Welcome to Living Well Daily, the newsletter serving up a daily dose of care designed to support you, cheer you on and remind you, always, just how wonderful you already are.

In Today’s Edition:

🥰Well-Being & Self-Care: Restorative vs. Avoidant Rest
💖Longevity & Wellness: Should You Eat More Lentils?
✨Daily Affirmation & Daily Prompt

Life can be immensely hard sometimes.
Unfortunately, that is part of life.
But… You can make it through.
We believe in you, and are grateful for you.

Not all rest leaves us feeling restored.

Sometimes what looks like “rest” is actually avoidance: scrolling endlessly, emotionally checking out, numbing, procrastinating, or disconnecting because we’re overwhelmed and don’t know what else to do.

And to be clear: this isn’t something to judge yourself for. Avoidant rest often develops because the nervous system is exhausted and trying to protect itself from more stress or stimulation.

But while avoidant rest may temporarily distract or numb us, it doesn’t always help us feel replenished afterward. In fact, we may finish feeling just as drained, disconnected, or emotionally heavy as before.

Restorative rest, on the other hand, tends to actually support recovery. It helps the mind and body reconnect with calm, care, pleasure, safety, or presence.

Different people find restoration in different ways, but the key difference is often how we feel after.

Ways to explore more restorative rest:

•💛 Ask yourself: “Do I usually feel restored after this, or just distracted?”
•🌿 Experiment with gentler forms of rest: nature, music, stretching, reading, quiet
•📵 Notice when overstimulation leaves you more depleted instead of refreshed
•🧠 Remember that restorative rest does not need to be “productive”
•⏳ Start small: even a few intentional minutes can matter

Sometimes we don’t need more stimulation, we need more restoration. And learning what truly replenishes you is an important part of well-being.

✅ Action step: Reflect on one activity that genuinely helps you feel restored afterward and try intentionally making space for it this week.

^{Love, Lola Graham}

Lentils are one of the most underrated foods I recommend to my clients. A half cup of cooked lentils provides about 9 grams of protein and 8 grams of fibre (roughly ¼ or so of your daily fibre target in a single serving), plus iron, potassium, and about 45% of your daily folate, which is a B vitamin your cells need to make and repair DNA.

One of my favourite things about them is that they’re cheap!

The easiest ways to eat more of them? Swap half the ground meat in tacos or bolognese for lentils, or stir in some red lentils into any soup or curry; they cook in about 15 minutes with no soaking needed.

✅ Action Step: Pick one meal this week and add lentils to it. Start with the meat swap if you want the change to feel invisible.

^{By: Joshua Graham}

^{A reflective journaling prompt to explore learning, self-awareness, and becoming.}

What’s a version of success that actually feels meaningful to you?

Before you go, let us know what you thought of today’s edition and if there are any subjects you would like us to cover in the future reply to this email and let us know!

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With love and care,

Lola & Joshua | The Living Well Team

^{Living Well Daily is for educational purposes only and is in no way a substitute for professional medical and mental health advice and diagnosis. Please consult a qualified professional for care unique to your needs.}

^{Remember: It’s okay to ask for help. Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988 (Canada & US).}