A summer comfort list is a simple way to remind yourself what helps you feel grounded and supported when things feel overwhelming. It’s less about doing more and more about knowing what brings you back to a sense of calm during the busy or unpredictable moments of the season.

Creating digital boundaries can support your mental health by reducing overwhelm, limiting comparison, and giving your mind more space to rest and stay present in your real-life experiences.

Today is World Chocolate Day, which might seem like just a fun excuse to indulge—but it actually has some brain science behind it.

Chocolate (especially dark chocolate) contains compounds that can boost dopamine and serotonin, two key neurotransmitters involved in regulating mood, focus, and motivation. It’s not a cure-all, but even a small treat can gently shift how we feel in the moment.

That matters—because when you’re overwhelmed, burnt out, or emotionally drained, even the idea of “self-care” can feel like one more thing to figure out or perform.

So here’s the gentle truth:

Small joys are powerful.

And they count, even when life feels messy, complicated, or uncertain.

Whether you're navigating stress at work, showing up for others while neglecting your own needs, supporting a neurodivergent child, or just trying to hold yourself together—you deserve pleasure, comfort, and small moments of ease.

Sometimes it’s a deep breath. A favorite song. A hot shower. A piece of chocolate. These sensory moments don’t fix everything—but they can remind us that we’re still human. Still worthy of care. Still allowed to feel good, even if just for a minute.

So today, let chocolate remind you:

• You don’t have to earn rest or pleasure

• Coping doesn’t always need to be “productive”

• Small joys can be a form of resistance, healing, and self-connection

What Is Solitude?

Loneliness is marked by a sense of isolation. Solitude, on the other hand, is a state of being alone without being lonely and can lead to self-awareness.

As the world spins faster and faster—or maybe it just seems that way when an email can travel around the world in fractions of a second—we mortals need a variety of ways to cope with the resulting pressures. We need to maintain some semblance of balance and some sense that we are steering the ship of our life.

Otherwise we feel overloaded, overreact to minor annoyances and feel like we can never catch up. As far as I'm concerned, one of the best ways is by seeking, and enjoying, solitude.

That said, there is an important distinction to be established right off the bat. There is a world of difference between solitude and loneliness, though the two terms are often used interchangeably.

From the outside, solitude and loneliness look a lot alike. Both are characterized by solitariness. But all resemblance ends at the surface.

Loneliness is a negative state, marked by a sense of isolation. One feels that something is missing. It is possible to be with people and still feel lonely—perhaps the most bitter form of loneliness.

Solitude is the state of being alone without being lonely. It is a positive and constructive state of engagement with oneself. Solitude is desirable, a state of being alone where you provide yourself wonderful and sufficient company.

Solitude is a time that can be used for reflection, inner searching or growth or enjoyment of some kind. Deep reading requires solitude, so does experiencing the beauty of nature. Thinking and creativity usually do too.

Solitude suggests peacefulness stemming from a state of inner richness. It is a means of enjoying the quiet and whatever it brings that is satisfying and from which we draw sustenance. It is something we cultivate. Solitude is refreshing; an opportunity to renew ourselves. In other words, it replenishes us.

Loneliness is harsh, punishment, a deficiency state, a state of discontent marked by a sense of estrangement, an awareness of excess aloneness.

Solitude is something you choose. Loneliness is imposed on you by others.

We all need periods of solitude, although temperamentally we probably differ in the amount of solitude we need. Some solitude is essential; It gives us time to explore and know ourselves. It is the necessary counterpoint to intimacy, what allows us to have a self worthy of sharing. Solitude gives us a chance to regain perspective. It renews us for the challenges of life. It allows us to get (back) into the position of driving our own lives, rather than having them run by schedules and demands from without.

Solitude restores body and mind. Loneliness depletes them.

The start of a new season can be a great opportunity to check in with yourself and consider what you need most in the months ahead. While summer is often associated with vacations, adventures, and packed schedules, it can also be a time to slow down, reconnect with what matters, and prioritize your well-being.

In the midst of busy schedules and daily responsibilities, it's easy to overlook the small moments that bring us joy. Taking time to notice and appreciate these simple pleasures can help us feel more grounded, grateful, and connected to the present moment. Today, try creating a "Small Joys Inventory" by making a list of the little things that have made you smile recently. You may be surprised by how much goodness is already woven into your everyday life.