One Isn’t Always the Loneliest Number
What ancient spiritual practices can teach us about turning loneliness into joyous solitude.
YES! Article archive
Health & Happiness
A Feminist’s Guide to Rom-Coms and How to Watch Them
You can acknowledge their problems and still enjoy them (probably not Woody Allen’s, though).
One More Benefit of Nature: It Makes You Like Your Body Better
Researchers say the outdoors can help mute internal criticism.
When It Comes to Your Health, Your Local Economy Matters
Research shows community traits such as quality of housing and employment can influence wellness.
This Japanese Concept of Happiness Could Help You Live a More Meaningful Life
Focusing on your own happiness can prove self-defeating. Finding your “ikigai” offers an alternative perspective on well-being.
5 Ways You Can Support a Loved One With Depression
How to move beyond “awareness” toward better understanding.
Is Your Weekend Helping or Hurting Your Happiness?
New research offers some simple advice to boost your happiness: Put down your phone and go do something—just about anything—else.
Swedish Death Cleaning: Don’t Forget Your Digital Clutter, Too
If we don’t make the decisions about what to keep or discard—whether actual or online—then ultimately it’s up to others.
The Netherlands Can Feed the World. Here’s Why It Shouldn’t
What gets lost when we focus solely on increasing food efficiency?
The Ancient Baby Carrier Making a Comeback
Native women are once again embracing the cradleboard because it’s both artistic and utilitarian.
The Fierce Urgency of “How”
When we have reconsidered the lives we have built, how will we live?
Thinking About Your New Year’s Resolutions? Try Focusing on the Good Life
In past years, you’ve probably targeted minor vices—eat fewer snacks, drink less, exercise more. This time around, try something a little different.
The Best of 2017: Books on How to Stay Resilient and Live a Meaningful Life
The year’s most thought-provoking, important, or useful nonfiction books to help you thrive in a turbulent world.
Nature Is So Good for You That Even Watching It on TV Improves Well-Being
Watching a few minutes of “Planet Earth” can lead you to feel 46 percent more awe and 31 percent more gratitude.
Dreading Conflict During the Holidays? Let It Go, Let It Go, Let It Go
You’re not alone. Here’s how to prepare for those encounters.
As American as Apple Pie, Bourbon, and Slave Labor
Nostalgia, at its best, is a tidy fantasy that erases many of us.
Amid Travel Ban, Refugee Women Cope With Trauma and Stress Through Drum Circles
How music is helping women from war-torn countries express grief and loss.
New Study Links Living Near Forests to Healthier Brains
Evidence keeps mounting that, in stressful times, there is much to gain by surrounding yourself with plants and trees.
6 Moments in History That Remind Me Anything Is Possible
In these discouraging times, I keep a list of encouraging changes I couldn’t have predicted.
It’s Not Just Sleep That’s Important to Your Well-Being. It’s Dreaming, Too
People say time heals all wounds, but new research suggests that time spent in dream sleep is what really matters.
When Buying Nothing Gives You More of Everything
A way to get and give free stuff with your neighbors that is time-consuming, inconvenient—and wonderful.
Why Thanksgiving Is the Perfect Time to Give Up Meat
I learned that there’s no better way to cultivate gratitude than through food.
If You’re Planning for Your Death, You Have More Options Than Ever Before
Americans are pushing the boundaries of how to memorialize their loved ones and dispose of their remains.
5 Ways White Parents Can Empower Their Adopted Child of Color to Fight Racism
How to embrace the opportunities and challenges associated with raising a child of another race.
How President Lincoln’s Death Launched the American Funeral Industry
This was the first time most Americans saw an embalmed body, and it changed how we mourn the dead.
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