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This story originally appeared in the Jackson Free Press. It was added to the Mississippi Free Press website in 2025.
Note that any opinions expressed in legacy Jackson Free Press stories do not reflect a position of the Mississippi Free Press or necessarily of its staff and board members.

The road to wellness is met with roadblocks, detours and speed bumps. I mentioned this observation to JFP Managing editor Ronni Mott last week and she agreed. I’m come to the conclusion that there is no such thing as a “normal” week at the JFP and this can make it hard to find time to get into a workout routine. Two weeks ago, we were on deadline for BOOM and last week we were trying to fit in an extra day of work because of the Memorial Day Holiday.

For the goal of losing 10 pounds, I’ve starting running again and for those days that I can’t squeeze in workout, I’ve been more conscious about what I eat and the sizes of portions. I find that a lot of times, I am too busy to plan meals and I wait until I’m starving to figure out what to eat. At that point, I’m more likely to make unhealthy choices.

Two weeks ago, I mediated for the first time at the Jackson Zen Dojo. I was concerned that my Attention Deficit Disorder and chronic impatience would make staring at a wall for half an hour a tortuous event. But I went into it with out any expectations and it was a great way to refocus my mind and energy.

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The Mississippi Free Press produced this story through the MFP Solutions Lab, supported by the Solutions Journalism Network. This series digs into Mississippi’s systemic issues and sheds light on responses to them in other communities. Beyond just reporting on problems, these stories interrogate their causes and inspect potential solutions.

Mississippi native Donna Ladd and partner Todd Stauffer founded the Jackson Free Press in 2002 in the capital city. The heavily awarded local newspaper did many investigations heralded across the state and nation and served as a paper of record due to its diversity, inclusion, in-depth reporting and deep connection to readers and dedication to narrative change in and about Mississippi. In 2022, the nonprofit Mississippi Free Press, founded by Ladd and JFP Associate Publisher Kimberly Griffin in 2020, purchased the journalism assets and archives of the Jackson Free Press. A Google grant through AAN Publishers enabled Newspack's integration of the JFP archives into the Mississippi Free Press website to become part of a more searchable archive of recent Mississippi history and essential journalism.