Want a more positive, encouraging Instagram feed? Then follow us!
@Living_Well_Community
@LoveLolaGraham
@RetireHealthier

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: When Self-Improvement Becomes Self-Rejection
💖Longevity & Wellness: Calories Absorbed?
✨Daily Affirmation & Daily Prompt

Power is in your hands.
The power to take charge of this moment or the next.
You wield immense power through your choices.
Which means you are a powerful being!

Wanting to grow can be beautiful.

We can want to become healthier, heal old wounds, change patterns, learn new skills, build confidence, strengthen relationships, or create a life that feels more like our own.

But sometimes, somewhere along the way, “I want to grow” quietly becomes “Who I am right now isn't good enough.”

Self-improvement can become an endless project of fixing ourselves. There is always another habit to optimize, insecurity to overcome, body part to change, productivity hack to try, or “better version” of ourselves waiting somewhere in the future.

Growth feels very different when it begins with care rather than rejection.

You can acknowledge things you want to change while still believing the person doing the changing is already worthy of kindness, joy, rest, connection, and a meaningful life.

Ways to pursue growth without abandoning yourself:

•💛 Check the motivation: Am I moving toward something I value or away from something I dislike about myself?
•🌱 Make room for “and”: I can accept myself and want to grow
•🧠 Question endless optimization: Not everything about you needs improving
•🫶 Include your present self in the life you're building: Don't make joy conditional on becoming someone else
•✨ Let growth include becoming more yourself: Not just becoming more impressive

You don't have to choose between self-acceptance and growth.

Perhaps some of the most meaningful growth happens when we stop asking, “How do I finally become good enough?” and start asking, “What might become possible when I grow from a place of already knowing that I am?”

✅ Action step: Choose one thing you're currently trying to improve and ask: “What would pursuing this from self-care rather than self-criticism look like?”

^{Love, Lola Graham}

Did you know the calories listed on a food label are not necessarily the exact number your body absorbs?

Digestion starts in your mouth and goes all the way through your intestines. Your gut bacteria also process nutrients that escape earlier digestion, notably fibre and resistant starch, turning them into short-chain fatty acids your body can absorb and use for energy.

In one controlled study, people eating a higher-fibre, less processed diet absorbed about 116 fewer calories per day than those eating a more typical Western diet, and the higher-fibre diet group felt less hungry.

Calorie labels can still be useful, but food quality, fibre, cooking, processing, and your microbiome all influence how many calories your body actually absorbs.

The takeaway is that eating a fibre-rich diet keeps you fuller, feeds your good bacteria and helps you manage your weight more easily.

✅ Action Step: Add more fibre-rich, minimally processed foods such as beans, oats, lentils, vegetables, and whole grains to your meals this week.

^{By: Joshua Graham | PMID: 42201874}

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

What’s something difficult that helped shape your compassion?

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!

If you find our newsletter helpful, we’d love for you to share it with a friend! If you’re that friend, you can subscribe here. Thanks for spreading the word! xo

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).}