#27: Tess Manhattan
"It was a snowy day and I was the only person who showed up. The room was full of Buddhas."
Tess Manhattan is a New York-based artist, vlogger and podcaster. After an invitation to be a part of an event she hosted last summer at Princess, we hung out for the first time over dinner at Souen. Shortly after, she submitted these responses.
Health Gossip with Tess Manhattan
Cancer/Leo/Capricorn
New York, NY
What does health, or being healthy, mean to you?
Health is about moving through life and feeling good in my body and mind. Sometimes I want go for a run. Other times, I want to watch YouTube and eat candy. I ate pretty much only white foods until I was 25 and smoked a lot of questionable weed, so anything “good” I do for myself is a win. The human body is amazing. I am learning to trust the knowledge of it and go with the flow.
How would you describe your current lifestyle?
Art is always the certain of everything for me. Making it or looking at it, I don't know what I would do without it. I am super ambitious with my lifestyle. One day I want to be an animal reiki healer, the next day a K-pop trainee. I hope to land somewhere in the middle.
A lot of change has happened in my life in the past year. I quit my corporate job, started dog walking, stopped dog walking, and now I work at a high-end stationery store. Between May and September, my partner, Jeff and I, put on 5 art shows and started our own gallery, Princess. In the aftermath of that, I have been trying to pick up the pieces of myself and get back into a healthy self-care routine.
How do you start and end your days?
We usually wake up around 7 and have breakfast. We either have yogurt or oatmeal. I like drinking black tea in the morning, either English breakfast or Earl Gray. One of our favorite morning rituals is having breakfast in bed and watching “breakfast” shows on Jeff's iPad. A breakfast show is a light-hearted, low-stakes reality TV show, i.e. baking competitions and anything where people are looking for antiques. Think: Say Yes to the Dress, American Pickers, and Great British Bake-Off. My deep-cut favorites are Sugar Rush, Shipping Wars, Kid's Baking Championship, and Choccywoccydoodah.
I was going to kickboxing at 9 around 2-3 times a week, but I fell off after two of the ladies in my class got into a screaming match. I hope to return soon, though, because practicing martial arts has been one of the greatest joys of my adult life. Thank you Jake Paul for inspiring me!
While in the studio in the mornings, I always need to listen to something. Recently I have been layering healing frequencies and my favorite YouTuber podcasts. I will have two tabs on my computer, one playing each video and I will change the volumes to find the right mix. My favorite YouTuber podcasts are Just Trish and Cancelled. My favorite healing frequency is 963 Hz, which is the frequency of God.
One of my favorite nighttime rituals is a hot bath with at least 2 cups of Epsom salt. There was a point when I was going through 20 pounds of Epsom salt every few months. If I don't have time for a bath, I spray myself with Magnesium Oil from Ancient Minerals. A new thing for night-time is my jade Yoni egg. I got it to help with my period cramps, but the practice has been much more meditative than I was expecting. I am excited to see where it takes me.
Something I do before my period at night is a castor oil pack. Here is a little video of going through how I do that. Enjoy :)
Was there a specific moment in life that made you change your approach to health, or become more conscious generally?
I grew up in a health-conscious home. My mom has been practicing Iyengar Yoga for over 30 years. My dad biked to work every day. We weren't allowed to have candy or soda in the house. My way of rebelling was by sneaking sweets and only eating carbs.
I started having severe period cramps a few years ago and it led me to discover Eastern medicine. I started doing acupuncture and taking tinctures to regulate my cycle. I also began attending sound meditations.
I did one sound bath that changed a lot for me. It was a snowy day and I was the only person who showed up. The room was full of Buddhas. She worked with a lot of different bowls on and around my body at once. I relived some traumatic moments from my childhood as my child self. I saw earth from the perspective of space. It was covered with rings of beings of light holding hands.