This post is part of a week-long yoga series at Your Body, Your Mind.

Exercise, mediation, massage therapy – these are all complementary (and, for some folks, solitary) ways to

Halogen TV, which describes itself as “the only television network focused on socially conscious entertainment,” recently presented a piece outlining yoga poses we can use to better manage our anxiety and depression symptoms.

Happy Tuesday, beautiful readers!

We’ve survived Thanksgiving, but with Christmas just a week away and New Year’s just a week after that, it’s safe to say we’re still in the thick of the holiday season.

Which means, for some of us, there are still a lot of stress and anxiety triggers coming our way.

As such, the good people over at the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) are hosting a Twitter chat on using complementary health practices like yoga, meditation, and tai chi to manage stress and anxiety – specifically, the safety and efficacy of these mind and body practices.

During the chat, you’ll get to meet John Glowa, Ph.D., the NCCAM expert who oversees the organization’s behavioral health research portfolio, and Daniel Pine, M.D. from the NIH’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

Note that:

• The chat is today (Tuesday, December 18, 2012) at 3:30 p.m. EST. (Got a free minute between now and then? Check out highlights from a previous NIH NCCAM Twitter chat: 5 Resources for Depression and Complementary Health Practices)
• You should go ahead and follow the NIH NCCAM on Twitter at @NCCAM.
• The hashtag for the chat is #nccamchat.

Hope to see you there!

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So, during a regular appointment earlier this week, my doctor confirmed what I’ve suspected for the past couple of months: My hormones are completely out of whack.

Ever dealt with a hormonal imbalance? It’s pretty stressful. Not only can it cause weight problems and wreak havoc on your skin , but a hormonal imbalance sometimes brings mental health symptoms like depression, anxiety, and disorientation.

Happy World Mental Health Day, readers! A day for celebrating mental health, advocating for safe and effective treatments, and banishing the stigma of mental illness!

I’m so honored you’ve chosen to add Your Body, Your Mind on your roster of reading today.

Given the nature of Your Body, Your Mind, I wanted to use today to highlight some tips to help you combine diet and exercise with balanced mental health.

After all, so many of us already know how important diet and exercise is to our mental health, but, combining it all can be pretty intimidating.

I subscribe to Dictionary.com’s “Word of the Day,” and a few weeks ago the word of the day was “ataraxia.”

English degree aside, I’d never heard the word (at least, that I can remember), but I instantly fell in love with it. It was around the time I started working out outside again (see Your Treadmill SUCKS! 7 Reasons You Should Get Outside), so I knew exactly what ataraxia meant…

…I’d been experiencing it firsthand every morning on the track.

Mmm…

It’s a nice, lazy kind of afternoon for brunch, isn’t it?

(Well, it would be if you’re reading this at the time of publishing, ha!)

If you’re looking for a gluten-free food for breakfast or brunch – one that will fill you up as well as satisfy your sweet tooth – might I suggest Udi’s Gluten-Free Cinnamon Rolls?

That’s right! It’s time for another review in my ongoing gluten-lite journey!

Are you a recovering alcoholic or drug addict? Have you thought about incorporating yoga in your recovery?

Maybe you should give it a try.

That, for many people, yoga is an effective way to manage mental health issues like anxiety and depression is no secret; however, according to Jennifer Garam’s Sun Salutations in Sobriety, people also use yoga to break through the “spiritual wall” many recovering addicts hit and continue on their sobriety path.

Apparently, this isn’t a new or secret idea, either. Sarah, the nine-year sober New Yorker quoted in the article, started using yoga during her seventh year, and folks like Rolf Gates, Nikki Myers, and Tommy Rosen write about and teach yoga programs designed for people in recovery.

(Of course, you can Google just about any combination of “yoga and sobriety,” “yoga and recovery,” and “yoga and addiction” and you’ll find tons of related blogs, forums, and programs.)

So, why is yoga working so well for people in recovery?