THE HYPE MAN Social media star Rickey Thompson on his unapologetic confidence and the key to his radiant glow

Redef ining WELLNESS

FA N CY SPA S A N D E X PENSIVE FACI A L S A REN ’ T TH E O N LY WAYS TO FI N D I N N ER PE ACE . TH ESE T WO PROS A RE M A K I N G SEL F- C A RE M O RE ACCESSI B L E FO R A L L

BY MAYA ALLEN

Yasmine Cheyenne

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Professions: Mental health advocate, writer, and creator of The Sugar Jar Podcast, which features impactful conversations centered around self-healing. Self-Care Mantra: “Being willing to choose yourself, even when it’s unpopular.” Her Wellness Journey: Cheyenne joined the U.S. Air Force when she was 19, and one of her roles was victim advocate for her base. “I supported mostly women and children who’d been victims of abuse, sexual assault, and domestic violence,” she says. “To help them cope with the trauma they’d been through, I connected with other organizations across the country for support. I saw how community and access to resources made it all possible. The seed to help others heal was solidifi ed in me from that moment.” How She’s Democratizing Wellness: “When I started teaching and going through my healing work, so often I was the only Black person in the room,” says Cheyenne. “It was a struggle for me to aff ord the services, and I wanted to be able to take the tools into my real life, not just experience them while on a retreat or in a workshop.” Now Cheyenne is committed to narrowing the wellness gap through one-on-one coaching, keynote speeches, and providing access to free mental health programs online. Meanwhile, her podcast espouses useful information about the importance of establishing boundaries. Her Advice for Staying Sane in 2022: Incorporate achievable habits into your day, like scheduling time offl ine, going for a walk, or audio journaling on your phone’s voice notes app, one of Cheyenne’s favorite free activities. “You can say anything you want, share things that you might be afraid to admit to someone else, and even do it while you’re driving or on the train,” she says. “Either go back and listen to it later or delete it, but after giving yourself that freedom of expression, you’ll feel so much relief.”

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Lalah Delia

Professions: Spiritual wellness educator, best-selling author of Vibrate Higher Daily: Live Your Power, and founder of VibrateHigherDaily.com, an online community and mental health mentoring program. Self-Care Mantra: “Learn how to take your power back.” Her Wellness Journey: “After many rock bottoms, which included domestic violence trauma, rape, down-spiraling as a result, a health crisis, and a suicide attempt, I decided that I would use my life for a higher purpose,” Delia says. After taking the time to heal personally, Delia developed a passion to help others to do the same. “I use the various gifts I’ve acquired through my formal years of training to do wellness and spiritual work in a creative and visually comforting way.” How She’s Democratizing Wellness: Her wildly popular book is about breaking old, useless habits and forming new ones that serve each individual. And Delia’s blog is a one-stop shop for tips on well-being, virtual classes, guided meditations, and peaceful playlists. Delia, who has over half a million Instagram followers, hopes to continue to create a new standard and culture of diversity in the wellness industry. “We have to lead with proactive resistance to all old systems of exclusion that show up as modern-day segregation and elitism,” she says. “And not remain silent when representation does not exist in any collective space we are in.” Her Advice for Staying Sane in 2022: Delia defi nes self-care as a sacred practice of coming home to ourselves. “There’s always a porch light on to welcome us back. You just have to listen closely for the directions leading you there,” she explains. A simple habit she encourages is pausing to check in with yourself throughout the day: “Notice any ways that your mind, body, or environment are signaling imbalance or for you to slow down, drink more water, eat or drink less of something, have a healthy meal, reach out to someone, take a break, spend time in solitude, go into nature, dance, or listen to music.” In fact, Delia credits dancing as a powerful way to transform how you’re feeling: “It’s a free somatic practice that not only physically moves the body but also moves emotions and stagnant energy.”