Thread: What Do You Eat to Feel Better?

Today is the first day of the new school term for most kids in England who have been home for almost 7 weeks (some don't go back until next week!).

Congratulations to the parents who survived the summer holidays, especially those of you who are under/unsupported, solo-parenting, single-parenting, don't have family nearby to help lighten the load, or are just trying to carry it all. It was a lot. I see you. Five heatwaves, more than 120 meals, endless snacks, fighting siblings, countless times hearing 'mummmmm', or 'I'm bored', black eyes, having to think of activities or days out or pack for trips or unpack and do laundry, trying to keep the house together, trying to work, and and and... If, like me, you are feeling completely wiped out then it makes sense. Capitalism is set up to exploit the family form and our social structures do very little to buffer the often isolating and alienating experience of parenting, especially over the long school breaks. Maybe it's just my friends, but almost everyone I know is feeling it in their bones this year.

That's not to say there weren't lots of lovely moments of joy and connection. A being able to read books independently, even if it's Bunny Vs. Monkey (flag that for later!), has been a real game-changer. And this summer is the first time I've been able to take him to a cool public gallery/museum/library that he actually wants to engage in it. These two things came together beautifully this past week when we hit up the Wellcome collection on Euston Road. After rummaging around the galleries and talking about the link between colonialism and the climate catastrophe, we sat in the reading room and read our books together (my rec below). Incredible.

On our way to the gift shop – both of us are suckers for a gallery gift shop – we had a wee look at the food and nutrition section (occupational hazard), which is where I found the inspiration for today's prompt. Being that the Wellcome is dedicated to questions of human health and disease, they had a stack of cards out asking 'what do you eat to feel better?'. Visitors can then draw or write the foods they enjoy when they need to feel 'better'. We spent ages looking at all the different responses people gave.

The responses were so varied but one thing I noticed was the foods people gravitated towards are vastly different from what wellness/diet/optimisation culture teaches us we need to eat to be 'well'. Here are some pics I took.