A Journey in Adulting & Self-Care

 This has been the year of health for me. No, not being the healthiest but actually trying to figure out what causes the discomfort and aches I experience. It has meant a few surgeries, way more tests than I'd like and a lot of doctor's appointments. However, knowing that I have a self-care routine that I can adapt to fit my needs and time has been a great comfort, even when I feel bleh. So, here are some ways you can incorporate taking care of yourself even when its the last thing you want to do. 1. Listen to your body For all those people who have lovely periods that they don't dread, please don't feel offended when I say I hate you. Nothing personal, but since mine started, I have never known anything but gut-wrenching, nauseating pain that makes me want to crawl inside a heating pad and stab someone at the same time. I would like to take this moment to apologize for anything I may have said during those times. I swear, its not me...its my insane uterus. But regardle

 Before my title causes you to get out the torches and pitchforks, allow me to explain. Olaplex changed my life. I was trying to figure out my hair texture and the weird curls and texture I would see in the shower led me to believe that I secretly had curly hair that was being mistreated and heated to a frizzy, sad mess. That is, until I started using Olaplex. Immediately, my hair was smooth, bouncy, shiny, soft...all those adjectives you read on the back of a shampoo bottle! I was hooked! Gimme no. 6, no. 4, no. 5! Oh wait, there a no. 8? Yes! I'll take a no. 7 and a no. 3! No, these aren't entrees from a Chinese takeout menu but products from their hair repair system and I tried (nearly) all of them! At my peak, I was regularly using at least 5 of the 7 products they had in the complete system. Which was all well and good, until it wasn't. I first noticed a problem when my hair just felt limp upon waking up instead of bouncy and voluminous. Ok, weird. Maybe I slept extra-

Putting my money where it counts is important and sometimes...you make mistakes. Dysport is a mistake for me. I got a Groupon for 50 units of Dysport and while I understood that it was weaker than Botox, I figured...I only got 10 units of Botox, so 50 is perfect! Nope, wrong! That was not the case for me. When I entered the clinic, the lovely receptionist showed me to the back room and was gracious and patient in listening to my concerns. Looking back, I should have recognized this wasn't the clinic for me as  it seemed the receptionist believed in the "more is more" philosophy when it comes to filler. She was a beautiful, sweet lady but it was clear from a mile away that her upper lip was not God given. So when she told me 50 units wasn't enough and there was no way I could redistribute it around my face as I had done with Botox...I was admittedly a bit surprised. I had hoped I could apply the cost of my Groupon to switch over to Botox but they insisted it would be t

As I am learning more about my skin, I am learning to see it in a different light. When I was battling cystic acne, it felt like a betrayal from my skin which literally had one job...keep germs out...and instead I was dealing with broken skin and active breakouts everyday. Now that the dust has settled, the scars and residue of those battles still remain. Upon consulting with my dermatologist, we talked about ways to help deal with these concerns, mostly acne scarring and hyperpigmentation. Some interventions I had already begun, mostly Vitamin C and tretinoin. I was ready to try lasers but as a POC, I was concerned about further exacerbating my hyperpigmentation and needed something that would be safe. She suggested Gentlemax Laser. Used for laser hair removal, this heats up the layer of skin underneath to activate the body's healing mechanism. However, compared to some stronger counterparts such as Fraxel or CO2 lasers, Gentlemax has no downtime and doesn't even require anest

 So, as the title indicates, it has been 6 months since my husband gave me the Dyson Airwrap as a gift and I wanted to check-in to let you know how it has been so far. Read on to learn if I still use it, what is the most useful and pros and cons I have discovered. Do you still use it? Yes! I got rid of the curling iron with 7 attachments, the blow dryer, hot rollers, flat iron and foam curlers, leaving Dyson the only hot tool I have now. Every time I wash my hair, I have to use the Airwrap. Trust me, I tried not to one night just to make sure my hair texture hadn't magically transformed into silky, smooth waves. Turns out frizz is still my friend and Dyson is somehow keeping it at bay. So, is your hair fried from all that use? Nope! Don't ask me how but my hair is smooth, shiny and looks like glass. I didn't even notice until I was taking a video where my little one was arranging my hair in a heart shape pattern on the floor. I realized all the shine and light gleaming was

 Ok, I have to admit...I have a major sweet tooth. I used to love sneaking into the fridge and swiping a scoop out of the can of condensed milk because it tasted like heaven. My favorite "cereal" was white bread with loads of sugar poured on it. However, as I have gotten older and more conscious of the impact of sugar on my health, I was also surprised to hear how sugar itself can cause you to prematurely age. This process is known as glycation and is different than regular aging because it has more of crosshatch appearance to its wrinkles. It is also characterized by sagging as the collagen underneath is separated and damaged. Basically what happens is that the sugar molecules prevent circulation and bind to the collagen molecule, which essentially ends up being destroyed. As we age, collagen is produced at a much slower rate and when the collagen can't bind together you see a loss of firmness and elasticity. In fact, this damage can render certain collagen induction tre

 So as summer winds down for us in the Northern Hemisphere, our Southern Hemisphere friends are getting ready for warmer temperatures and bare limbs. Depending on your personal choice, you may opt to shave/wax/expilate your limbs. This can lead to ingrown hairs, especially those who epilate. But no need to fear, there are plenty of ways you can go about addressing these annoyances. Step 1: Exfoliate If you can reduce the loose, dead skin on the surface you can help prevent ingrown hairs. Dry brushing or brushing your skin before removing the hair with a stiff exfoliating brush (I like this one) helps prepare your skin. Skin on our body is much thicker and stronger than skin on our neck or face and can withstand much more exfoliating. I also like exfoliating in the shower. Wet skin makes it easier to permeate deeper and remove more than the surface skin layer. A good body scrub combined with an exfoliating towel (I use Frank's Body Scrub and Salux cloth) can work wonders at leaving