Over the past six months, we’ve experienced an era of intense vulnerability and self-reflection across the globe. Amid the pandemic and protests, our health and wellbeing remains important as we strive to stay engaged and educated during these unpredictable days. 

It is important to note wellness means many things to different people. From physical, to emotional, to spiritual health, the pathway to self-care and wellbeing can take on many forms in order to successfully bring balance and alignment into our daily lives.

 We’ve compiled a list of experts taking purposeful steps forward in conversations around collective health and wellbeing—bringing meaningful resources to weather the uncertainty we are living in and the days to come.

Nurturing your body.

Julia Taylor Cheek, CEO & Founder, EverlyWell | @everlywell

Julia is the creator of EverlyWell, a digital health startup that offers consumer-ordered diagnostic tests and easy-to-read results. Designed to make the lab-testing experience more convenient for everyone, EverlyWell encourages you to take your health into your own hands.

• Where you’ve seen Julie: HLTH | SXSW

Trinity Mouzon Wofford, Founder, Golde | @golde

Alongside her partner Issey Kobori, Trinity started superfood health and beauty brand Golde with the intent to make wellness more accessible to people of color. An emerging force in the world of self-care, Golde has found its way onto the shelves of Urban Outfitters, Madewell, Sephora, and Goop.

• Where you’ve seen Trinity: Beauty Inc Virtual Wellness Conference

Katerina Schneider, CEO & Founder of Ritual | @ritual

Katerina created Ritual after she became pregnant and struggled to find prenatal vitamins with ingredients she could trust. From there she decided to create a company helping women feel better about where their resources come from, believing better health comes from better ingredients. 

• Where you’ve seen Katerina: Groceryshop

Making meaningful connections.

Naj Austin, Founder, Ethel’s Club | @ethelsclub

Launched in November 2019, Brooklyn-based Ethel’s Club is the creation of Naj Austin. As a social and wellness club for people of color, Ethel’s Club originally provided co-working space for members. Yet,  with social distancing in effect, Ethel’s Club has since moved to a digital model, offering various wellness resources to build connection, community, and healing. 

• Where you’ve seen Naj: Today

Naomi Hirabayashi & Marah Lidey, Founders, Shine | @shinetext

Shine Co-Founders Naomi Hirabayashi and Marah Lidey are reinventing health and wellness for Millennials. Founded in April 2016, Shine was built with the goal of helping people navigate their own stress and anxiety in a way that is both communal and accessible. The self-care app features daily meditations, community discussions, personalized affirmations, and self-reflection check-ins.

• Where you’ve seen Naomi & Marah: TakeOver Innovation Conference | FastCompany Innovation Festival

 Roni Frank, Co-Founder and Head of Clinical Services, Talkspace | @talkspace

Founded in 2012 with her husband Oren, Talkspace was created as a solution to the flaws in the mental health system, removing common barriers such as stigma, cost, and inconvenience. By connecting people directly with licensed therapists, Talkspace is dedicated to getting therapy into the hands of everyone who needs it. 

• Where you’ve seen Roni: Startup Grind

Finding your center.

Julie Sharma, Co-Founder & Chief Content Officer, Wellness Coach | @wellnesscoach.live

Formerly called meditation.live, Wellness Coach is the company expansion providing a full range of services to improve a person’s wellbeing. Co-founded by Julia and her husband D Sharma, Wellness Coach hosts courses, classes, and on-demand content specifically designed to reduce stress, improve sleep, and develop emotional intelligence to thrive.

• Where you’ve seen Julie: Hive Global Leaders Summit

Dr. Megan Jones Bell, Chief Science Officer, Headspace | @headspace

Megan is focused on making mental healthcare more effective, affordable, and accessible. As an online healthcare company focused on meditation, Headspace provides mindfulness content and resources to help step away from stressful situations. 

• Where you’ve seen Megan: HLTH

Tara-Nicholle Nelson, CEO & Founder, SoulTour | @transformationaltara

Tara is the founder of SoulTour, a personal growth school helping entrepreneurs and companies bring their whole selves to the world. A spiritual leader, Tara has been a resource for people to connect with themselves when seeking personal transformation, guidance, meaning and joy. 

• Where you’ve seen Tara: SXSW

This post was originally posted on the GOODFest blog as a contributed article by cred.