Taraji P. Henson, Janelle Monáe, and Octavia Spencer accepting the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Motion Picture for Hidden Figures last week.
Happy Monday. Back to the grind. Here are a few morsels of goodness to help start your week on a sweeter note. This week: trap yoga, meditating kids, a talk between a boxer with bipolar disorder and his daughter, Wu-Tang, and so forth. And remember: ask for help when you need it and check in on somebody when you can. You're so pretty.
THIS WEEK'S GOODNESS:
Elementary school, like Chris Brown fandom, can be quite stressful. See what happened when Robert W. Coleman Elementary School replaced detention with meditation.
"Teen Designs a Colorful Way to Track Her Mental Health" by Jordan Davidson [The Mighty]
"The tracker, based off of a Pinterest “Year in Pixels” template, features eight different categories: “amazing, fantastic day,” “really good happy day,” “normal, average day,” “exhausted, tired day,” “depressed, sad day,” “frustrated, angry day,” “stressed, frantic day” and “sick day.”
“Using the tracker really helps my mental health, it makes me feel like every day I’m a new person,” Bailey told BuzzFeed. “This tracker has a huge impact on my everyday life – it’s a great way to keep track on how I am feeling during the week.”"
WNBA Star Chamique Holdsclaw discusses her mental health struggles in Mind/Game: The Unquiet Journey of Chamique Holdsclaw. Learn more about the film and screenings here.
"How This Trap Yoga Studio Became A Sanctuary For Black People" by Lakin Starling [The Fader]
What are some things that you notice in your Trap Yoga classes? How does it impact the people who come to practice?
It’s amazing because I've never seen a multitude of different bodies in the same room like this that are all black people. It’s also great to see someone who is maybe overweight next to somebody who's been doing this forever, or who's never tried it, or does it every now and then. The way that the classes are set up, it's like everyone should be working hard and everyone should be feeling it.
The idea behind it is that it's a power yoga class, so in mirroring the trap music, it's intense. Honestly, while you're in the class, you don't really hear the music until you need to hear it because I'm talking. It may be in the background, but it becomes just that: background music. I'm helping you focus on your breath, and staying focused on the practice itself. It's interesting to see that people recognize, "I didn't even really hear what songs were playing." It wasn't the trap music that was working, it was just the fact that they felt the community ethic.
Years after his diagnosis with bipolar disorder, boxer Frank Bruno and his daughter Rachel had an open, frank discussion about his mental health journey and how it's affected their family dynamics.
"6 Actual Facts Show Why Mental Health Is an Issue in the Black Community" by Derrick Clifton [Mic]
"1. Black Americans are as likely to suffer from mental illness as whites. The American Psychiatric Association reports that as many as 1 in 4 adults in the U.S. will suffer from some kind of mental disorder each year. And, as the association notes, African-Americans are at least as likely to suffer from a mental health issue as their white counterparts.
That's why the myth that black people shouldn't worry about seeking professional mental health services — evidenced through statements such as "if black people could get through slavery, they can get through anything" and even the "strong black woman" trope, Mental Health America notes — are so damaging."
And here are two things you didn't know you needed: a Wu-Tang Clan coloring book and a Wu-Tang coaster set, from Paintings That Pop on Etsy, because self-care.
Do you have any other mental health-related content, events, or info we should know about? Hit us up here.
Previous Mental Health stuff:
Mental Health Monday: Hey, Go Check In On Someone
Mental Health Monday: Stock up on self-care. Winter is here.
