Put the Glass Down (and Look Up)

Image from gfx9.com

I must confess, it's been awhile since I blogged. And here I am after several months about to dish out on personal, non-beauty stuff. Some comeback, huh? Anyway, this is something I feel I must get off my chest so that I can proceed with other things (a.k.a. get back to work. oh wow.)

Stress is killing me today. Stress management has never been my strongest competency; I'm not very good in coping with sudden changes and roadblocks have a way of really irritating me (making me go into whining instead of immediate problem solving). Combine that with crazy hormones and you get one stressed out person. Wow, that's thrice the use of the S word in one paragraph!

So anyway, today was extra difficult. Looming deadlines and a lot of obstacles sort of got into me. You know how you just feel so, so tired and that you just feel like crying? That's how I felt at the end of this day. I stewed over this feeling for a few hours and I realized, hey it's okay to admit that I am tired! I don't have to be superwoman and deny myself the right to feel tired. I AM tired.

Doesn't mean that I have to keep feeling sucky, though.

Divine intervention just made itself felt and I came across a Facebook post on stress management shared by my boss, hence the stock photo for this post. Nope, it's not about the glass being half-empty or half-full. It was about holding the glass for how long. For better appreciation, let me quote part of the anecdote.

"The stresses and worries in life are like that glass of water. Think about them for a while and nothing happens. Think about them a bit longer and they begin to hurt. And if you think about them all day long, you will feel paralyzed – incapable of doing anything." It’s important to remember to let go of your stresses. As early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don't carry them through the evening and into the night. Remember to put the glass down!"

It makes much sense, right? I realized, why have I been holding the glass the whole day? Why let myself feel paralyzed and overwhelmed? I can do this! And if I can't find a way, won't my God find the way for me for the work He has given me? It's not very original but hey, it's still a lightbulb moment! For every stressed out lady (and gents too) who may get to read this, please consider putting the glass down and it won't help to look up and ask for His help (or even just consolation, it helps ;>).

Be blessed!

My 2015 Beauty Resolutions

So here we are again with a brand new year and me with my own list of resolutions. I'm sure you have yours as well and we also both have our prayers for the grace to accomplish all our resolutions. :p

They say effective resolution-making includes making oneself more accountable. One way of doing is to publicize one's resolutions for the whole world to know! Yep, dyahe if you don't go through with it when a lot of people have read it already, right?

For this year, I have pretty simple habits/commitments that I want to build.

#GOAL: A healthier lifestyle for a better quality of life.

1. Apply SUNBLOCK regularly.

As someone lazy to apply lotion everyday, I've also avoided sunblock until several glycolic stuff forced me to put on sunblock everyday. I'm hoping to continue this for the rest of my life (haha!) as I know I will be thanking my past self at some point for taking the time to slather on sun protection. It would be a nightmare to look at premature aging and sun spots later on and know that you could have prevented it with a little effort.

I tried this moisturizer with Broad Spectrum SPF 30 by Mario Badescu and have grown to like it. It doesn't make my skin oilier and has a very subdued scent. Smells like sunblock but nothing too extreme for the nostils.







2. Drink up!

Yes, I say yes to more glasses of water in a day! The water dispenser in my current office is not in a very accessible area and this really discourages me at times to refill my water bottle. But nope, I can't let myself be set back by it. I've seen the benefits of water, particularly lemon water, to my body and it would be such a shame to let laziness take over me. It did such good for me as it flushed out the toxins in my body.

Lemon water didn't completely clear up my skin but it did make it more decent. And of course, the flatter stomach doesn't hurt. :p

3. Exfoliate and (gently) exfoliate some more.

Some people shy away from exfoliating in the belief that the pressure on skin can do more harm than good. But sometimes not exfoliating at all can lead to clogged pores. At least, that's how I understand it.

Always pick a gentle exfoliant and resist the urge to go crazy and overdo it! The Apha-H Micro Cleanse is a glycolic product which really leaves my skin baby soft and smooth after use. See, there goes your temptation to exfoliate everyday but by all means, resist it for the sake of your skin. ;)







4. Just Floss It!

Poor dental hygience can lead to heart attack and various other complications.

photo credit: pattyanne:made via photopin

Since I am more prone to gingivitis than the average person, I should really start taking regular flossing more seriously. I hope I can turn this into a habit until the time when it becomes almost automatic for me.

And there you have my 4 simple habits to be made in 2015. I believe resolutions don't always have to be grand; they can be simple and still meaningful as long as it achieves one's end goal.

What are your resolutions for this year? :-)