Kambo is not a slang for Kombucha (though it should be, it’s pretty catchy) or some new form of martial arts. Kambo is actually a healing ritual originally used by tribes across South American countries that has now made its way to the U.S. and Canada. Shamans performed Kambo to help heal patients suffering from mental, emotional and physical ailments. The process is painful—in fact torturous—but it seems that many find relief through multiple treatments.  

We’ve all probably heard the news that chocolate is good for you (yipee!). Wait, though: when I say chocolate, I don’t mean the ears of the chocolate bunny left over from Easter; I mean the dark, bitter–tasting bar of chocolate way in the back of the candy cupboard. For many, dark chocolate is off–putting because of its strong, bitter flavour and gritty texture (personally, it’s my favourite kind), but it’s within that foil wrapper where the magical ingredients lie.  

Have you looked into your medicine cabinet lately? I mean, really looked. Pushed aside the toothpaste and aspirin bottle, tossed the false eyelashes from last week’s party and gone deeeeep into the cabinet’s abyss. I’m sure there’s a few old prescription pill bottles (likely empty, if it’s the good stuff), some cough syrup from 10 years ago. Maybe an expired bottle of eye drops from 1999 (wait, didn’t you just use those last week?).  Do you really have all the over the counter medication you need?

It might be time to give your medicine cabinet an overhaul.

Seasonal Affective Disorder, often referred to as SAD, is a mood disorder that, well, in short, makes us feel sad (it’s a surprisingly accurate acronym). SAD encompasses a lot more than that, though. Do you notice your mood changing around the same time every year? (No, I’m not referring to the last day of the Saks Friends & Family sale.) You may notice it much more in the winter months, when our days are getting shorter and our leg hair longer, a general feeling of sadness that then shifts into a change in appetite or sleeping patterns. Many people experience severe symptoms that last months and affect their day–to–day behaviour and activities. This is what SAD is. 

Let me paint a picture for you: It’s 1945 and the ladies have gathered at the local “fitness” centre. They gossip, laugh and take turns wrapping themselves in a vibrating seat belt-like device that makes their bodies shake vigorously, all in the hope of losing weight.  Sound familiar? I remember seeing that scene in movies, TV shows and online and laughing at the absurdity of it, but, shockingly enough (or not shocking at all?), the trend is currently experiencing a resurgence. The goal of the original vibrating belt actually makes sense: to stimulate muscles, increase circulation and aid in weight loss. Today we call it Body Shape Rolling and it’s pretty much what it sounds like; you use the pressure of a roller along your body to help attain your fitness goals. Studios are opening up in the UK and in the US, where clients straddle, lean on and hang off of professional–grade body rollers that incorporate infrared light therapy. The results are apparently stupefying, though I’m skeptical of any weight–loss program that doesn’t include exercise and diet. But the studios claim that body shape rolling alone can take inches off of your body.