Dealing with stress

I've always been an anxious person.  When I have things to stress about, I'm really stressed, and when I don't, I still get stressed.  Even when I try to relax, I feel guilty that I'm not being productive.  So, I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and I now take an anxiolytic (anti-anxiety) medication.  And while medication is helpful, cognitive-behavioral treatment is just as important!


1. Deep breathing - stimulates your parasympathetic nervous system and calms you down.  This is the kind of breathing you do while singing or playing a wind instrument; you should feel it below your chest, and in fact, your chest shouldn't move much.  If you have trouble with it, try it while lying down (it's very difficult to breathe shallowly in that position).

2. Progressive muscle relaxation - progressively tense, then relax each muscle group.  It can be done at any time, but I do this before I go to bed.

3. Purposefully incorporate sensory experiences that make you happy into your everyday life (air fresheners, posters, etc.).  I like to get things that have a good memory associated with them.  For example, the smell of cloves relaxes me because it reminds me of Christmas at home, so I have a cinnamon & clove-scented Wallflower (Bath and Body Works) in my room.  Playing with and petting my cats relaxes me, but I can't have pets at school, so I listen to the sound of a cat purring with the Relax Melodies app.

Relax Melodies

This isn't about beauty, per se, but relaxation is an important part of health, and therefore, beauty.

If you have a Mac, iPad, iPhone, etc., you should download the "Relax Melodies" app (it's free!).  You get to customize your white noise!  My favorite is cat purring, ticking clock, and distant wind chimes (I made the combo myself and saved it as "Home").

Usually these relaxation-aimed apps do nothing for me because 1) I have to listen to the same 10 seconds of ocean over and over again and 2)  I have GAD, so I'm basically always anxious.  But even I've found it relaxing!  :)

Clarisonic update

Now that I've been using my Clarisonic Mia regularly (usually twice a day, sometimes just once) for several weeks, I feel like I can start to make some generalizations.

I definitely still have acne, and most mornings I still wake up with one or more new pimple(s).  HOWEVER, my pimples have seemed to decrease in frequency and in size.  Plus, it feels really good, and my skin always feels super clean when I use it.

So, for me it's not a miracle tool (I'd hoped it would be since I spend $100 on it), but it certainly hasn't made my skin any worse; in fact, it seems like it's had a positive effect, and I'm hoping to see more of an improvement with the deep pore cleansing head (it came with the sensitive head, so that's what I've been using).

If you're going to buy one, you should buy it from drugstore.com (I got mine there for $95, and it retails for $119).  It doesn't sound so expensive if it's less than $100.  :)

the newest addition to my nail polish collection

So, it's Jan term at my college right now (a mini semester during January in which most people take one class).  I'm taking two classes (both somewhat difficult), and I have synchronized swimming practices and all kinds of stuff.  I've been quite busy!  And I will probably stay busy until February, so blog posts may be less frequent for a few weeks.  :)

Anyway, as I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm obsessed with nail polish.  I got my newest one from the Sephora by OPI line the other day in "It's Bouquet With Me," and I'm in love!  It's a clear purple with multi-shade glitter mixed in.  The purple background gives the illusion that it's all glitter, which is really cool.  I've gotten so many compliments on it already!

a cure for dirty hair?

First of all, I'm so excited that I have eight followers-- few days ago, I only had one!  Thanks to everyone who's following me (and tell your friends)!  :)

Anyways, I should start by telling you my hair type:  it's fine, straight, limp, and heavy, so I have trouble maintaining volume.

mark.'s Mega Volume Next Day Spray is on the idea of a dry shampoo, but it doesn't require brushing out funky residue or anything.

I got up this morning (after washing my hair last night), and my hair looked greasier than I'd like.  So, I sprayed this on my roots and blow dried it, and it really did look better!

And the only lingering evidence that I used it was the scent, which is a little strong to begin with, but it faded, so I didn't mind it.  I expected a little stiffness of the hair that I sprayed, but my hair remained soft.

I definitely recommend this for when your hair needs a touch-up, and it's only $6!

I also tried the Mega Volume Root Lifting Spray on New Year's Eve, it really did add significant volume!  It didn't make me look like Ashley Greene, though, which is a bummer.  :D

The volume was awesome after blow drying my hair, and although it flattened somewhat throughout the night, it still looked better than with nothing.

Plus, when I pulled my hair into a ponytail to wash my face, my ponytail looked really good!  (Mine are usually flat and super boring.)

Also only $6!

If you're interested in these products, be sure to register and shop at my mark. eBoutique!  :)

new face wash!!!

So, I'm basically a face wash hoarder.  My desire to control my acne, combined with my obsessive need to try every product, has led me to try a LOT of stuff.

The Clinique Acne Solutions regimen works pretty well, but it's pricey.  I tried mark.'s Help Wanted Anti-Acne Exfoliating Cleanser, which smelled great, but it didn't have enough salicylic acid in it to keep my acne under control.

Which brings me to mark.'s That's Deep Purifying Gel Cleanser.

I [incorrectly] assumed that since it has no salicylic acid in it, it wouldn't work, but I actually like it a lot!  It makes my face squeaky clean (literally, which is important to me because I'm a little obsessive-compulsive that squeaking = clean).  My face feels clean and almost slightly tingly, especially when I use That's Deep with my Clarisonic.  But it cleanses gently without over-drying.  It also smells really good!

I call this product an all-around win.  Register, then go buy it.  :)

my weight loss

I've been overweight my whole life.  For the past few years, I've even been technically obese (according to the BMI chart, although no one would call me obese by looking at me, but whatever).  Anyways, I've recently lost 30 pounds, and I'm planning to lose another ~30 pounds.  I wanted to talk about how I did it.

I used three main things:

1. Perfect Diet Tracker app (I have it on my Macbook, but I think it's also available for iPhone, iPad, etc.).  It cost $30, but it's so worth it.  It allows you to keep track of all your food intake and exercise, and it helps you set goals.  It has a huge database of food and exercise, and if you eat something that's not in the list, you can add it.
2. Exercise (I do synchronized swimming, and otherwise I prefer dance-type things, like Zumba).  A program I've done is Flirty Girl Fitness, which teaches fun, somewhat sexy, dance moves.  Definitely has good workouts!
3. Adipex (prescription stimulant medication).  My doctor gave me Adipex to jump start my metabolism, give me the energy to be more active, and suppress my appetite.  It works really well, but it becomes ineffective after 6-8 weeks.