What to Know About HIV and AIDS in 2016

The Basics

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is an incurable virus that weakens the immune system by attacking the body's T-cells (a type of white blood cell that helps ward off diseases, bacteria, and viruses). If not aggressively treated, HIV can cause acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).

How You Get It

HIV is not spread as easily as some other STDs. It's transmitted through bodily fluids: semen, pre-ejaculate, rectal fluids, vaginal fluids, blood, and breast milk. However these fluids must come in direct contact with a person's mucous membrane (a layer of skin that lines body openings like the nose or mouth). This is why people often get HIV through unprotected anal, vaginal, or (rarely) oral sex. Unprotected anal sex is particularly risky, especially if you're receiving. It's also possible to spread the virus if one of the fluids comes in contact with damaged tissue (like through a cut or an open sore) or the bloodstream.

You might recall that in the early days of the AIDS epidemic, there was a lot of concern about blood transfusions. But in 1985, they started testing all blood donations for HIV, so any blood you receive at a hospital is safe.

What’s It Like?

The first two to four weeks after being infected, you'll probably feel fluish. Symptoms can range from fever, chills, and fatigue to muscle aches or a sore throat. These will eventually disappear, and you'll enter the clinical latency period—also called chronic HIV infection—during which you may not have any symptoms at all. This stage can last anywhere from 10 years to several decades, depending on whether you're on meds.

The third and final phase is AIDS, which causes more flu-like symptoms—chills, fever, weakness—and weight loss. People with AIDS are also more susceptible to other illnesses because their immune systems are so damaged. Without treatment, they can expect to live about three years.

How Serious Is It?

OK, now that all that scary stuff is out of the way, we can talk about HIV and AIDS in 2016. While HIV is still a very real threat, things have also changed a lot since the 80s and 90s.

"People who have HIV can go on to have normal, healthy sexual relationships," says Yesmean Wahdan, M.D., associate medical director at Bayer Women's Healthcare. "It's just a matter of staying on top of your treatment regimen and having the conversation with your partner about your condition."

People who have HIV can go on to have normal, healthy sexual relationships.

If HIV is caught early and the infected person is started on antiretroviral therapy (ART), their viral load (the amount of HIV in the blood) can become undetectable, making it hard to pass on to another person when practicing safe sex.

What Can I Do?

Practice safe sex, abstain from intravenous drug use, and use pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) if you're at risk of getting HIV.

"The best defense is a good offense," says Sherry Ross, M.D., a women's health expert based in Santa Monica. "Researchers think PrEP could be a public health strategy to control widespread epidemics of common STIs."

PrEP is a combination of two medicines—tenofovir and emtricitabine—that helps block the infection. Taken correctly, it can lower your risk of getting HIV by 90 percent. However, it is not a vaccine, and while it's not 100 percent foolproof, it is light-years ahead of where we were only a few decades ago.

The number of people infected with three major STDs is at an all-time high (yikes!). We're tackling common misconceptions about STIs and STDs to help #ShattertheSTIgma. Because getting tested should be NBD.

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The STI That Almost Disappeared but Is Back in Full Force

The Basics

You might be thinking: No one actually gets syphilis anymore, right? Wrong. While syphilis all but disappeared in the early 2000s, it's been on the rise ever since. In fact, the number of syphilis cases in the U.S. nearly doubled from 2005 to 2013—and was even higher in 2015 (the highest since it's been since the 90s).

The good thing is syphilis can be cured if it's caught early enough. But if you don't get treated, it can cause serious health problems and even death.

How You Get It

You get syphilis by coming into contact with a syphilis sore or rash during vaginal, anal, or oral sex. Though syphilis is much more common in men, in particular gay and bisexual men, women aren't immune. And because syphilis can be spread from a mother to her unborn baby, it's especially important for women to protect themselves and get tested.

What’s It Like?

Syphilis has so many different symptoms that it earned the nickname the "great imitator." This, of course, makes it difficult to pin down.

Syphilis has so many different symptoms that it earned the nickname the 'great imitator.'

The primary stage usually involves a small, painless sore (called a chancre) on your vagina, anus, penis, or scrotum. Most people just get one, making it easy to miss. The sore is extremely contagious but will go away on its own after about three to six weeks. Because syphilis sores disappear, people don't always get tested.

The secondary stage is a little more obvious. Instead of a single sore, you'll get multiples—or a rough, red or brownish rash—on one or more parts of the body. Just like the primary stage, the rash will go away without treatment.

"With this stage of syphilis, the symptoms become more generalized," says Yesmean Wahdan, M.D., the associate medical director of Bayer Women's Healthcare. "Patients will have fever, swollen glands, malaise, sore throat, and visual impairment."

Once that clears up, there's the latent stage—called so because there are no symptoms, sometimes for years. But without treatment, it may return.

Late-stage syphilis, which can happen 10 to 20 years after that initial sore, is more persistent and even less pleasant—but only about 15 percent of people with syphilis actually get to this point.

This is the scary part, when the disease starts to affect your internal organs—the brain, nerves, heart, and joints—and can eventually cause paralysis, gradual blindness, dementia, and death.

How Serious Is It?

Unfortunately, this is a serious one, especially because it's easy to miss or ignore.

What Can I Do?

Talk to your partner and practice safe sex.

"Prevention is the best defense against STIs like syphilis," says Sherry Ross, M.D., a gynecologist based in Santa Monica. "Male and female condoms can help reduce your risk."

But because sores can pop up in places not covered by a condom, protection isn't 100 percent guaranteed.

Luckily, syphilis is easily treated with penicillin. Again, it's important to catch it early, since antibiotics can't reverse any of the damage already done by the disease. If you're getting treated, don't start having sex again until your sores have healed. It's also important to note that getting syphilis once doesn't make you immune; you can get it again.

The number of people infected with three major STDs, including syphilis, is at an all-time high (yikes!). We're tackling common misconceptions about STIs and STDs to help #ShattertheSTIgma. Because getting tested should be NBD.

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1 in 4 People Have HPV, but What Is It Really?

The Basics

The fact is nearly all people who are sexually active will come in contact with the human papillomavirus (HPV) at one point in their lives. After all, it's the most common STI on earth. There are roughly 100 strains of HPV out there, but only about 40 of them infect the genital area—and even fewer are considered serious. ⁰

How You Get It

You can contract HPV through vaginal, anal, or oral sex, and it can even be passed by a person who's asymptomatic (which is pretty common—more on that below). HPV, along with herpes, is one of the few STIs that can bypass the latex barrier of a condom and infect a person through skin-to-skin contact.

"If your partner is a known carrier of HPV and wears a condom, you can still catch this contagious virus," says Sherry Ross, M.D., a gynecologist based in Santa Monica.

What's It Like?

Here’s the tough part about HPV: There are usually no symptoms. At least two types of HPV (types 6 and 11) can cause genital warts (in fact, 90 percent of all genital warts are caused by those strains). But for most of the nearly 80 million people living with the infection, there are no signs.

For most of the nearly 80 million people living with the infection, there are no signs.

How Serious Is It?

Most of the time HPV clears up on its own and doesn't cause any health issues. But if you've seen a Gardasil commercial, you're probably aware of its connection to cancer. Each year HPV causes about 30,700 cases of cancer, more commonly in woman than in men. Cervical cancer is the one that gets the most attention, but other rarer cancers—penile, anal, vaginal—also have strong associations with HPV. For instance, about 5,010 people are diagnosed with anal cancer each year, and about 91 percent of those cases are caused by HPV.

One more thing: The types of HPV that cause genital warts are not cancerous. So though you might not like the way they look, technically, they're less serious.

What Can I Do?

Here's the great news: HPV has a vaccine. Gardasil, which protects against the strains that most commonly cause cancer or genital warts, has been available since 2006. There's also Cervarix and Gardasil-9—both of which protect against even more strains of HPV.

“HPV was not even on the radar for sexually active women and men 30 years ago," Ross says. "Now the HPV vaccine is part of the health care narrative for young girls and boys.”

It's recommended that children ages 11 to 12 get two doses of the vaccine, whereas people who get it later (ages 15 to 26) need the whole three-dose series.

Women between the ages of 21 and 65 should get a Pap test and/or HPV test every three to five years, depending on what your doc recommends.

The number of people infected with three major STDs is at an all-time high (yikes!). We're tackling common misconceptions about STIs and STDs to help #ShattertheSTIgma. Because getting tested should be NBD.

Works Cited

1. Classification of papillomaviruses. de Villiers EM, Fauquet C, Broker TR. Virology, 2004, Jul.;324(1):0042-6822.

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How to Reduce Your Chances of Getting an STI and Still Have a Sex Life

Sex shouldn’t be scary. In fact, when done correctly, it should feel the exact opposite of scary. Still, the threat of getting an STI is enough to make anyone a little gun-shy. (And hey, if you're choosing to not have sex, that's fine too! After all, it's the only foolproof way to prevent pregnancy and STDs.)

But let's get real: You shouldn't let the possibility of getting an STI scare you off from having sex. While some are harder to catch than others, staying safe is mostly a matter of common sense and, well, condoms. Whether you're in a monogamous relationship or dating around, there are a number of steps you can take to keep yourself healthy.

Talk to Your Partner

There’s no government-mandated instruction manual on how to talk about STIs with your partner. It's probably going be awkward. But you know what’s more awkward than asking about gonorrhea? Getting gonorrhea.

“Millennials are more accustomed to using condoms and having the ‘STI conversation’ before jumping into bed,” says Sherry Ross, M.D., a gynecologist and women's health expert based in Santa Monica.

Stay Safe

As we mentioned before, the only way to guarantee you won’t get an STI is to not have sex. But there are options.

"Every day, I counsel women of all ages on the importance of safe-sex practices," Ross says. "The conversation always includes how condoms can help prevent the most common STIs—though it is not a guarantee.”

It's true: Condoms are not an ironclad way to stay safe, especially if you’re using the lambskin kind, which only protect against pregnancy. But chances of staying protected with latex and polyurethane condoms are high (just not perfect).

Proper condom use is great at stopping chlamydia, gonorrhea, trich, and HIV. HPV and herpes, however, are transferred through skin-to-skin contact, so they can both be passed even with if you're using condoms correctly.

“Most men do not have symptoms, and there is not a test to know if men carry HPV,” says Yvonne Bohn, M.D., a gynecologist with over 17 years of experience. “That’s something that separates HPV from harder-to-get STIs like HIV. HPV can be spread easily even with a condom, making protected vaginal, anal, or oral sex just as risky.”

What about other forms of protection? Well, despite what some people think, douching does not protect against STIs. Same goes for urinating after sex, showering, or taking Plan B. A female condom is around 95 percent effective when used correctly (pretty close to the 98 percent success rate of male condoms), so there's no reason to skip safety even if penises aren't involved.

Get Tested

We get how embarrassing it can be to request a test from your doc, but believe us, doctors have seen everything. Some are even working to change the process so that the patient must explicitly say no to getting tested rather than the other way around. Sayonara, uncomfortable questions!

"Some health care providers and some in the CDC are pushing for a more universal approach to chlamydia," says Cherrell Triplett, M.D., an OB/GYN and women's health expert. "So when a patient comes in for her annual exam, you just do a screening if they're in that target population [i.e., under 25 years old]."

But until that becomes the standard, it's on you to ask your health care provider. The CDC and Planned Parenthood recommend getting testing at least once per year, but like most things in the realm of sexuality, it's up to you.

"I leave it to my patient," says Gil Weiss, M.D., an assistant professor of clinical medicine at Northwestern Medical. "But whenever you're finishing a relationship and starting a new relationship, it's not a bad idea to get tested." Same goes for if you suspect you were being cheated on; just be honest with yourself and get tested.

Some STIs are easy to test for: Chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis only require a swab of the genital area or a urine sample. HIV, herpes, and syphilis can be found with a blood test. And a few STIs with visible symptoms—like a herpes outbreak—can occasionally be diagnosed on the spot.

Where to Get Tested

Planned Parenthood is probably the best-known spot, and it’s easy to find a nearby location via its website. A complete guide to free or nearly free testing sites can also be found on the CDC’s website.

Likewise, testing info is usually available on your city’s health department website. NYC, L.A., Chicago, Miami, and Houston, for instance, all offer STD screening services at multiple locations.

Will my parents find out? Will people label me if they know?

Confidentiality goes hand in hand with STI testing.

"If a patient is under their parent’s insurance, sometimes they ask, 'Will my parents find out?' or, 'Will people label me if they know?'" Triplett says.

The reality is: Most of the time no one will know except you, your doc, and (hopefully) your partner, even if you're covered by Obamacare or on your parents' insurance.

That said, laws do vary from state to state. Only one state (Iowa) requires physicians to notify parents if a minor has a positive HIV result. In several states, physicians may inform parents, but they're not required to. And as soon as you're over 18, you're on your own.

If You Have an STI

First, don't freak out. Not every STI diagnosis is the end of the world. STIs do make it easier to contract HIV—and can lead to more serious health complications if left untreated—but many (chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis, for example) are treatable with antibiotics.

HPV is slightly more complicated. Some strains will clear up on their own; others (more rarely) can cause cervical or anal cancer. But the fact is around 80 million Americans are currently infected with HPV, so it's nearly unavoidable. Fortunately there are now multiple vaccines that protect against the strains that commonly cause cancer and genital warts.

HIV, on the other hand, is actually very hard to contract. People used to believe that HIV could be easily contracted through kissing, sharing gum, and getting tattooed, but today we know none of that is true. If you do become infected with the virus—or you're with someone who has it—it's possible to still have a sex life using a combination of condoms and PrEP—a preventive medicine for people at high risk of contracting HIV.

Almost 40 states allow something called expedited partner therapy, which is a way to treat an STI-positive person and their partner, without having to examine the partner. It's currently only allowed for gonorrhea and chlamydia, but it helps.

"If a person is positive, then I can say, put your boyfriend or partner on the line, and I can call in some antibiotics, most of the time, right away," Weiss says. No extra doc appointment, no added embarrassment.

The number of people infected with three major STDs is at an all-time high (yikes!). We're tackling common misconceptions about STIs and STDs to help #ShattertheSTIgma. Because getting tested should be NBD.

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These Hilarious Comics Nail What It's Like to Live With a Disability in 2016

Two sisters are putting a hilarious spin on the crap people with disabilities have to put up with in 2016. Jessica and Lianna Oddi, two illustrators who use wheelchairs, created a blog called The Disabled Life to show what it's actually like to deal with everyday situations (including Tinder) when you have a disability.

"To be honest, it really started as a way to share our personal experiences in a funny way," Jessica told Refinery 29. "But as it continues to grow, our underlying goal is to help make disabilities a common topic. It’s 2016; we can all talk about diversity, share our thoughts, and treat everyone like human beings!" Check out some of the powerful comics below:

All Photos: The Disabled Life

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This Emotional Story Explains Exactly What a Late-Term Abortion Is—and What It Isn't

When Donald Trump talked about late-term abortions in the final presidential debate, the Internet exploded. According to Trump, current abortion law means "you can take the baby and rip the baby out of the womb of the mother in the ninth month, on the final day." But here's the thing—that's not what happens at all (his description actually sounds more like a violent C-section).

As this emotional Facebook post explains, late-term abortions are performed in severe cases, and they are often very traumatic. We should be listening to OB/GYNs and the women who have gone through late-term abortions, not politicians.

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Matt McGorry Is the Body Image Spokesperson Men Have Needed for Years

Though there's still work to be done, we’re basically living in the golden age of body positivity—for women, at least. But what about men?! Yes, women face a ton of criticism about their bodies, but actor Matt McGorry (Orange Is the New Black, How to Get Away With Murder) recently opened up about how much it affects guys too.

McGorry used to be a competitive bodybuilder, which actually made him more critical of his body. He told TODAY he was miserable while training, but being OK with how his body looked when he wasn't super muscular wasn't easy. McGorry even admits to slipping back into old crash-dieting habits before his first shirtless shoot for Orange Is the New Black. And he says he's still working on not being too self-critical.

McGorry has a lot to say about gender and body image, so we’ll let you hear it from him:

I hope that discussions of body issues and self-criticism will become more of a conversation among men. I really do think that tied in those issues—and our willingness (or lack thereof) to discuss them—is a conversation of how vulnerable men are willing to be in general. We're taught, typically, that a real man doesn't show vulnerability, nor does he exhibit self-conscious behaviors.

But in my experience, being public about things like that leads to great freedom. It's the first step. If we can't express it, it's hard to change how we think and feel about it.

When we lock our boys away from those feelings, not only are they more likely to hurt themselves, [but] they're more likely to hurt others and to hurt women. They'll likely be the ones policing masculinity among other men too.

It's time to get away from the idea that men are supposed to be strong and hard and unfeeling, and women are soft and maternal. Gender is a spectrum, not a binary system, and it's time we view our behaviors, emotions, and appearances on a spectrum as well. Many men are vulnerable to unhealthy, powerless feelings when it comes to body image. Let's talk about it.

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This Is the Exact Number of Calories You Burn During Sex

Sex as a replacement for cardio is something we can all get behind. But according to a new study, it doesn't actually burn that many calories.

The researchers used a 154-pound man for their calculations (the average self-reported weight of an American man is actually 191 pounds, so just keep that in mind). They found out he burns about 3.5 calories per minute (that's 210 per hour) during a “stimulation and orgasm session” (sounds super sexy, right?).

While that might sound pretty good, the rate of calorie burn is more comparable to walking at a moderate pace than any type of intense exercise. And let’s get real: Who’s really having sex for an hour every single time? Most people are getting it on for just under six minutes, which would burn only 21 calories. Womp, womp.

Don’t get us wrong: We’re not saying you should ditch all your sexy time and spend it in the gym. Or that exercise is only about the number of calories you burn (especially since we know calorie counting is flawed). Just know that while sex is great (and comes with tons of benefits), it’s not exactly a workout.

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Simple Makeup Tips & Ideas: Makeup for Hooded Eyes

Hooded eyes are beautiful, characterized by extra skin that falls from the brow bone towards the eyelids and covers them. This feature give the face an alluring sexy look, which a lot of beautiful stars have it, such as Jennifer Lawrence, Blake Lively and Taylor Swift. If you have them, you know well how hard it is to apply makeup on your eyes, as the canvas is partially hidden.

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Guide to Getting Gorgeous Hair Colour

Hair colour is not only to hide your greys. Most women find a new hair colour brightens their mood and makes their hair look beautiful. However, which hair colour would best suit your hair is often the confusion. Here is a guide to choosing the most flattering colour for your hair.

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This Is the Year You Actually Make Mulled Wine

The Artificial Coloring of Our Holidays

Besides Halloween candy, food dyes are used in numerous products aimed towards our kids. A few examples include boxed macaroni and cheese, yogurts, cereals, jello, frostings, and even some snack crackers. Our kids are consuming these additives all year long, with a sudden spike around Halloween time.

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On Pins and Needles About Weight Loss? Consider Injections and a Healthy Eating Plan!

As part of a personalized weight loss program and healthy eating plan, consider fat loading and hormone injections. This phase of the program is safe, effective, and convenient.

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9 Indian Recipes for Anyone Who’s Been Too Intimidated to Try Before

The 7-Minute High-Intensity Workout for Stronger Legs

Shake up your usual lower-body workout with a quick but high-intensity routine. Because let's be real: Leg day is brutal, so you might as well get it done as fast as humanly possible. You'll thank us later.

This workout will strengthen your calves, inner and outer thighs, hamstrings, and glutes, which is essential for preventing ankle, knee, and hip injuries. You'll push yourself as hard as possible for 30 seconds then take a 10-second recovery. Make sure you do a quick warm-up before and a cool-down after this routine. It's going to be hard, but it's going to be fun. And trainers Pace and Go show you how much fun it is to do with a friend. All you need is an exercise mat to get started.

To recap: Do a quick warm-up before and a cool-down after this workout. Perform each exercise for 30 seconds with 10 seconds of rest.

Workout:
Sumo Squat, Rotate Left Lunge, Squat, Rotate Right Lunge
180-degree Jump Rotation, Lunge Pulse
Hip Bridge, Adductor Squeeze, Leg Extension
Narrow Squat, Low Alternating Straight Leg Lunge
Lateral Lunge With Knee Lift
Toe Touch Jumping Star Fish, Calf Bounce
Hamstring Single Deadlift, Knee Drive
Curtsy Skater Lunge
Suitcase Square Single Leg Squat
Inverted Hamstring Kick
Round the Clock Lunge
Round the Clock Lunge
Burpee, Alternating Forward Lunge

Looking for more short and effective at-home workouts? Grokker has thousands of routines, so you’ll never get bored. Bonus: For a limited time, Greatist readers get 40 percent off Grokker Premium (just $9 per month) and their first 14 days free. Sign up now!

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Avocado Toast Recipes That Will Please Everyone

If you didn’t already know we’re obsessed with avocados, you haven’t been reading closely. Getting tired of your usual schmear and run? Shake things up with the options below.

Avocado Toast, 3 Ways

Recipes by: Rebecca Firkser
Makes: 3 toasts
Ready in: 5 minutes (per toast)

Caprese-Style Toast:
INGREDIENTS

1/8 avocado
3 mini mozzarella balls, chopped
5 cherry tomatoes, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
Pinch red pepper flakes
Pepper
1 slice multigrain bread
1 garlic clove
Olive oil

DIRECTIONS

1. Chop avocado, mozzarella, and tomatoes and place in a bowl. Add basil, vinegar, salt, and both peppers.

2. Toast bread. Slice garlic clove in half and rub onto the toast.

3. Pour avocado salad onto the toast. Drizzle with olive oil.

Lox Toast
INGREDIENTS
1/8 avocado
1 tablespoon Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon diced red onion
Salt and pepper
1 slice rye bread
1 slice smoked salmon or lox
A pinch dried or fresh dill

DIRECTIONS

1. Mash avocado, then mix with yogurt, onion, salt, and pepper.

2. Toast bread.

3. Spread avocado mixture over the toast.

4. Place smoked salmon over the avocado and sprinkle with dill.

Bacon and Egg Toast
INGREDIENTS
1 egg
1 slice sourdough bread
1/8 avocado
2 pieces cooked turkey bacon, chopped
Salt and pepper
Hot sauce

DIRECTIONS

1. Crack egg into a small bowl and heat a nonstick pan over medium. (If you don’t have a nonstick pan, grease with a bit of olive oil).

2. Pour egg into the pan and cook for about 2 minutes, then flip. Cook for another 30 seconds, or until the yolk is cooked to your liking.

3. While egg is cooking, toast bread.

4. Slice avocado and spread onto toast.

5. Sprinkle bacon over the avocado, then place egg over bacon.

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French Sexologists Mowed a Giant Clit Into a Field So You'll Never Struggle to Find It Again

In the mood for some hilarious news? ::everyone raises hand::
Here we go: Fed up with the way sex-ed and biology textbooks cover ignore female pleasure, French sexologists Marie-Noelle Lanuit and Jean-Claude decided to mow a giant clit into a field next to a high school (naturally). Their 400-foot creation is part of a campaign to help raise awareness around female sexuality, and although some locals thought it was an octopus, we got the awesome message loud and clear:

Photo: Marie-Noëlle Lanuit and Jean-Claude Piquard "[The clitoris] is sometimes named, but it is never drawn in textbooks in the complete form. In books it is usually presented as a small bean," Lanuit told French newspaper Midi-Libre. Which is why French people are making major moves (like making a life-size, anatomically correct 3D model) to give the clit the recognition it deserves— and we're absolutely on board.

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These NSFW Photos Get Super Real About the Before and After of Extreme Weight Loss

Extreme weight loss is a life-altering experience—both physically and emotionally. For Samantha Geballe, a photographer from California, gastric bypass surgery made her "two adults smaller," but it was not an automatic path to happiness. The photographer documented her entire weight-loss process through self-portraits. But her photos are unlike any other before-and-afters you've seen—and no, it's not because they're nude.

Gebelle told Refinery29 that the photos were her way of coming to terms with her new body. "It became a way of being kind to myself," she said. "I continue to photograph myself now because I need to see... I want to understand and accept myself." We are so moved by the raw, honest emotion captured in each shot. Its what makes the photos relatable to anyone who's ever struggled to accept their body—even if their story isn't quite the same:

Taken the morning of her gastric bypass procedure. Taken just after the procedure. Taken exactly one year after the procedure. Taken after she saw herself for the first time.
All photos: Samantha Geballe See the full photo series on Geballe's Instagram and website.

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The Surprising Way We Romanticize Mental Illness—and Why It Has to Stop

There’s been a lot of discussion around destigmatizing mental illness, but not quite as much about how we occasionally tend to romanticize it.

Stick with us: There's a widely held belief that creativity and genius is often linked—and fueled—by madness. Sylvia Plath and Ernest Hemingway are just a couple of examples that come to mind. As superstar author John Green (The Fault in Our Stars, Looking for Alaska) recently explained at a NerdCon conference:

"If you google the phrase ‘all artists are,’ the first suggestion is ‘mad.’ We hear that genius is next to insanity; we see Carrie Mathison on Homeland going off her meds so that she can discover the identity of the terrorists and save America."

Green, who struggles with mental health issues himself, continued to discuss just how unhealthy that notion is, and how even someone with his level of success (we’re talking an award-winning, New York Times bestselling author here) can still fall victim to it:

"I went off my medication to try to write a novel, because I bought into the dangerous romantic lie. I’m embarrassed to tell you that, but yeah. I hadn’t written a book in years, and I felt desperate to write something. I blamed my medication, so I decided that to write, I would go off of it… Here is what I wrote during the collapse of last year: Nothing that made sense.

…So I want to say that, yes, I am mentally ill. I’m not embarrassed about it. And I have written my best work not when flirting with the brink, but when treating my chronic health problem with consistency and care."

He further emphasized that “getting help—although it is hard and exhausting and inexcusably difficult to access—will not make you less of an artist.” And that’s a message we don’t mind spreading.

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Eating Well When Those Around You Don't

Just because you have decided to take your health in hand, by avoiding sugar, grains and processed foods doesn't mean your friends, family and co-workers have. There will be no shortage of events where lashings of pastries or mountains of pasta are laid out before you with deserts containing enough sugar to raise your glucose just by walking past the table. The bigger the event the easiest it is. No one knows what you are eating anyway, you can pick and choose and if you suspect the choices will not be good then eat before you go.

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Cauliflower Fried Rice

Fried rice was our go-to take-out order, no question. But once we discovered how to make a better-for-you version at home, we X-ed out of Seamless and pulled out a frying pan. This fried "rice" is actually teeny pieces of cauliflower, chopped finely in the food processor. Here's how to do it: Pile lots of veg in a pan and sauté, scramble in an egg for flavor, and drizzle on your favorite sauce (we're all about ginger-garlic!). Now we save ordering out for the really tricky recipes.

Cauliflower Fried Rice

Recipe by: Rebecca Firkser
Makes: 2-3 servings, as a main
​Ready in: 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS
1 head cauliflower, washed and dried, and cut into quarters
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 white onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 small head broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 head green cabbage
Leftover cooked meat, optional
1 egg
2 scallions, sliced thin
1/4 cup preferred sauce (teriyaki, soy-ginger, tamari, etc.)

DIRECTIONS
1. Use a box grater or food processor to cut the cauliflower into rice-size pieces, discarding any tough stems. Set aside.

2. Heat a large skillet or wok over medium and add olive oil.

3. Add garlic and onion to the pan and cook for about 30 seconds.

4. Add the carrots and broccoli and cook until tender, 5-7 minutes.

5. Add cabbage and meat, if using, and toss to combine.

6. Add the cauliflower rice in three shifts.

7. Crack the egg into a small bowl.

8. Move the contents of the pan to one side and add the egg, scrambling it.

9. As the egg begins to cook, stir to incorporate the veggies with the egg. Add scallions.

10. Turn off the heat and stir in sauce.

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How to Make Vegan Bacon With... Coconut?!

This App Puts an M.D. in Your Pocket, So You (Almost) Never Need to Go to the Doctor

Sherpaa

Most times we go to the doctor, the diagnosis ends up being something minor. Our sore throat isn’t actually strep; it’s just part of having allergies. The toe we stubbed isn’t broken; it just needs some ice. Sure, the trip to the doc gives us peace of mind, but at that point, we’ve taken hours away from our workday and spent more time in the waiting area than the exam room. The whole visit feels like a waste.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. The future is here, and it’s called Sherpaa. OK, so that sounds a little dramatic, but once we found out about the online medical practice, we wanted to tell everyone we knew. All you have to do is sign up and download the app. Then, when you have a medical question or concern (say you’ve been getting headaches and want to know if they’re actually migraines), open the app, describe your symptoms, and an experienced physician will respond, usually within an hour. There’s no waiting for an appointment or trekking to a doctor’s office across town.

Typically, Sherpaa’s doctors send through a set of questions to zero in on the problem. The doctor may ask for a follow-up photo, video, or phone call to make sure they have all the information they need before making a diagnosis. Every time we've used the app, Sherpaa was able to offer a treatment option on the spot (including writing prescriptions and sending them to the pharmacy down the street). But if your medical concern can’t be treated virtually, Sherpaa will refer you to a trusted in-network doctor.

The service costs $40 per month, which may seem steep if you’re generally healthy. But anyone who’s dealt with annoying medical emergencies knows co-pays at the doctor’s office (or worse, the hospital) can add up. Plus, you can pay for Sherpaa with your flexible spending account, and if you use the coupon code GREATIST, you'll get 10 percent off. We can't imagine going back to the old way of doing things.

I Want to Try This | 40 per month

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Hooked on Food: Our Emotional Connections to Eating

What can you do to put the brakes on emotional eating? Depriving yourself of comfort foods is not the answer. Not only is it emotionally difficult, it is likely to add even more stress--which in turn, can lead to more out of control emotional eating

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These Dark Characters Embody All Different Types of Mental Illness

Weight Watchers Attempts to Jump on the Body-Positive Bandwagon, Face-Plants Instead

We're all for stuff that gets us pumped up about loving our bodies— even commercials—but sometimes it's obvious that brands don't quite get it. Body positivity is about embracing your body and celebrating its beauty, NOT about shaming it for something it "can't" do, "can't" have, or "should" look like. That's why this new Weight Watchers Australia ad totally misses the mark:

The ad may be meant to help women love their bodies, but here's the message we're hearing: You need to lose weight to enjoy your sex life, and post baby-body is something you need to "hide."

Not only is this ad offensive, it's also completely false. Women of all sizes love their sex lives, and all bodies are worth celebrating—stretch marks, belly rolls, and all. Thankfully, the Internet was quick to call Weight Watchers out:

We're not saying it's wrong to want to lose weight. Plenty of people love and accept their bodies (that doesn't mean it's easy!) and still want to make a change. But to suggest that people need to lose weight because of the way they feel in the bedroom? Yikes.

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Treating Croupy Cough - Home Remedies Or Doctor?

Croupy cough is not a typical raspy kind of cough that you usually hear. The distinctive sign that your toddler has croupy cough is if he or she sounds somewhat like a seal pup barking. It is a very-pitched sound that can be quite alarming. Children who have a more serious infection sometimes develop a raspy, vibrating, harsh wheeze when they inhale.

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27 Soup Recipes to Make in Your Crock-Pot So Dinner Is Served ASAP

Depression Messed With My Sex Life, and Here's Exactly What I Did About It

In the past, my depression made it hard to connect sexually with my partner—even before I started taking medication. I often didn’t feel worthy of his attention, and though I knew he loved me, it was hard to be as vulnerable as I needed to be for us to have sex. We’d often try, only to end up with my feeling even less attractive than before we started. While he was always understanding and willing to stop in these moments, I began to feel guilty somehow, as though I were being a tease.

And while my body-image issues and my depression are separate, one compounds the other. During my most depressed days, I often felt terrible in my own skin and found it hard be naked in front of the person I should’ve been most comfortable with, let alone physically intimate.

Once, during sex that I initiated, I began to cry uncontrollably; I suddenly felt detached, not only from the moment and from him, but from my own body, and we had to stop. I began to shake and took anxiety medication to calm down, and though he held me and told me over and over that he loved me, all that mattered were the thoughts in my head. My depression took over, and I was completely stuck. It was hard for me to articulate what had happened, just as it’s often hard to articulate why a person is depressed. It’s often not a singular thing that’s wrong, or even something that can be put down on paper in a way that makes sense. However, that doesn’t make it any less real.

It’s a strange thing to be attracted to your partner sexually, but to not have your body respond the way it used to.

While my partner has been completely understanding about my sexual needs, it’s been a frustrating situation for both of us. And while my medication has almost been like magic in terms of helping my motivation, views of my self-worth, and more (including frequent migraines), it’s also lowered my ability to feel sexual desire, which has changed the dynamic of our relationship. It’s a strange thing to be attracted to your partner sexually but to not have your body respond the way it used to. Over the course of the past year, we’ve discovered ways to reconnect and be intimate again, which I hope will be helpful for anyone in a similar situation.

5 Tips to Bring Back the Passion

1. Start with massage.

Massage can help your partner relax and release tension, which will lead to them feeling present and in the moment. Depression itself can often make people feel like they aren’t worth attention or love, so caring acts like this can help remind your partner that they are worthy of feeling good. It’s also often a precursor to foreplay and is a great way to help your partner start thinking about sex.

2. Ask your partner what they need to feel turned on.

In my experience, desire and arousal can be affected by SSRIs (a common type of antidepressant medication), so it’s important to stay connected to your partner while you’re trying to be intimate. In addition to being another great way to get them thinking about sex, sharing what turns you on can also help them feel more confident (and comfortable) in bed. Even if it doesn’t lead to sex right away, it can lend itself to sexy conversation, which can be equally stimulating. You also want to keep communicating with your partner during sex—not that you need to keep up a conversation, just try to stay in tune with how they’re feeling and ask if they like what you’re doing.

3. Talk about sex during the day.

Sending texts to each other throughout the day (as long as both partners are encouraging and returning them) can be super fun. It also gets the partner dealing with depression in the right mindset for sex later. Personally, I've found that when we’ve been planning on having sex and have talked about it throughout the day, it's easier for me to get "in the mood" (I hate that phrase, but it works in this scenario) later, because it doesn’t feel like a surprise. If we've been working on the desire part all day, the arousal part comes more easily for me.

4. Try not to make them feel guilty for something that’s purely chemical.

It can be super frustrating when your relationship dynamic changes. Maybe you were having sex every day, and now it’s only once a week or once a month. The thing is, whether it’s because your partner is too depressed to have sex or because their antidepressant has lowered their libido, or both, it’s not their fault. You can talk out your frustrations with your partner, but try to be understanding, because chances are they’re frustrated with the situation as well.

5. Be patient.

Be patient with each other—both in and out of bed. It’ll likely take the partner dealing with depression a little more time to have an orgasm, and that’s OK. It’ll also take a little time to get back to having sex as frequently as you used to, and that’s fine too. But by using some of these techniques, as well as giving your partner time to settle into their new normal, you’ll hopefully find that you’re having sex more often and both finding it to be super satisfying.

Editor's Note: The opinions presented in this article are the author's personal views and should not be treated as medical advice.

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The Best DIY Gifts to Give When You’re Basically Broke

This Woman Is Owning (and Wearing) Every Word Someone’s Said About Her Body

When it comes to our bodies, it seems like everyone has something to say. Even when those remarks are "positive," they can make us feel like crap— especially since we aren't asking people for their constant judgment. Plus when the comments are negative, they can lead to a lifelong body-image struggle. That's why Jojo Oldham, a designer from the U.K., decided to do something about all the things people have said about her body over the years.

She took all the phrases—the good, the bad, and the ugly—and painted them onto a white dress. By wearing and owning them, not only does she looks like a total badass, but she also proves that we are way more then what what people say about our bodies:

Photo: Lucy Ridges You’ll notice that there are both nice (“stunning”) and nasty (“porky”) remarks, and that’s part of what makes it so powerful.

Photo: Lucy Ridges Photo: Lucy Ridges As she explains on her blog, Oldham didn’t make this dress for your pity or to show off the more positive comments. Instead, she’s trying to celebrate the newfound love she has for her body and hopes to inspire others to do the same:

“I've reached a point in my life where I finally feel at peace with my body. I still long to be in just one photo wearing a sleeveless top where my upper arms don't look like giant hams. Or to find a pair of denim shorts that my thighs don't bulge out of like sausage meat making a desperate escape from the confines of its casing. But I am very happy with my lot. I'm healthy (cross fingers touch wood), strong, and have a body that enables me to do all the things I love (dance, walk, wear tropical print jumpsuits, fling kettlebells around, and sit on my arse watching back to back episodes of The Walking Dead). So what if my upper arms continue waving long after my hand has stopped? Those same upper arms enable me to carry massive boxes all by myself, punch punchbags really hard, and wave my arms in the air like I just don't care for a really long time.

I respect my body and I look after it. Occasionally I test its limits by trying to cram too much pizza or wine into it, or dancing a bit too enthusiastically, but on the whole we're good. I've stopped treating exercise as a means of bullying my body into fitting into things it's never going to fit into. Now I exercise in celebration of it, not in battle with it.”

Photo: Lucy Ridges Oldham also opens up about her own body-image struggles:

“The urge to delete unflattering photos of myself is overwhelming, even when they represent really happy moments which I never want to forget. I had an absolute blast at my wedding. I felt on top of the world and my husband and I loved every minute. But when I first looked at my photos, my stomach lurched. My eyes skipped past the smiling face, knockout dress and movie star hair and all I could see were chins and bellies. Everywhere. I had a go at myself for not sucking my tummy in more and not learning to smile in a more photogenic way when I'm ecstatically happy. Then I got over it. Turns out that when I'm having the best day ever my chins come out. All three of them. And frankly who can blame them. It was one heck of a party.”

Photo: Lucy Ridges Her message is one we can all get on board with— loving your body is not easy, but we all deserve to love the person we are right now:

“I'd rather be the me that isn't afraid to go out or to eat the cheese or drink the wine or do the running man at wholly inappropriate times, than the me who's half a stone lighter. And if that means I'm never going to find a pair of denim shorts I feel great in, and that my arms are probably always going to look like giant hams in photos, then I'm good with that. Because we should all be able to celebrate and love ourselves without fear of criticism from others, whatever shape or size we are.”

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How Ayurvedic Medicines Help In Providing Better Health Standards

The healing based on Ayurveda has been in use for centuries. This is the science which involves the usage of naturally occurring substances like plants, leaves, minerals, vitamins, flowers, fruits, etc to combat diseases. The logic behind this is that nature is full of mesmerizing gifts. Nature harbors the wide array of plants which are full of different types of substances. These substances help in the purification of the blood, thus improving the overall health standards of an individual. Let me discuss some of the herbs which are widely used in the manufacturing of ayurvedic medicines.

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Can Cleaning Your Home Actually Make You Sick?

When it comes to health, clean is usually synonymous with good. After all, eating clean does wonders for our bodies, and cleaning our homes (even if it’s just a crazy weekend spree) is how we keep our living space safe and healthy. Right? Well, that depends.

The Need-to-Know

Unfortunately, many of the household cleaning products we use to clean our homes are full of toxic chemicals, some of which aren't even listed on the labels. In fact, some products labeled nontoxic or natural are a lot like wolves in sheep's clothing—they can appear more innocent than they really are.

Because labeling for these products is unregulated, manufacturers can simply throw buzzwords like clean, green, nontoxic, and natural on labels, even if the formulas contain toxic chemicals and harmful ingredients, explains Debra Lynn Dadd, consumer advocate and nontoxic living expert.

"There is no agreement on what toxic and nontoxic actually mean."

That's a huge bummer for brands that are actually formulating safe products, because it can be hard (not to mention confusing!) for the average consumer to distinguish between them and the posers. To further complicate matters, there's the great definition debate.

"There is no agreement on what toxic and nontoxic actually mean," Dadd says. “The legal definition of toxic is that it kills more than 50 percent of the animals it’s tested on.”

There are a variety of tests used to determine the toxicity of chemicals, but each has its own set of flaws, including animal cruelty, false assumptions, and, in some cases, a narrow focus on the worst-case scenario (death) that completely ignores other potential health effects. So really, you can't get too caught up in the semantics.

“We have to redefine how we look at these terms,” says Lara Adler, environmental toxin expert and educator. “Maybe a product isn't lethal, but it could be toxic on a cellular level, and that’s leading to a systemic health issue.”

The Real Deal on the Risks

Some manufacturers argue that the amount of toxic chemicals in a formulation is so small, it’s not harmful. Which might be true if we were exposed to only one product, just one time, over our entire lives. But the reality is we're exposed to hundreds of chemicals in dozens of products all day, e'ry day.

“Although these toxic chemicals may be tolerated individually and in small doses, problems can arise when one is exposed to them in combination or in larger doses over a period of time,” says Frank Lipman, M.D., an expert in integrative and functional medicine and the founder of Be Well.

Adler puts it like this: Your body is like a rowboat with a hole in it. It's constantly filling up with water (the chemicals). The smart thing to do is to fix the hole, but we’re spending all our energy bailing the water out to save the boat, and thus our bodies aren't able to naturally detoxify like they were made to do. In this case, you might not be able to plug the hole in your boat, but if you can at least slow the inflow of water (chemicals), then your body's natural process of detoxification can be far more effective.

Everyone’s tolerance level is different depending on genetics, nutritional status, and previous contacts with chemicals, so this type of exposure can manifest in different ways. Some toxic chemicals used in cleaning products have been linked to conditions such as birth defects, autoimmune disease, thyroid disorders, asthma, and even cancer. ⁰ Lipman notes that some of the most common symptoms include hormone imbalance, skin irritations, allergies, and chronic inflammation. ¹

Your Action Plan

Don't throw every product out of your now-forever-dirty windows just yet. Making healthy changes to slow that inflow of harmful toxins is actually way easier than you’d think.

1. Start small.

If the thought of overhauling your entire home and throwing out all your cleaning products makes your head spin, take a deep breath. “You don’t need to do it all at once,” Dadd says. “Try replacing one toxic cleaning product this week when you stop reading this article and just get used to that. Then next week, replace another one and so on. Take it one step at a time.” So how do you know what to chuck? Move on to step 2.

2. Read labels.

Treat household cleaners the same way you do packaged food: Pick them up and read the ingredients and fine print, suggests Adler. Don’t fall victim to buzzwords or assume complicated terms are dangerous chemicals. If the ingredients aren't listed, do your research. Even natural products use some chemicals to formulate their products; they just don’t use toxic chemicals.

If you really want to geek out, check out the Environmental Working Group’s guide to healthy cleaning and handy label decoder.

3. Stick to the simple stuff.

"It’s much easier to learn what’s not toxic than it is to learn all the chemicals you need to avoid,” Dadd says. She swears by five simple and safe ingredients: baking soda, white vinegar, Bon Ami cleanser, organic lemons, and essential oils.

DIY not your thing? We get it. "One of the best brands is Seventh Generation," says Dadd, who's been recommending it for years. Other labels such as J.R. Watkins, Green Works, The Honest Company, Murphy Oil Soap,
Orange Glo, and Method are free of the toxic chemicals commonly found in most cleaning products but do still contain some synthetic fragrances or preservatives.

4. Rely on trustworthy resources.

Nowadays we have this crazy little thing called the internet, but with so much information out there, it can feel overwhelming. The good news is trustworthy organizations and advocates have done all the hard work for you, so it's easier to make a change. "I recommend using the EWG website to help you determine which products are least toxic," Lipman says.

You'll also find a wealth of information on the websites of our experts Debra Lynn Dadd, Lara Adler, and Frank Lipman.

5. Change to affect change.

"The only way to really affect change in this space is to take action that's going to impact the manufacturer's bottom line," Adler says.

If you boycott buying home cleaning products with toxic chemicals, brands will be forced to listen and change formulations if they want to be profitable. Likewise, if you support retailers and brands that are doing good, the industry will take note, and hopefully, follow suit.

The Takeaway

We know it can feel overwhelming, but educating yourself and making a few small, simple changes to the things you buy and use every day can make a huge impact on your personal health and the health of the environment.

Works Cited

1. Congenital malformation and maternal occupational exposure to glycol ethers. Occupational Exposure and Congenital Malformations Working Group. Cordier S, Bergeret A, Goujard J. Epidemiology (Cambridge, Mass.), 1997, Aug.;8(4):1044-3983. Epidemiology of environmental exposures and human autoimmune diseases: findings from a National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Expert Panel Workshop. Miller FW, Alfredsson L, Costenbader KH. Journal of autoimmunity, 2012, Jun.;39(4):1095-9157. Self-reported chemicals exposure, beliefs about disease causation, and risk of breast cancer in the Cape Cod Breast Cancer and Environment Study: a case-control study. Zota AR, Aschengrau A, Rudel RA. Environmental health : a global access science source, 2010, Jul.;9():1476-069X. Women using bleach for home cleaning are at increased risk of non-allergic asthma. Matulonga B, Rava M, Siroux V. Respiratory medicine, 2016, Jun.;117():1532-3064.
2. Contact allergens and irritants in household washing and cleaning products. Magnano M, Silvani S, Vincenzi C. Contact dermatitis, 2010, May.;61(6):1600-0536. Chemical-induced inflammation and inflammatory diseases. Parke DV, Parke AL. International journal of occupational medicine and environmental health, 1997, Feb.;9(3):1232-1087.

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This Instagrammer Gets Totally Real About the Struggle to Love Yourself As Is

In a world where millions of people post #fitspo that make us feel bad about ourselves, Morena Diaz's Instagram account is a breath of fresh air. This Swiss blogger doesn't hold back from sharing her past (which includes disordered eating and self-harm) while also celebrating how she’s learned to love her body. Check out some of her inspiring posts below, and make sure to follow Diaz to keep these body-positive gems showing up in your feed.

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Tampons and Pads Used to Be Scary (and Crazy Uncomfortable)

It’s not news that periods can be annoying and uncomfortable. (When will it show up? Will I have cramps? Should I freak out if it’s a day late?) But looking at sanitary belts safety-pinned with linens and other crazy devices from the 1890s onward makes us grateful to live in 2016.

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Planned Parenthood Just Turned 100, but Its 5 Most Common Procedures Still Surprise People

When you hear Planned Parenthood, you probably think about abortion services. That's because pro-life advocates have done a good job making the two nearly synonmous. But abortions make up just 3 percent of the procedures at Planned Parenthood clinics each year.

Check out how small a slice that is compared to all of the other services Planned Parenthood offers:

Photo: Planned Parenthood

Breaking those numbers down further, here are the five most common procedures:

1. STI tests
2. Reversible contraception (e.g., IUDs)
3. Emergency contraception kits (e.g., Plan B)
4. Pregnancy tests
5. HIV tests

Yes, it's all related to sexual health—that's the whole point of Planned Parenthood—but not in the way you might think. As the organization celebrates its 100th anniversary, it's as good of a time as any other to recognize all of the impressive work Planned Parenthood does to keep us safe and empowered while sexually active.

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What to Do When Bad Sh*t Happens Unexpectedly

A couple of weeks ago, I woke up to the sound of the front door closing just before 8 a.m. That’s odd, I thought. My husband was always on his way to work by now. Did he forget something?

He came into the bedroom looking calm but... outside of his body somehow. He sat down on the bed and said, "I was just let go from my job." He took off his jacket, and we remained in shocked silence.

It was unexpected for both of us.

But in this surprising situation, there was something we didn’t do: panic. I’ve been let go before. So have many people I know. And when unexpected events like this happen, I feel oddly calm.

In life, sh*t is guranteed to happen at some point. You might lose a job. You might get dumped. You might get bad news from the doctor. But you don't need to fall apart. Here’s what to do when the unthinkable happens.

1. Foster some perspective.

Whatever you are going through, ask yourself: Is it the end of the world? It’s rarely as bad as you may think in the moment you first receive the news.

What perspective can you bring to your current situation? Will it matter in one year, two years, five years?

My friend who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes a few years ago explained it by saying, “It’s a bit of an inconvenience from time to time, but overall my life is pretty much the same.” How's that for an attitude?

2. Believe you can figure it out. (Hey, you have before!)

What else have you survived before the current sh*tstorm? I survived the death of my father and a divorce before I was 25. I always remember these experiences and others I've been through when a new struggle hits.

Let the past struggles you've overcome fuel your ability to conquer new bumps that appear in the road.

Let the past struggles you've overcome fuel your ability to conquer new bumps that appear in the road.

3. Know you are not alone—ever.

I always find it comforting to know that no matter what I’m going through, there are people out there going through the same thing. The first thing I did the morning my husband came home was call two of my friends whose husbands were also laid off this year.

After talking to them, I had even greater perspective on the situation we were in. Immediately I exhaled—it was proof of how universal these circumstances are. It reminded me: It's OK! The same can apply to breakups, betrayals, loss—anything.

You are not the first person to go through what you’re going through, and you certainly won’t be the last.

4. Ask for help. (It's OK!)

There's an old saying that a problem shared is a problem halved. Heck, we’re all human, and we’re all in this together. Calling my friends and telling them the news about my husband helped me stay relaxed.

Just sharing my surprise and sensing them nod over the phone (and even making me laugh!) took what could have become an even bigger weight off my shoulders. They gave me some great practical advice ,and we continue to support each other week-to-week right now.

Side note: It’s a bonus if the people who you turn to for help have a good sense of humor. Find these people!

5. Get busy.

Nothing, nothing, nothing replaces action in life. Did you offend a friend you love? Call and apologize. Did you find out it’s going to rain on your outdoor wedding day? Find cute umbrellas for the guests. Your S.O. broke up with you? Plan fun "you time" to center yourself, and remember you are whole no matter what. Get laid off? Get out there and get busy networking!

In moments I need motivation to take action, I remember it’s my struggles that create my best stories and make me truly connected to other people. In the end, the fact that I can take action to overcome pretty much any obstacle gives me greater confidence than anything else.

Remember above all that being defeated is a temporary condition. Only giving up hurts us in the long run. And that is entirely up to you.

Susie Moore is Greatist’s life coach columnist and a confidence coach in New York City. Her new book, What If It Does Work Out?, is available on Amazon now. Sign up for free weekly wellness tips on her website and check back every Tuesday for her latest No Regrets column!

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Think Outside the Box With These 7 Dairy-Free Mac and Cheese Recipes

Healthy Eating - Five Healthy Foods To Eat Before Bed and Prevent Weight Gain

Wondering what you can snack on before turning into bed for the night? If you are like most people, you have heard snacking before bed is a big no-no if you want to keep your weight in check. But is this the case? Provided you are snacking on the proper foods, and including these as part of your overall daily calorie intake, you can certainly add them to your eating plan without concern. Let's look at five different smart snack options for the pre-bed period.

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SNL Mocks Clothing Ads for Celebrating Then Insulting Plus-Size Women

We're all about empowering every body, but sometimes commercials catering to plus-size women leave a bad taste in our mouth. This spot-on SNL spoof puts the issue front and center. The ad for fictional brand Chonk starts off celebrating women ("you are confident," "you rule the world") before knocking them down ("we are the only store that accepts your unique body"). Really? The only one? And what exactly do you mean by "my unique body"?

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14 Popular Halloween Candies You Can Make Better at Home

All You Need To Know About Semi-Permanent Cosmetics

What is semi-permanent makeup? What can you expect from the treatment? Semi-permanent makeup, also called micro pigmentation is a procedure that places tiny particles of pigment below the surface of the skin. The process is similar to tattooing, but there are important differences. Tattooing is permanent, and micro-pigmentation or semi-permanent cosmetic, as the name suggests, isn't. Treatment offers you a way to look great straight out of bed in the morning! Treatment is simple and lasts around 12 to 18 months. Here's all you need to know about it.

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Working at a Health and Fitness Company Actually Made Me Less Healthy

Fitness is a numbers game: body weight, body-fat percentage, mile splits, dumbells, sets and reps, and even the number of days spent in the gym per week. And while figures can tell us a lot, we can sometimes get too obsessed with them.

Years ago, I worked at a health and fitness company that loved these numbers, and before I knew it, I became fixated too. It was an environment full of people who understood how to get into peak physical condition and would do whatever it took to get there. This included (but was not limited to): eating the same meals day in and day out, working out twice a day, drinking shakes during meetings, saying farewell to carbs, and having superhuman discipline to stick to this regimen.

What was “best” usually meant a "positive" change in your numbers—pounds lost, body-fat percentage dropped, strength gained.

In a lot of ways, it hurt my outlook on health. On the surface we all wanted what we thought was best for one another. What was “best” usually meant a "positive" change in your numbers—pounds lost, body-fat percentage dropped, strength gained, and so on. That makes sense, since numbers can quantifiably measure hard work and progress.

But here’s the catch: When you think numbers are the only way to measure progress, it can feel defeating when they don't add up. Rarely does the scale gleefully budge on a regular basis or does strength improve indefinitely just because you worked your ass off. Even then, each numeric milestone you hit doesn't seem good enough.

Peer Pressure Can Be a B*tch

I know firsthand about this trap.

You know the cliché “you are what you eat”? Well, here's my twist on that: You do what the people around you do—even if it can have a negative impact on you.

My work environment exposed me to chiseled physiques and amazingly fit individuals, as well as certain attitudes about health and fitness. Those things became my norm. In fact, I often forgot my friends and family weren’t interested in near-0 percent body fat, tree trunk-like arms and legs, or the idea of tracking meals.

Sun's out, guns out.

With most of my coworkers looking like they’d just walked out of a fitness magazine, it was hard not to think, "My arms could definitely be more sculpted." In hindsight, I suppose the kind of peer pressure that forces you to want better arms instead of two-for-one margaritas isn't so bad.

But it can be just as harmful to your motivation, mindset, and confidence. When I made my own numbers-related goals, I was careful not to obsess over hitting them. But as hard as I tried, the self-imposed pressure that spawned out of seeing everyone else work so damn hard and look so damn good hung over me.

How Getting Fit Can Backfire

Because everyone else seemed to be busting their rump with results to show for it, I often questioned my own hard work and commitment to the process. "Maybe I’m not doing things right," I’d say to myself.

I later realized the hidden stressor of wanting to keep up with everyone backfired on me and only added unnecessary stress. Objectively I had made substantial progress toward my goals, but when compared to everyone else’s more dramatic numbers, I couldn’t see it.

Photos taken about four months apart, while I still worked at the company.

I even felt a bit embarrassed by how little I had to show for my work. I ignored the other equally-as-important forms of progress, like how much healthier my attitude was toward health and fitness. I no longer felt guilty about having a slice of pizza because I was working so hard. Later on, with the help of peers and a support network, I eventually came to understand that everyone needs to go at their own pace; no one else’s progress should impact what I do or expect. I have my own quirks and genetics, and sometimes numbers can't accurately sum up your total progress.

After all, who knows exactly what someone else is doing or sacrificing to meet their goals? Maybe they’re doing twice as many workouts, being very restrictive with food, or running themselves into the ground.

All of this isn’t unique to my former work environment. There are common threads that run through the fitness industry, including what models do to prep for photo shoots. Regardless, I’m grateful for my experiences, because now I have an improved outlook on my fitness journey. The most important thing that I learned?

Honor all forms of progress.

It’s easy to let numbers rule you and feel like nothing is working when, in reality, you’re just ignoring noteworthy accomplishments. While weight loss, mile times, and dumbbells are all attached to numbers, there are many other forms of progress: mental, emotional, behavioral, to name a few.

While weight loss, mile times, and dumbbells are all attached to numbers, there are many other forms of progress: mental, emotional, behavioral, to name a few.

We’re hardwired to not want to fail or struggle, to want to be perfect, but try as we might, those are simply impossible expectations. So if your numbers aren't adding up, it might be time to look a little deeper and appreciate other victories. Maybe you didn’t feel guilty for skipping a workout or eating a slice of cake, maybe you feel less anxious and shy in public, or maybe you’re able to perform the same workout in less time or with less effort—holy moly, those are all incredible steps forward!

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Understanding Fragrances: Florals

Everyone thinks that they need a signature scent. I thought the same thing but then I discovered that I was missing out on all the other fragrances that are available. The best advice I can give is to begin by understanding the various fragrances.

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Weight Loss In The Real World For Real People

There are so many weight loss ideas, some are traditional messages which are locked in outdated beliefs about health, some are crazy and some are borderline religions where the finest details are debated. I think there are some missing elements in weight loss thinking. Most people are struggling with their weight in spite of current conservative thinking.

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JoJo Says She’s a “Brick House Adorned With Battle Scars.” Here’s How She Learned to Love Her Body

It's hard enough being a teenager. Imagine also being under the microscope as a hit singer. That was JoJo's life in the early 2000s. Music execs told her she needed to lose weight "for her health," a thinly veiled way of saying her "curvy" size 4 figure wouldn't sell albums. So she went on extreme diets and took weight-loss supplements, but it was never enough to please her handlers.

Nearly a decade later, JoJo has learned a lot about loving her body, and she shares those lessons in a powerful essay for Motto. Here's a little taste:

I will never have a thigh gap. Nobody has ever worried the wind might “wooooosh” a little bit too hard and knock me down. At 25, I’m a brick house adorned with battle scars and cellulite, curves and confidence. Some days I have abs, sometimes mehhh… I don’t know where they go. And you know what? It’s all good...

The possibilities are endless, really, when you accept how you were made and are able to celebrate your unique beauty, and find it in everyone you meet. When we focus mostly on our outward appearance, we neglect the important inner-work that must be done and the beautiful life-changing connections we can build with people. Ask yourself: What’s really important at the end of the day? Would being skinny (or curvy or whatever ideal you want to look like) really make you happy? Or is being a good person, doing good work, being a person of your word, and making a difference actually what satisfies you?

Read the Rest

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3-Ingredient Chocolate

Three. Ingredient. Chocolate. Ohhhhhh yeah, you read that right. With just three pantry staples, you're 15 minutes away from snacking on a rich, fudgy chocolate that tastes better than any store-bought bar. Trust us, we know our desserts.

Three-Ingredient Chocolate

Recipe by: Jamie Webber
Makes: 8 servings
​Ready in: 15 minutes, plus freezing time

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup coconut oil, at room temperature (not melted)
1/4 cup maple syrup
Pinch sea salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Place cocoa powder in a medium bowl.

2. Add coconut oil and maple syrup. Mix ingredients thoroughly with a sturdy spatula, pressing the oil and syrup into the powder. Continue to mix well until smooth.

3. Line a loaf pan or small baking dish with parchment paper. (The larger the pan, the thinner the chocolate.)

4. Pour chocolate mixture onto parchment paper and smooth out evenly. Sprinkle with sea salt.

5. Place in the freezer for at least 1 hour.

6. Once hardened, cut chocolate into small squares. Store in the freezer until ready to serve.

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Whole-Wheat Noodles With Greens and Ginger Dressing

If we could, we'd write a love letter to pasta. It's always there for us—in good times and bad, in red sauce and pesto. This time, we're adding a green tint with plenty of veggies and plenty of a zingy vinagrette too, becuase how else can we get our noodle-slurp on? Though it seems like a lot, this dinner can be ready in 20 minutes flat. Sounds like a weeknight dream if you ask us.

Whole-Wheat Noodles With Greens and Ginger Dressing

Recipe by: Rebecca Firkser
Makes: 4-6 servings, as a main
​Ready in: 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS
For the dressing:
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and minced
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
1 shallot, minced
2 teaspoons sesame oil
Salt and pepper

For the pasta:
1 pound whole-wheat linguine or soba noodles
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large bunch of your favorite leafy green (kale, chard, collards, bok choy) or a mixture, chopped
2 cups arugula
2 scallions, sliced thin

DIRECTIONS

1. Whisk together all dressing ingredients until combined. Set aside.

2. Add a pinch of salt to a large pot of boiling water. Cook the pasta according to package directions, toss with a little sesame oil, and set aside.

3. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium and add garlic. Cook for about 30 seconds, then add leafy greens. Sauté until the greens have just wilted. Turn off the heat.

4. Add the cooked pasta, arugula, scallions, and dressing to the skillet, then transfer to a serving bowl.

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