Tag Archives: suggestions

4 Ways To Quickly Boost Your Confidence

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4 Ways To Quickly Boost Your Confidence

Feeling confident is key to success in any area of life. When you feel good about yourself, it shows in your actions and the way you interact with others. If you’re looking for a quick confidence boost, try some of these methods:

Stand up straight and tall:

The first step to looking and feeling more confident is your posture. Stand up straight with your shoulders back and your head held high. This will make you look and feel more powerful, which in turn will boost your confidence. If you’re not used to good posture, it may take some practice to get into the habit of standing and sitting up straight. But once you do, you’ll notice a difference in the way you feel about yourself.

Smile!

Smiling is another great way to boost your confidence. It makes you look friendly and approachable, two qualities that will help you feel more confident in social situations. If you’re not used to smiling, it may take some extra thought at first. But once you do, you won’t be able to stop. There is always something to smile about!

If you feel like your smile could use some work, consider visiting a Dentist. A professional cleaning and whitening can do wonders for your self esteem. Dentists can also help with other confidence boosting treatments, such as straightening your teeth or fixing minor imperfections. If you’re considering any type of cosmetic dental work, be sure to consult with a reputable dentist who has experience performing the procedure you’re interested in.

Make eye contact with people:

Making eye contact is a great way to show confidence. It shows that you’re interested in what the other person has to say and that you believe in what you’re saying yourself. If you’re not used to making eye contact, it may feel awkward at first. But the more you practice, the easier it will become. In addition to making eye contact, be sure to speak slowly and clearly when you can. Speaking too quickly can make you seem nervous or unsure of yourself. But speaking slowly and clearly will help you come across as confident and in control.

Dress for success:

What you wear can also impact your confidence. If you dress in clothes that make you feel good about yourself, it will show in your demeanor. So be sure to choose clothes that fit well and are comfortable to wear. You should also avoid wearing clothes that make you feel self-conscious. There is no point in that and it will show as you fidget and pull at your clothes throughout the day. When you look good, you’ll feel good – and your confidence will reflect that.

With a little practice at these four suggestions, you’ll be feeling more confident in no time! Why not give it a try?

Featured Image By: Pexels

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Mental Health And Who Is There To Support You

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Mental Health And Who Is There To Support You

It is understandable to see how one’s mental health can be effected during the COVID-19 pandemic as everyone’s lives have changed so drastically in one short year. Jobs, finances, and socializing has all been turned upside down and that’s enough to stress anyone out. We all hope that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and normality will return soon, but in the meantime, if you are finding yourself struggling with stress, anxiety, or depression that you reach out and get the support you need.

Here are some useful suggestions on who you could turn to:

Mental Health Charities:

Mental health charities are wonderful as they have a stash of resources, trained staff, and professionals available to help. They can guide you and assist if counseling is needed, help you assess the best options available in your location, in addition to offering their services twenty-four hours a day. It is worth noting with charities, that there is a vast range of services offered and that some charities may have a more in-depth knowledge relating to specific age groups than others.

Your Family Doctor:

Approaching your personal doctor or physician is also a good port of call if you have any mental health concerns. They will be able to offer excellent guidance on additional support that can be provided and help arrange this for you. Whilst in some cases, they may even be able to prescribe medication to help support your recovery. As you will already have some relationship with this medical professional you may find this an easier first step than approaching someone new.

Employer:

Most employers have some kind of support system in place to help their employees. This will range from office workers that have occupational health benefits or private insurance included to actors and actresses that have an intimacy set coordinator in place to support their mental well being. Although you may find it tough approaching your boss to discuss these matters, know that they are there to help and support you.

Family And Friends:

Sometimes it can be easier to speak to someone you know and trust. Who is better than those that love you the most? Reaching out to a family member or close friend can make seeking help easier for some people. They already have an understanding of your situation, circumstances, and struggles. They are able to offer a friendly ear and, in some cases, can take some of the burdens you are feeling and offer or apply practical solutions to lift your mental load. Schedule a Zoom call with your best friend the next time you are feeling down, it will do a world of good.

It is important to talk about our feelings in such stressful times, not bottle them up! This will only make the pandemic feel more overwhelming. Schedule a call with a professional or a friend you trust to help ease mental health struggles and just know that you are not alone in feeling that way, at all.

Featured Image By: Pexels

Let’s Paint!

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Let’s Paint!

Hi! One of the things that I love about my neck of the woods is all of the wonderful libraries. Prior to the pandemic, I would always take my clients to the fun programs being offered at different library branches. We were particularly fond of vinyl record club, crafts, and movie showings. Now in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the libraries in my area have turned all of their programs virtual and you can hop onto Zoom to join in.

The last time my dad was at the library to pick up some books for me and my mom, he also grabbed a craft kit complete with a mini canvas, paint, and brushes. Like so:

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Now, I am in no way shape or form an artist and I have absolutely no clue what to paint on my canvas. So, I am open to suggestions! I will make an attempt to paint the idea from the comments that I like the best and, what’s more, I will even send it your way if your comment was chosen so you can have a Lil Red Original. Who knows, maybe Johnny will even make a “celebrity” contribution to the painting too. Whether you’re crafting vinyl, sketching, or painting on a canvas it is such fun to get creative so let’s see what happens!

What should I paint on my canvas? What kind of programs does your local library offer? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Featured Image By: Alina Vilchenko from Pexels

Inspiring Careers To Consider

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Inspiring Careers To Consider

2020 has been the year of career changes. For the majority of us, this hasn’t been a particularly desired or fortunate circumstance. The Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a significant number of companies collapsing, struggling to get by as a result of social distancing and isolation measures that have been implemented with the purpose of slowing the spread of the coronavirus. This has resulted in many job losses, redundancies, and more.

Many of us have also found ourselves in periods when our jobs have been deemed non-essential and we have been asked to stay home. This has given a number of people the opportunity to realize that the roles we were previously in aren’t for us and that we want to get involved in a different field of expertise or industry. Now, if you’re looking for a new job, there are countless directions you could go in. But the pandemic has opened many of our eyes to the sheer importance of many roles within society and you might want to give one of these inspiring positions a go:

Physical Healthcare Services:

We’ve been hugely reliant on healthcare services and staff throughout this pandemic. Without them, this whole situation would likely have been even worse than it has been. There are a huge array of healthcare roles to choose from, so no matter what your skills, experience, or interests, chances are there will be a position out there to suit you!

Of course, to work in healthcare, chances are you’re going to have to spend a fair amount of time in education and training. Whether that’s a seven to eight year medical degree or an online MHA degree. These roles tend to be high responsibility and often require expertise, so the education is essential. But it is all more than worth it when you land the position at the end. Plus, when you qualify and train in healthcare positions, you can feel relatively certain that there will be ongoing and consistent demand for your work when you finish.

Mental Health Services:

The 2020 pandemic has also opened many of our eyes to the significance, severity, and wide spread of mental health concerns and conditions in society. In the past, there was a taboo attached to mental health issues. But as scientific and medical research has advanced and as societal boundaries have changed, we are growing increasingly aware and open about our mental health. The pandemic has seen many people struggle and there are always people in need of support when it comes to mental health conditions. You could help! Again, there are many routes you could take – from psychiatry to working as a helpline operator or running support groups. Again, qualifications and training are likely to be required. But again, knowing how much you are helping others will prove all more than worth it.

These are just two types of roles that have been highlighted as extremely important during this pandemic. If you’re considering a career change, you may want to take them into consideration!

Featured Image By: Pexels

What Have I Been Watching?

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What Have I Been Watching?

Hi! Although there are plenty of ideas to help keep you occupied during this quarantine, sometimes there is nothing better than turning on the ol’ BOOB TUBE. Lol, we’re talking TV! My boyfriend, Johnny, and I have been finishing shows left and right and are always ready to start something new. This past month or so, we have been watching the following:

Community:

Hilarious six season comedy based around a study group formed at a community college. All star cast, witty dialogue, and so freaking funny that it wasn’t hard to finish a half a season in a day! Definitely recommend if you’re looking for a laugh.

Game Of Thrones:

Before dating Johnny, I had never seen one episode of Game Of Thrones until he suggested it and, believe you me, I was perfectly fine with this. But, that was until I saw one episode and realized what I had been missing! Johnny and I took a nice long break from the show after the intense Red Wedding, promising we’d come back to it in a little while.

A little while ended up being months on end but, thanks to the quarantine, we finally finished it and it was amazing! Intricate story line, twists and turns every episode, amazing action, and oh yeah… Dragons! Not a show for the faint of heart but definitely worth the watch if you can turn a blind eye to the more disturbing scenes.

Stand Up Comedy:

Before I go to bed, sometimes Johnny and I will watch a stand up comedy special. We have watched a lot of Peter Holmes and Jason Mulaney and it has been so much fun! I was never too “in” to stand up before and I’m still not but it’s a nice change of pace every once in a while. I have laughed till I cried so I guess you could say those comedians are pretty good!

Parks & Recreation:

After finishing Community, we needed a new comedy show to watch so we decided to both rewatch Parks & Rec. This show revolves around a Parks & Recreation department in the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana and it is a delight. Fabulous cast of Amy Poehler, Rashida Jones, Nick Offerman, Rob Lowe, and more! No matter how many times I’ve seen each episode, I laugh. It is the perfect show to put on as background noise or a binge worthy way to spend an afternoon.

Saturday Night Live:

Johnny and I have been enjoying watching Saturday Night Live From Home. Granted, the first episode was a huge disappointment. However, the second one knocked it out of the park once the cast got the hang of it. It’s so fun to see how these comedians can get creative in their own homes to make these new skits.

Johnny and I believe that the producers are literally approving anything suggested from the cast solely based on if “it sounds funny”. And, I promise you, it’s all funny. Especially the music video from the past episode with a cameo from Adam Sandler! Love it.

Coming Up Next: Ozark

The next show that Johnny and I plan on watching is Ozark, starring Jason Bateman. Netflix recently released the new third season, which I have yet to see. I have seen season one and two and loved it. So, I’m looking forward to watching it again with my BOO and seeing all of the craziness that I see being discussed about season three. No spoilers, please!

What have you been watching in quarantine? What is your favorite TV series? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

5 Ways To Look After Your Glasses

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5 Ways To Look After Your Glasses

If you’re looking for ways to look after your glasses but you’re unsure where to start, then don’t worry, you have definitely come to the right place. Whether you’ve just ordered your first-ever pair of glasses or you’ve been wearing them for years, you need to make sure to protect them. Luckily, there are lots of ways in which you can do that. From investing in insurance to keeping them in a case, the more you’re doing to protect your glasses the better. With that in mind, here are 5 ways to look after your glasses: 

Buy High-Quality Glasses:

One of the best things you can do when it comes to looking after your glasses is that you buy high-quality glasses to begin with. Although they will cost more, buying glasses that are durable and sturdy will be less likely to get damaged. If you’re on a budget and you need to buy a pair that is slightly cheaper, make sure you’re doing as much research as you can when it comes to durability. For a guide to the best glasses brands to buy, you can visit this site here. 

Invest In Insurance:

If you’re worried about breaking your glasses and whether or not you’ll have the money to buy a new pair should they get broken, you may want to invest in insurance. Although you will have to pay a monthly sum towards your insurance, it will save you from having to pay a large amount should they break. For tips and tricks when it comes to finding insurance for your belongings, you can visit this site here. 

Keep Them In A Case:

Another great way to look after your glasses is to keep them in a case when you’re not wearing them. Although this might not be often, ensuring you’re always putting your glasses in a case will reduce your risk of damaging them or losing them. If you’re putting them into your bag, you should always use a case to avoid scratches on your glasses lenses

Take Care Of Them:

It goes without saying that you should be doing everything you can to take care of your lenses. From cleaning them at night to keeping them in a safe place, the more you’re doing to care for them the less likely it is they’re going to get damaged. 

Replace Them Every Two Years:

Finally, you need to be sure you’re replacing your glasses at least every two years. Although you can replace them before that, two years is the suggested amount of time to have your prescription checked again. If you’re experiencing difficulties, you should go before. 

Keep all things in 20/20 vision by taking the best care of your glasses that you can!

Featured Image By: Free-Photos from Pixabay

Period Problems

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Period Problems

*FYI: This post has a trigger warning for eating disorders so read at your own discretion!*

Helloooo, darlings! When I was a teenager, I can never remember my “time of the month” causing me as much grief as it does as a twenty-something. The cramps, fatigue, bloating, and an insatiable appetite seem to be a more recent thing to the past few years. Now, the discomfort and tiredness is something that I can deal with with a Motrin and a Starbucks. But, what really bothers me is the crazy increased appetite.

For a good long while, I suffered from a vicious cycle of binging and purging and the amount that I eat in one sitting on my period definitely brings me back to that. But, oh my god, am I hungry! It’s a difficult thing to deal with and I was wondering if anyone had any tips to lessen these intense hunger pangs when Aunt Flo pays a visit. Whether that be more regular little meals, an increased amount of protein, or what have you – I am willing to try anything and any suggestions help!

Thanks in advance! ❤

What are your Period Problems? How do you make your time of the month more comfortable? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

What The Sbux?

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What The Sbux?

Hiii everyone! Before my surgery, I was all about getting iced coffee from Starbucks. A venti iced coffee with cream and vanilla would be my treat on Monday morning to begin my work week. So, before things went screwy and I was still working, I ordered my usual and went off to a client’s house.

During that visit, I was drinking my coffee (without a straw, a-thank-you) and all of a sudden, my mouth began bleeding profusely. I ran to the bathroom and spent five minutes spitting blood into the sink until I realized that I probably needed gauze. I acquired some and once I thought that it was safe to remove, my mouth began bleeding like a faucet again.

After that fateful incident, I was turned off from coffee and began a green tea kick. But, now, I have grown weary of all green tea everything and am ready to try something new. So, my question for everyone is what do they get from Starbucks? I tried my iced coffee order last week when I was working and it was just not as good as I remember it being. I would prefer something that’s calorie friendly with some coffee in it but not an extreme coffee taste.

THANKS IN ADVANCE!! ❤

What is your Starbucks order? Are you a coffee or tea drinker or both? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Protecting Your Nearest And Dearest From The Pitfalls Of Ageing

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Protecting Your Nearest And Dearest From The Pitfalls Of Ageing

When we were young and vulnerable, our adult loved ones cared for us, fed us, and clothed us, and it is the way of life that we look after them as they proceed through the aging process. However, caring for an ageing relative can be something riddled with pitfalls and difficulties. To find out more about these and how to avoid them, read on:

Declining Health: Declining health is the most obvious pitfall that you want to protect your ageing loved ones from. So what can you actually do to help them stay in tip-top condition in their twilight years? It’s going to take a partnership between the both of you for the best results.

First, you will need them to take as much responsibility for their health as possible by eating well, exercising sensibly, and keeping up with medical appointments. You can help by being there to support and educate, if necessary, when they need it.

Something else that you can do to have a more direct role in helping is to look at websites like medicalert.systems with them. This is where you can get some information on medical alarms. These can really assist in keeping your loved ones safe if they have a medical emergency and you are not able to be there immediately to help.

Declining Mental State: Unfortunately, it’s not just physical health that can decline during your nearest and dearest’s twilight years. It’s also their mental health. This can be in terms of things like Alzheimer’s and dementia, which you can find out more about at webmd.com. As well as more general mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety, which are sometimes brought on by isolated living conditions and going through the aging process.

Remember, as their physical health declines and people around them are passing away or moving into sheltered accommodation it can be very easy for your older relatives to become more isolated in their own home.  Seeing fewer people as time goes on can make it more likely that they will struggle with mental health issues as discussed at onlinelibrary.wiley.

To help in this situation, you can provide a regular schedule of contact for your ageing relatives, so they know that they will get to go out and see people that are important to them at least once a week. You can also encourage them to get involved in community programs, which will help to minimize isolation and allow them to make new friends.

Dementia isn’t quite such as easy of an issue to deal with, though. The best course of action here is to seek medical assessment and get some specialist help as soon as possible. As a residential setting may be the safest option.

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Those Seeking To Take Advantage: Sadly, there are those in the world that seek to take advantage of the frailties of your loved ones as they age. This means that protecting them is a vital part of helping them to work through the pitfalls of ageing.

Help them keep up to date with the latest scam techniques, such as the ones mentioned on itv.com, both in the real world and online. Do be sure to do it in a sensible way that doesn’t scare them and feed into the isolation that is mentioned above. Offer too, to be around whenever they have consultations for work on the home done or a sale’s pitch so that you can help protect them against unscrupulous salespeople or con artists.

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Pixabay Image

Aging can be a sad and difficult process, but the above tips can help ease some of those hardships to make it all around more enjoyable for you and your loved one.

Featured Image By: Pixabay

New Music, Anyone?

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New Music, Anyone?

Heyyy everyone and happy Hump Day! My taste in music is something that I take great pride in because, I hate to brag, but it’s the best. From alt to rap, girly power pop, and everything in between – my iPod has a little bit of everything. But, I do remain a pretty indie gal at heart with a love for all things emo, of course.

Despite a deep love for music, I will admit that I have been slacking in my new music game as of late. My 64 gig iPod is just about filled to the brim and I don’t have the heart to go through and start deleting beloved songs and pictures. Yet I have an app for the stock market and news that I can’t get rid of? It’s cruel and unusual, to say the least!

Although my iPod is getting the job done, it is getting old, so I have been toying with the idea of upgrading to a new toy with more memory. With that in mind, I have began to commit myself to updating my music library, one album at a time. At one point, my family had a free trial of Serius radio and they had the most amazing indie station on there. Whenever I heard a song that I liked, I would simply write the band name down as a draft text on my phone. Unfortunately, I accidentally deleted that text so I’m basically starting from scratch. Don’t get me wrong, I’m down to update the bands that I already have on my iTunes but I would love to get some new ones on there, too!

I am open to any and all suggestions, as long as they fall under this category: ANYTHING BUT COUNTRY MUSIC!!!

Who is your favorite band at the moment? What is your summer anthem? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah