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Note from the Editor
Morning
,
How do I deal? It's a question I've been asking myself a lot lately, and I know I’m not alone.
In this present moment, celebrating the small things is helping me keep it somewhat together. In last week’s issue, Carey wrote about just that, tiny victories, and I’m thrilled it resonated with so many of you. I’ve also taken up the practice of sharing gratitudes daily on my Instagram. It’s been such a nice way to pause and reflect on wins as small as “The sun came out today” and others as momentous (and cute) as “A friend adopted a puppy.” Inviting new rituals into my life and reflecting on some wins has been my personal way of “dealing” with what’s happening, little by little. (That, and, if you read my note from a few weeks ago, you know very well that I’ve fallen deep down the gardening rabbit role for a new, calming practice, too.)
We all have different methods of coping with the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, in small and large ways because it’s… a lot. That's why, during the month of May, we're going to focus each Friday’s newsletter on a different aspect of mental health. While we’ve touched on mental health in the past, it feels like this current moment in time is asking us to go a few layers deeper.
This is all very hard. We're experiencing collective trauma and feeling so many different things: despair, hope, whiplash, fear, grief, boredom, anxiety, regret, and sometimes even excitement. During this period of increased stress on our minds and bodies, we want to help connect you to resources and tools to help you deal with as much of it as possible.
In the following weeks, we will share fresh perspectives on therapy, how to find levity when it feels the most out-of-reach, grappling with grief in various forms, and more. This week, to kick off our month-long #HowDoIDeal series, Alma therapists answered our questions about how to maintain our mental health during all this. You can .
My closing question for you is: How are you dealing and what are you doing to cope right now? We'd love to hear from you. Reply to this email and we might use your answer in an upcoming post for our community. And make sure to follow @girlsnightinclub for more #HowDoIDeal resources.
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Take care,
Alisha Ramos, @alisharamos
Founder and CEO at Girls' Night In
P.S. One tiny tip: I’ve started saving helpful mental health tools and reminders on Instagram into a folder called “mental health.” I found this post from NAMI recently on five mental health check-ins helpful recently.
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🏡 What's New on Stay Home Take Care This Week
We're still staying in. We're still taking care. And this week we're introducing a whole new section of the site called "I Want to Take Care of My Mental Health" full of resources, tips, meditations, and options for seeking help right now.
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this week's picks
what we're enjoying this weekend
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- A small activity for your future self... 📝 "I love this site . It's also kind of delightful that there are anonymous letters written by others that you can read too. It reminds me of Post Secret - does anyone else remember that? (h/t Claire & Erica's newsletter for the find)" - Alisha, GNI Team
- Your plans for this Sunday at noon... 👩🍳 We're going live on @girlsnightinclub with Priya Krishna, contributing writer at Bon Appétit and the New York Times. Her cookbook, Indian-ish, is our cookbook pick (yes, we're making cookbook picks now!) for May so we'll be asking her about cooking through it and finding meal inspiration during these trying times.
- Gifting closeness this Mother's Day with Book of the Month. 📚 We've done it! We've found the perfect gift — especially with many of us spending May 10th apart from our mom-figures this year. We love the idea of gifting a Book of the Month subscription so that we'll have something to chat about the next time we give mom a call. GNI readers can starting at just $49.99. #SPONSORSTHING
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A nice thing you can do for your skin this week... 💆♀️ "This is not my first clean beauty rodeo, and I'm so impressed with this Cocokind product that helps do all the things I need right now. It's hydrating my dry skin, shrinking my pores, and smoothing out my texture — all things I've been working on while staying home." - Olivia, GNI Team
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An actually helpful Twitter thread about therapy... 🐦 "I scrolled past this thread started by Tracy Clayton this week and thought it was full of helpful tidbits people have learned in therapy during this tough moment of time. It's all about sharing the wealth, since not everybody always has access to professionals." - Tyler, GNI Team
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In case you're looking for a cozier at-home setup... ❤️ Brooklinen is having a 20% off birthday sale, which means we're eyeing these sheets, these candles, and these sweatpants.
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A mood-lifting listen for when you could use a boost... ⚡️ Spotify is making daily wellness playlists now that include a mix of calm and soothing songs, meditations for when you could use a breather, and podcasts to keep you centered throughout the day.
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What's happening in the GNI shop this week... 👶 "We rounded up a collection of gifts for the mother-figure in your life (including Alisha's new favorite pajamas) and we also whipped up a little list of goodies for new moms if you know any." - Katrina, GNI Team
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sponsor spotlight: Book of the Month
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Choose your quarantine house book 👆
Times are weird — we know it, you know it — but Book of the Month is providing us with some company and a welcome break from all of the memes on our feeds while we keep safe inside.
Discovering new, brilliantly curated reads has been keeping our spirits high, and that's not to mention the small joy of watching our bookshelves take shape with every new hardcover we get. Also, getting Book of the Month packages delivered right to our door is giving us something to look forward to every month!
If you're like us, you might just take comfort in starting (or upkeeping!) a reading routine during this time. GNI readers can get your first month for $9.99 with the code "MAY5".
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smart reads of the week
send these to the group chat ✨
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And our GNI May book pick is... 📚 All Adults Here by Emma Straub! Reasons we love this book and author: 1) We're at the point of quarantine where a novel sounds *chef's kiss* right now, 2) this story explores sibling and family dynamics (something many of us are independently going through right now), and 3) Emma is the owner of the lovely Books are Magic bookstore in Brooklyn. Want to hear a Q&A with Emma? We're partnering with our own local bookstore, Politics & Prose, on May 7 to sit down with Emma and a special guest moderator!
Read this if you dreamt your were teaching a Zoom jazzercise class to Lin-Manuel Miranda last night. 🌈 This three-minute NPR listen (or read — whichever you prefer) explains why boredom and anxiety could be causing those vivid dreams you've been having. Worth a moment of your time if you're working on better managing, remembering, or deciphering these wild rides at night.
The only thing better than a cookbook is a community cookbook. 🍅 "In an age of celebrity chefs, glossy coffee-table books and multimedia cooking websites, the community cookbook may seem an anachronism, a dog-eared remnant of church suppers and Junior League fund-raisers.” But, as Priya Krishna explains in this piece, there's something special about the aggregation of recipes into a collection that reflects the actual needs of your community. On each page, the people in your life can add a true look into what they're making out of what they have, and there's a whole lot of beauty in that.
What's the weirdest thing you do to feel better? 🤔 This is a safe space. This piece dares us to talk about it and we're leaning in. GNI team member Tyler says: "My weird thing I do is whenever it's raining out and I know the gray weather is going to make me sad, I turn on Come Clean by Hilary Duff and let myself feel my feelings about it for three whole minutes so I can move on with my day." Have a weird thing you do to ~ deal ~? Reply to this email and let us know.
This week's MVP: dips and spreads. 🏆 Read this love letter to easy food if you're at the snacks-are-meals-now phase of quarantine.
Bonus read: Read this if you're staying with family (and trying to navigate that whole dynamic) during quarantine.
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🌟some helpful resources 🌟
to help you deal with all the things right now
Each week in May, we'll be updating this section with trustworthy organizations and resources that offer mental health support. This week, a few excellent organizations that provide counseling services.
• National Alliance on Mental Illness ( NAMI): Register for online discussion groups, find a local affiliate, read a comprehensive COVID-19 resource and information guide, and more.
• Crisis Text Line: Free 24/7 support to text a Crisis Counselor.
• Alma: A community of therapists, coaches, and wellness professionals available for teletherapy for patients in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.
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