Fighting Loneliness Through Rituals, Community, and Hope

Did you know that exercising with other people may help you live longer—not just exercise more? Yes, simply being a part of a group of exercisers can have positive health benefits beyond motivation to exercise. This was shown in a large-scale review reported in Public Library of Science (PLOS) Medicine that examined 148 studies of 309,000 individuals with an average age of 64 and found that having strong social connections increased the odds of survival by 50 percent compared with those who have weaker societal bonds. What is important to note is that the result remained constant over age, gender, health status, length of follow-up period, and cause of death.

What if the key to lasting health and fitness isn’t more motivation—but a shift in identity? Did you know that researchers who focus on lifestyle changes are showing us that our habits, both healthy and unhealthy ones, determine who we think we are. Yes, people who link their habits to their identities the most had higher levels of self-esteem and were more driven towards reaching their ideal self, according to a Frontiers in Psychology study.

Why do some people struggle to stay consistent with exercise—even when they know it’s good for them? The answer isn’t physical. It’s emotional. And if you don’t address it, it will quietly sabotage every fitness goal you set.

Ever notice how hard it feels to start exercising—but easy to get stuck? But what if one simple incentive could flip that equation and make movement feel rewarding instead of draining?

As I reminisce to days long past, i remember visiting my elderly German/Hungarian grandparents during a holiday when I was a child, and my younger brother and I could not touch the highly polished furniture or sit on the couch with the adults in the living room. This is because our “sticky fingers” might make a mark. While being secluded from the adults on the front enclosed sunporch on the second floor of their rental, we sat under a hand-carved German-made clock that announced the hour and half-hour while the dancing children dressed in “Swiss Alps” attire emerged with the sound of the cuckoo, cuckoo!

When we were children, anyone older seemed “old.” By the time we looked at our grandparents, aging often appeared synonymous with decline. frailty, and loss. But neuroscience is now telling a very different story—one that could completely change how you experience the rest of your life.

Growing up in New York City as a Catholic girl in Far Rockaway, Queens, I never heard the word “Islamophobia,” that is, until the World Trade Center attack on September 11, 2001, when it became common vernacular. Twenty-five years later, how is islamophobia defined today? It is the fear, hatred, or prejudice directed at Muslims or those perceived to be Muslim, often manifesting as racism, discrimination, and violence, which stereotypes all Muslims as a uniform, threatening group. It is often fueled by media coverage and politics, such as it is currently during the Iranian-Israeli-US War in the Middle East.

Recently, my doctor told me something that stopped me cold. He said I would never bring my blood sugar down without insulin—and that it would only get worse with age. In general, I would say I am a goal-oriented and self-reliant person and have been since I was five years old when I declared to my parents: “Leave me alone, I’ll do it myself!” But for a day or two after this demoralization in the doctor’s office, I cried a lot and lacked belief in myself to improve my well-being, especially after being told that this refusal to follow orders would increase my risk of vison loss and amputation down the road, or worse.

On Sunday, February 22, the 2026 Olympics ended with Team USA setting a team record for the most gold medals in a single Winter Games. Their success was capped off with both the women’s and men’s hockey teams winning gold in thrilling overtime victories.

As a reader of the Washington Post, I was saddened by the news of February 5, 2026 that one-third of its staff was eliminated, including its sports section, several foreign bureaus, and its books coverage in a widespread purge that struck harsh blow to journalism and to its legendary brand. Martin Baron, the Post’s first editor under its current owner, Jeff Bezos, called this action “a case study in near-instant, self-inflicted brand destruction.”

I just read Joe Tone’s January 22, 2026 column in The Washington Post on the right and wrong words for parents to say to their teens postgame. In anticipation, you, as a parent, may conjure up some words but not know exactly how to approach your child to say them. In many cases it is kind of hit or miss. When your teens do well in a game, you want to applaud them and speak about their great plays. However, when there are some bloopers made during a game, you may want to avoid comments so as not to call attention to them.