MentalHealth

US: 250 Years Later – Part 70: Hygiene/Self-Care

by

In 1776, hygiene was less a daily expectation and more an ongoing negotiation with labor, resources, and survival. Cleanliness often meant washbasins, fresh linen, and practical routines rather than modern standards of bathing and self-care. Two hundred and fifty years later, hygiene and wellness have expanded into vast systems of products, rituals, technologies, and emotional coping strategies. This letter follows America’s changing relationship with self-care and asks whether humanity is becoming healthier… or simply becoming more anxious about how well we maintain ourselves.

Read the letter →

US: 250 Years Later – Part 58: Gardening

by

In 1776, gardens were not hobbies or decorative spaces. They were living systems of survival, medicine, labor, and community, woven directly into everyday life. Two hundred and fifty years later, gardening exists at the crossroads of sustainability, mental health, environmental stewardship, and personal meaning. This letter follows America’s changing relationship with gardening and asks why, even in a world of supermarkets and technology, people still feel compelled to kneel in dirt and help something grow.

Read the letter →

US: 250 Years Later – Part 48: Exercise

by

In 1776, exercise was not a separate activity tucked into calendars and gym schedules. Movement was woven directly into survival itself through labor, travel, military life, and daily existence. Two hundred and fifty years later, exercise has evolved into an enormous cultural ecosystem of gyms, wearables, wellness trends, and digital tracking systems. This letter follows America’s changing relationship with movement and asks whether modern people have confused “working out” with simply living well inside a human body.

Read the letter →

US: 250 Years Later – Part 41: Drugs (Illicit)

by

In 1776, the idea of “illegal drugs” would have sounded strange to most Americans. Mood-altering substances existed everywhere, woven into medicine, labor, trade, and ordinary life. Two hundred and fifty years later, substances have become entangled with public health, criminal justice, addiction, policy, and profound social questions. This letter follows America’s changing relationship with illicit drugs and asks whether societies are truly battling chemicals… or the pain that drives people toward them.

Read the letter →

US: 250 Years Later – Part 17: Children (Discipline)

by

In 1776, discipline was often direct, physical, and unquestioned. Children were expected to obey, and punishment was viewed as both moral instruction and evidence of love. Two hundred and fifty years later, parenting philosophies increasingly emphasize emotional regulation, connection, and understanding over fear and control. This letter follows America’s changing ideas about discipline and asks what truly helps children become good human beings.

Read the letter →

US: 250 Years Later – Part 15: Children

by

In 1776, childhood often ended early. Children worked, contributed, and learned survival long before modern ideas of protected childhood emerged. Two hundred and fifty years later, childhood has stretched, transformed, and migrated partly into digital worlds filled with opportunity and pressure alike. This letter follows America’s changing vision of childhood and asks what kind of future societies are really trying to build through the children they raise.

Read the letter →

US: 250 Years Later – Part 12: Body Image

by

In 1776, bodies were valued largely for what they could do: endure hardship, survive illness, labor, and carry people through daily life. Two hundred and fifty years later, America lives inside an endless digital mirror where comparison never sleeps. This letter follows the evolution of body image from survival and social standing to social media, impossible standards, and the ongoing search for self-worth beyond appearance.

Read the letter →