How Two Philly Health Experts Are Trying to Give You a More Positive Mindset

The Positivity Charge aims to provide women with positive wellness tools. / Photograph by Rachel Roshani

Right now, it seems like our nation is at a health crossroads. We don’t want to use ineffective, high-cost prescription drugs anymore. We can’t afford our health insurance. We’re scrolling mindlessly through social media, observing unattainable ideals, and it’s making us lonely and depressed — and for good reason.

But looking on the bright side didn’t become a cliché for nothing. Turns out one of the best things you can do to stay healthy, despite these frustrating facts of life, is to move your mindset to the positive end of the spectrum. As the New York Times states, “Studies have shown an indisputable link between having a positive outlook and health benefits like lower blood pressure, less heart disease, better weight control and healthier blood sugar levels.”

This glass-half-full message is one Rubina Tahir and Parisha Smith are trying to spread to Philadelphians. In 2016, the local chiropractor and CT technologist, respectively, created the Positivity Charge, a community that hosts large retreats and conferences as well as smaller pop-ups to fill your wellness toolbox with healthy, evidence-based practices. “We’re able to curate a safe environment and provide knowledge in areas of health and wellness where you can build and elevate your practice,” Tahir says. “But we’re also trying to bring people into an environment where all you need to do is be yourself.”

The Philly Positivity Charge conference, which takes place August 18th at the Warwick Hotel Rittenhouse Square this year, starts with coffee and group yoga before breaking out into three tracks — one each for wellness enthusiasts (read: those who might not know their turmeric lattes from their matcha), elitists, and entrepreneurs who are trying to break into the space. Tahir and Smith are announcing speakers on a rolling basis; today, they’re revealing Elizabeth Goodman Artis, the editor-in-chief of Shape magazine, will be on the Positivity Charge roster, joining fashion and lifestyle blogger Kat Tanita; Brittany Hennessy, the author of Influencer: Building Your Personal Brand in the Age of Social Media, and Elise Museles, attorney turned eating psychology consultant.

If the $125 to $175 price point for the retreat is too steep for you, watch for Tahir and Smith’s smaller events. Their first ever, the Mindset Master Social, took place last weekend and included brunch, a keynote by eating disorder therapist Colleen Reichmann, a meditation that involved chocolate (yes, really), and a journaling workshop. The best part, though, was the conversation the activities triggered, with attendees sharing their own hangs-ups and tricks they’d come up with to keep smiling and get through the tough times. “Positivity is a movement,” Smith says. “We’re really looking for more people to connect and be inspired and reach out to people and not be afraid. Just trying to create an amazing energy in Philly.”

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