And Everything Else You Might Need Prep for Game

Day Like a

Pro

Katya Suh, wife of NFL defensive lineman

Ndamukong Suh, crafts her own cocktail recipes for her devoted social media followers and loves attending games even when she was eight months pregnant with her twin boys (now almost 11⁄2 years old)! She breaks down her top tips for watching from the sidelines.

START EARLY

Game day can get hectic, so always plan everything the night before. Lay out your clothes, shoes, a hair tie, and if you’re a mama, your diaper bag and snacks

BRING THE ESSENTIALS

If I’m going with my boys, I’ll pack something for them to cheer along with—team lags, pom-poms, rally towels. They love being part of the fun. If I’m going without my kids, I always make sure to have a great drink with me, like my beloved Superbird Paloma or a lask of my favorite tequila!

KEEP THEM POSTED

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My phone is a must! I use it to take pictures of my boys at the game, stay connected to loved ones who couldn’t make it, post to Instagram showing what we’re wearing in support of Daddy and the team, and share reels of what the night looked like after we had an amazing game and a win!

—Hannah Dorough

BY CHRIS CANDER

My psychic predicted major betrayals.

Growing up, I had a friend whose mother was a psychic, so I was comfortable with—but not necessarily interested in—esoterica. Years later, when I encountered an astrologer, he looked at me and said, “I’m getting hair. What’s going on with your hair?” It wasn’t obvious then, but I’d recently recovered from a traumatic hair disaster—an extensions mishap I still don’t want to discuss. I was shocked. How did he know?

He went on to tell me a number of upsetting things: My business partner would betray me, my romantic partner was cheating on me, and I was going to lose a lot of money. Did I want to believe him? Absolutely not. Did it all happen?

To my dismay, yes.

Maybe you’ll think I’m nuts, but now I ask for his advice about everything from work to relationships, sometimes as often as once a week. If I had to make a decision without him, I could, of course— but I’d much rather have his input. He’s never been wrong, and I get a sense of peace by having external validation from a trustworthy person. It’s like I’m talking to a life coach or therapist.

He recently told me I’d be going on vacation. I didn’t have anything planned when he said that, but now I think I’d better pack my bags.

MARY DOHERTY, CEO OF A CENTER FOR PEOPLE WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES

Horoscopes are for suckers.

Astrological constellations and signs were first examined by ancient societies in Greece, India, and other places. Because of the earth’s natural wobble, its geospatial relationship to cosmic bodies has shifted over time, meaning the constellations that once corresponded to signs of the zodiac are now of by about a month—so modern astrology is likewise of.

Because life is unpredictable, people often want to feel like they’re in control—studies have supported this. Astrology can provide that illusion of control. I think of the quote “There’s a sucker born every minute,” widely attributed to circus magnate P.T. Barnum. Horoscopes are written so generally that any sucker could say, “I had a rough day, but that’s because Mercury’s in retrograde.”

That said, I’m an evolutionary scholar with a deep appreciation for the natural world. The stars are magnificent and can tell us a lot about the universe from an astronomical—not astrological—perspective. Every morning, I watch the sun rise, and even as a secular scientist, I’m moved by the light glistening on the water and the colors in the sky. I don’t need an astrological summary of the sun’s position to admire the world’s beauty.

GLENN GEHER, PHD, PSYCHOLOGY PROFESSOR AND FOUNDING DIRECTOR OF EVOLUTIONARY STUDIES AT THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT NEW PALTZ

Astrology leaves room for religion and free will.

I was born with a birth defect that left me bedridden and isolated for years. With some convincing, my mother, an astrology scholar, agreed to teach me how to read birth charts so I could envision a future for myself.

She said the arrangement of celestial bodies at our birth reveals insights into our personalities, but astrology’s greatest value is how it helps us time events for optimal results. Still, there’s no consequence to disregarding astrological advice. It’s like a weather report. You don’t have to carry the umbrella, but it’s useful to know ahead of time that you might want one.

Some people think astrology contradicts religion. I believe the cornerstone of all religions is taking responsibility for our actions. Many people unfamiliar with astrology assume my forecasts are about predestined events, but that’s not true. Nothing in astrology is predestined.

SUSAN

MILLER, FOUNDER OF ASTROLOGY ZONE

4

I use astrology to help repair trauma.

While teaching yoga, I kept bumping into people’s trauma and not knowing how to help. I wanted to learn how to support people’s eforts to overcome psychological wounds, so I went to graduate school for marriage and family therapy. But I wanted to do it diferently, so I also took classes in astrology. Now a licensed psychotherapist, I integrate astrology into roughly half my clients’ treatments. In my experience, exploring someone’s astrological chart can be a shortcut to healing.

Using this approach means setting aside rational thinking at first, but I’ve seen it work again and again. For example, if someone has a strong Gemini moon, they might be great at communicating, but not great at dealing with their emotions. That person could spend months or years in traditional therapy trying to unpack that, but with astrological data, we can move quickly into treatment.

When it comes to addressing problems and solutions, astrology is the “what” and therapy is the “how.” For thousands of years, humans have looked to the sky to understand earthly systems. Sailors can navigate by the stars and maneuver around the moon’s tidal pull. There’s a universe of information we can use to improve our lives here on earth

LAUREN DONELSON, PSYCHOTHERAPIST AND ASTROLOGER IN SEATTLE

I went from skeptic to believer.

For the first 36 years of my life, I didn’t believe in anything related to the occult. But when I started attending Al-Anon meetings to cope with my relationship to an alcoholic, I had a spiritual awakening. I went to a tarot card reader, but I was skeptical, so I told him, “If you want me to believe you can predict the future, then tell me what’s happened to me in the past.” He did. I decided right then to learn how myself.

I’ve studied tarot, astrology, and other forms of divination, like dowsing and numerology. Every day, I read TheNew American Ephemeris, an astronomical almanac showing the daily positions of the planets. Learning this data allows me to look at someone’s unique astrological chart and understand how and why the current planetary configuration will afect them. This language of the stars can give us insight into our relationships and career paths, wounds and weaknesses, strengths and gifts.

To me, the most useful aspect of astrology is determining the ideal timing to get the best outcomes. Many of my clients come to me specifically to find out what day they should put their house on the market, sign a contract, or even consummate a romantic relationship to make sure the passion will last.

ROBERT E. BROWN, ASTROLOGER AND COLUMNIST AT WRITINGSINTHESKY.COM