center Comes Home

Westchester Meditation Center Comes Home

We could all use a bit more peace in our lives. But it’s not always easy to carve out the time to just sit and relax. Luckily, the Westchester Meditation Center (originally the Westchester Buddhist Center) is returning home. Beginning in January, they’ll offer 12 weekly community meditation classes on Tuesday evenings from 7:00 to 9:00 at the Bedford Hills ...