A bunch of tips and tricks that I hope help a lot of you girls out there.
This book contains things that seem really fun or interesting, like a DIY bath bomb or the meanings behind your cravings. Hopefully you enjoy reading these, because I try my h...
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s u m m e r a e s t h e t i c
Hey, gang! With summer here it's everyone's dream to have a glow up for back to school season, so now could be the chance for you to "glow up" and feel confident. Just remember that there's no need to feel that you need to change yourself for others, this is for you! <3
~ Skin Care ~ Alright! Listen up, kids. Skin care is important! And you know how you see all those posts that are like "Wash your face in the morning and at night!" or "Face masks for days!!1!" or "Moisturize!" Like yeah, all that's good and stuff, but really, all of that isn't going to help get rid of the majority of your acne.
I went to the dermatologist and listen, acne is literally a bacterial infection that needs to be fixed with medicine. Now, I'm not talking one or two pimples, I'm talking acne. My specific issue, which is better than some people's, was that my acne was on my forehead, skin-toned.
I know what you're thinking. Skin-toned. Big whoop. At least it's not red and inflamed and really noticeable. Well, see, the thing is. It wouldn't go away. And after not going away for a long time, it builds up. I soon gave it the endearing term, 'My-Popcorn-Ceiling-Forehead.' TMI PHOTO AHEAD Here's a picture for reference:
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So yeah. I agree, wash your face twice a day. before bed and in the morning! It will help quite a bit, but it won't give you the clear skin you see on Instagram or TV. Face masks also work! Just make sure you're not doing more damage to your skin, that could make your acne more irritated. (Ex: the peel off charcoal masks, the charcoal is good, the intense peel-off, not so great.)
This is the part where I highly suggest going to the dermatologist if the funds are available in your family, or your own. They will be able to provide a medicine to help with your acne, based on YOUR SPECIFIC ACNE. Particularly how bad it is. While I got the lowest level of intense medicine they could give, my boyfriend got the second highest.
And it takes time! Mine is more of a maintenance thing now that it's gone, but my boyfriend, who has been taking the medicine for 6 months now, is just starting to get consistently clear skin. It's because he had bad cystic acne, my heart feels for all of you who have it.
His would bleed and hurt him, not to mention the way it ruined his self-confidence. But he's feeling so much better now! It doesn't bleed anymore, and it only hurts if its actively pressed upon. And his self-confidence has skyrocketed!
Just remember that you don't have to have clear skin to be beautiful! As an author and fellow girl though, I know that having clear skin really makes people feel prettier. I won't lie.
~ Health ~ Improve your health! I'm not telling you to just go out and lose some weight, not at all. I'm just saying to improve your overall health! If your diet is poor, cut out junk food and sugary drinks, and switch to healthier alternatives. Something my family did was go on the paleo diet, which has a strong emphasis on meats, vegetables, and fruits, and is low on carbs. We didn't go on it to lose weight, just to be healthier!
I do know of a bunch of families nowadays going on the keto diet, which is a lot like the paleo diet. The difference between the two is that the keto diet is much stricter because the goal of the keto diet is to maintain something called ketosis, which is when your body uses fat instead of carbs as its primary energy source.
Regardless, whether you go on a diet or just cut out some junk food, you will be bettering your health! So do whichever one you want to do. Remember to drink plenty of water, shoot for eight glasses a day!
Also, you need to exercise! Not necessarily to lose weight, but to keep your body fit and physically healthy! Try to exercise daily or two to three times a week to help improve your quality of life. Exercising helps boost your mood, energy, and help you sleep better at night!
~ Sleep ~ Make sure you're going to bed at a decent time and getting at least eight hours of sleep. Sleep is so so important for your physical and mental health. It can improve your productivity and concentration. Poor sleep also contributes to the symptoms and intensity of depression.
~Posture~ Straighten up and don't slouch! A good posture is a sign of confidence and is good in the long run. Slouching can cause pain in the lower back and neck, so make sure your posture is good!
~Hair and Beauty~ Now is the time, ladies! If you've been wanting to try out a new hairstyle, there is not really a better time than summer! If you don't like it, you can probable change it back to normal if it's simple enough.
If you're wanting to do something more bold, though. Like chopping your hair off or getting bangs, your hair will have time to grow out before the school year! Obviously it'll still be a little short when the year comes around, but guys! You will regret never acting upon it, I've been in that position before.
So it's time to dye your hair or chop it or perm it or whatever! Visit the hairdresser and ask their opinions on what should be done with your hair if you don't know what you want yourself. They'll be able to tell you what should suit your face shape and etc!
It's also time to freshen up!
We've already covered skin care, but there are other things too! Things like getting your nails done or doing them yourself and experimenting with makeup if that's something that you're interested in :)
Summer is the perfect time to test and play with makeup because if you don't like it, no one really saw it! And if a product makes your skin break-out, it happened NOT at school, so that's a plus as well. And if you try it and, hey, you don't like makeup, now you won't have to deal with it!
Just don't get discouraged if you're not good at it right away, makeup definitely takes practice!
~Attitude~ Make sure you're paying attention to your mood and your feelings, find out what it is that is making you upset or frustrated. Become in tune with yourself, it will help you so so much when school and other stressors start up again!
Don't be afraid to ask for help either! If you feel like you're going through a really rough patch, reach out to your friends or family, or, me if you have to! My DMs are always open :)
Work on accepting yourself, too. I know that it can be really hard to figure out what exactly it is that you're looking for, but you're going to have to do some self-reflecting to figure yourself out.
And don't bully people, either. I know that sounds so silly to say, but people really are going through a lot, so make sure that you're spreading a lot of positivity. And try to be positive with yourself too!
~Have Fun~ Just make sure that you're having fun this summer, rather than trying to focus on a certain way to glow-up. Confidence is key!! Once you're confidant, you can do pretty much everything; and to all my shy girls out there, I know that it's hard getting out of your shell (fellow former-shy-girl myself) but once you do, it really is a whole other world. Everything is so much better.
Question of the Chapter: What's your favorite summertime song?
