Can't Stop Studying

Easy self care for people whose mental illness needs more than just the cutesy stuff: 

DRINK WATER!! TEA!! SOMETHING!! 

FOOD: (eating and getting nutrition is super important relating to mental health, often I crash or get shaky which can trigger anxiety or dissociation when I haven’t eaten in awhile) 

spoon full of peanut butter 

pasta with sauce from a jar 

nuts, crackers, anything from a box snack wise 

cereal 

microwave meals 

takeout 

BATHING: 

dry shampoo your hair 

put on deodorant

I don’t actually enjoy baths too much anymore because I tend to space out so showers work better for me, I know showering can be really hard for some people with depression but aim to shower at least twice a week if you can manage it. Just let the water run over your body, you don’t need to use soap or wash your hair. 

brush your hair and pull it away from your face (this can honestly a lot) 

put on a fresh pair of clothes 

brush your teeth and if that’s too much just rinse with mouthwash

BEAUTY: (easy less cutesy self care involving beauty stuff if that does help you) 

put lotion on your face, hands, arm etc

paint your nails 

put on lipstick 

take a selfie or too 

SOCIAL NETWORK: 

comment on someones Instagram picture or reply to a tweet which is a small way of interacting with another human without commitment 

binge watch youtube videos on self care which can possibly help or motivate you to work on it 

OTHER: 

go for a walk. fresh air is really good. if you don’t feel up for it crack a window so some fresh air gets into your room.

clean your space if you can, honestly that can help a lot. 

art!! lowkey doodling, journaling, writing, something that doesn’t feel like work or that you NEED to do it and make sure to do it at your own pace.

leave post-it notes around for yourself of things to do to remind yourself to take care of yourself or reminders on your phone!!

1) Put on an outfit that makes you feel confident and go do your favorite thing. Get out of whatever negative space you’re marinating in and live underneath the sunshine. Clasp a drink with both hands and relish the concept of infinity and cake donuts.

2) Even if you’re going to be at home or at work all day, wear your favorite perfume or lotion. Smell reinforces a mood, positive or negative. Make sure you feel glamorous. Be sexy, be cute, or be elegant. Ditch the same scent you wore while you were in that bad relationship or the scent you wore when someone betrayed you. Become someone new.

3) Dance around naked, plus or minus a great pair of socks. I swear this is such a cliche for a reason, but when I feel bad about myself, I’d much rather feel my body grow warm from the exertion, feel my blood flowing, and appreciate the body that carries me through these odd rituals. Mirror or no mirror, lights on or off, day or night. Don’t stop until the music does.

4) Have a purpose for every day even if that’s cleaning your kitchen or going to the gym. Make lists, physical ones, mental ones, and electronic ones. Long term and short term. Stagnation breeds sadness, guilt, and anxiety. Force yourself out of the hole if you are able. You’re a rocket ship, everything looks like it’s moving slowly but you’ve already spanned the galaxy. Keep going.

(this is my first ‘tips’ original *yay*)

throughout years being a true procrastinator myself, i’ve learned a few things about it. and recently, i’ve been able to (sometimes) “control” this bad habit.

procrastinating is a bad habit. and keeping it that way wouldn’t make it better in the present nor in the future.

being a procrastinator is not something to we should be proud of. there’s no part of being a procrastinator that brings good to us, in fact there’s nothing good about being a procrastinator.

the feeling of procrastination itself comes from inside, our brain tricked ourself which makes us not in the mood of doing tasks / makes us post-pone things.

postponing tasks shouldn’t be accustomed or else, it’d be a reaalllyyy bad (i mean like a really bad bad ) habit.

procrastination can be prevented or stopped. and all it takes is the willingness from ourself.

here are some tips on overcoming/preventing procrastination:

ask yourself why do you have to finish that task. is it for a deadline? for extra grades? knowing your goal on finishing a particular task tends to boost up your spirit on finishing it.

make yourself a ‘deadline’. a report is due in a week? set yourself a due date in the middle of the week. this way, you can 1) prevent not handing in the task late (because you procrastinate THAT much) 2) having deadlines jumbled up together 3) make it as a motivation to finish it.

force yourself to do it. even if you don’t want to. here’s the thing about tasks. whether you like it or not, you want to do it or not, it’s an obligation. at the end of the day, you have to do it anyway, so do it. now.

break your tasks. i feel like sometimes we’re just so fed up just by looking at how much we have to finish. because of that, you’d have to break it. a biology exam next month? start tomorrow by collecting materials, continue the next session by highlighting what you need to learn, taking notes the next, you named it. by making the tasks seem less, it’ll visualize our brain in thinking that we could do this.

practice. there’s no way you could just stop procrastinating abruptly on day. just like meditation, it all takes progress. starting from a small change can make a huge difference. it could take months, years possibly. remember that just because you’re a procrastinator you can’t finish tasks, get good grades, or have an organized life. surely you’d get through it right now, but it will grow to be a bad, unhealthy habit in the future. it’s better to prevent it before it occurs than treating it after it occurs.

Hi Haleigh! Nice to meet you and thank you so much ^^ That’s such a great goal! I myself don’t really have my ish together as much as this blog may give that impression but let’s see 🤔

Create a routine or at least a general outline of how your day should go. A little birdie told me Habitica is apparently pretty great for this.

Find a form of exercise that you enjoy and stick to it - I personally find that I want to break stuff if I don’t go for a daily run so I’d say that definitely helps with mental health. But it doesn’t have to be cardio! As long as you get those endorphins, you’re good. I’ve heard yoga is great for people who don’t like working out so may be give that a shot. 

Have something to look forward to - whether that’s a vacation, hanging out with a friend.

Cut out people from your life that don’t bring you any joy or just don’t contriute anything interesting to your existence. As harsh as it sounds, it’s okay if this includes family members.

Take time for yourself - paint your nails, put on makeup just for the sake of it (if it’s the kind of thing that you enjoy), do a face mak. You are the most important thing in your world so show yourself some love.

Take up a new hobby or start spending more time on an old one - it’s super therapeutic to do stuff just because you enjoy it.

Have healthy snacks with you at all times - oats, blueberries, raspberries, hummus popcorn (yep they’re healthy) or make healthy and fast snacks (my faves are avocado toast (mix and mash avocado + sliced tomato + salt) and mug cakes (cocoa powder + flour + egg kind of tastes like a brownie). 

Eliminate refined sugar from your diet as much as possible - specially in your breakfast. Avoiding sugar crashes helps SO MUCH because you won’t feel sleepy and you’ll be a lot more productive and you’ll just feel so much better.

Try to get on a regular sleep schedule - it doesn’t have to happen overnight. Maybe just try to go to bed half an hour earlier every day 

Hope that helped! Best of luck on your journey!

Hello darlings!

I’ve decided to publish a series of self care tips which I use personally to help myself feel better. If you feel like submitting your own, I will publish them as well!

My first tip is a lavender and milk bath. If you have access to a bathtub this one is amazing, the combination of soothing physical sensations and soothing scents are really therapeutic.

Basically all you need to do here is fill up a bathtub with water and add about four cups of milk to it, and a cup of oatmeal (uncooked). Then you can add lavender essential oil or fresh sprigs of lavender and hop on in!

good luck on your big day (and definitely get some sleep love!! that will prepare you more than anything💞)

here are some things to help with your sadness:

a simple list

99 distractions 

my happy tag!

scrolling through positive blogs such as @cafegogh 

looking at cute & inspiring drawings on @positivedoodles 

a self care chart

coping tips

21 tips 

*cracks knuckles* ok LETS GOO

Cool Websites:

24 invaluable skills to learn for free online this year ​

cool google chrome extensions 

a list of helpful websites

study-like websites you probably dont know 

30 websites to kill boredom

Hobbies:

succulent care guide 

back to school diys

my summer bucketlist 

jane austen masterpost

start a travel journal

Learning new things:

immerse yourself in a foreign language 

build a study space

self learn new material

graphic design resources

learn to code

world history masterpost 

General life things:

non-academic back to school advice 

tips all students should know 

26 reminders for going to school like a badass

treat yourself: self care tips 

small tips that make a healthier difference

how to relax

This is by no means a terribly original answer - other people have said this and said it loudly, and if any readers have good sources please message me and I’ll add them to this post. 

That said, motivation is elusive and bullshit and often nonexistent. Dedication and commitment > motivation every time. If you’re doing the right kind of study, then that study will be difficult. It will often be unpleasant. It will require effort. You will very rarely feel motivated or “in the mood” to do this kind of study. You can’t wait until you have the feeling, because it won’t come. You’ve just got to commit. Get up each day and start, even if you can only commit to ten minutes a day. Increase what you’re capable of every day. There’s no point jumping into ten hour days of study (nor should anyone be doing ten hour days of study where avoidable). Dedication is a muscle. You have to exercise it. Commit to ten minutes a day, then fifteen, then thirty. Tell yourself these minutes are no-bullshit moments. You don’t get the luxury of feelings about it. You get it done. And slowly, it will become easier, and your progress will start to give you that feeling of motivation. But mostly it’s just dedication to hard, often unpleasant work. There’s no easy way around it. You just have to do it. 

That said, this is the answer to the very commonplace lack of motivation. From your message, I’m hearing warning bells that indicate that maybe your situation is a bit different. Lying in bed for days and not being motivated to do anything is not normal, in the sense that healthy, coping people do not feel like this. It is, in fact, a symptom of depression. I’m not a medical professional, but if you have a (family) history of mental illness or think that this might be the case, go see a doctor and get an opinion on it. 

Even if the cause of this isn’t mental illness in the clinically diagnosed sense, it’s still likely that the way you’re feeling is mental fatigue/burnout. I know that personally, when my workload is overwhelming, and when I haven’t been taking time out for self care, I get really apathetic about everything, a bit like how you’ve described feeling in your message. Dedication and commitment and all that bullshit is the answer, but it should be manageable. There’s a huge difference between committing to something that’s difficult but something you can do if you put your mind to it (15 minutes a day, for example), and over-committing. 

Only you know what your workload is like at the moment, but I encourage you (and everyone) to take a look at it periodically. Are you balancing more than you can cope with? Are your classes too difficult for the time being? Is dropping a class/deferring for a short time/cutting back on extra commitments and option for you? If it is, consider what your life would be like with a slightly lighter workload. Do things seem more doable? If so, do consider taking some of the pressure off yourself and paring down your commitments. It is not failure to drop a class, or to have to take some time off, or to spend some time doing “nothing”. It’s vital and it’s important and it’s self care - the “nothing” time (sleeping, sitting around, listening to music, exercising, reading for pleasure, watching your favourite show, doing nothing at all) is how you recharge yourself and build up your ability to cope with things. If you’re feeling like you have no energy for anything right now, it could be that you’re demanding too much of yourself. 

TL;DR, friend, is the following: pay attention to your gut instinct and your mental health. Check up on your mental health like you would your physical health, because it’s just as important. If the way you’re feeling is due to mental illness, finding that out will put you in touch with resources and therapy to help you. If the way you’re feeling is due to too much commitment and burnout, setting aside time for self care will be the best thing you ever do for yourself. And if it’s none of the above and you’re just waiting for the mythical feeling of being ready to get to work, give yourself a kick up the pants and commit 100% to small, regular steps. 

d'awww, you’re such a sweetheart for saying so! 😭 thank you very much, beautiful; ♡ you’re very kind, and i’m so thankful for such kindness!!

Acne is a total pain in the ass. It’s unsightly and sometimes it hurts. Girls, guys, and everyone in between gets it, and it sucks. I’m making this post to tell you how to control the little bitch, decimate it, and possibly get rid of that shit.

I’ll make a quick statement here: just because you have acne doesn’t mean you aren’t attractive. It’s natural, and everyone gets it sometimes. It doesn’t make you ugly and it isn’t the end of the world. People get it on their butts, people get it on their face, people get it on their genitals, sweaty places, adults get it, kids get it… it’s really not a huge deal. If someone gives you shit about it, they’re a shitty person who doesn’t understand human physiology and their opinion holds no weight.

Okay, so let’s get started.

Pimples, the little fuckers, come in a variety of shapes and sizes. I’m going to talk about each types and how to treat them.

1. Comedones

Comedones, the first type of pimple, are what blackheads and whiteheads are. This happens when a hair follicle becomes clogged with sebum, which is a mixture of dead skin cells and your skin’s natural oils. Blackheads are open at the top, which makes them easier to get rid of in my opinion. The reason they turn black is because the sebum reacts with the outside air, causing it to change color. Blackhead can be resolved by “popping” them.  Apply light pressure on both sides, and the dried up sebum should come out the top. It will look stringy and have a deep yellow color. After popping, apply anti-biotic cream. Keep it nice and clean by using a mild soap and warm water. If you are not well-versed in the art of pimple popping, use a spot treatment formula with salicylic acid, as it helps kill bacteria and remove oils. If you have blackheads over a large area, use an astringent with salicylic acid to keep the whole area clean. Warning: It causes a burning sensation. It is not to be used on sensitive skin. If you prefer natural products to processed ones, witchhazel is an excellent natural astringent and can be bought at a grocery store or pharmacy.  After using any sort of astringent, apply a lotion that in noncondeogenic, meaning that it does not have an excess amount of oil, which causes acne.

Now, let’s talk about whiteheads, the other type of comedo (singular of comedones). Like a blackhead, a whitehead occurs when a hair follicle becomes filled with sebum. The only difference is that it is closed at the top. There are a few way to get rid of them. I wouldn’t try popping them, because they tend to be more sensitive. Instead, sterilize a small needle in isopropyl alcohol, which is rubbing alcohol, and gently poke the tip in the white area. Gently apply pressure to the side of the whitehead, and the sebum should drain out. Using more isopropyl alcohol, swab the area to get it nice and clean. Apply your choice of astringent, and then some anti-biotic cream. If you don’t like the idea of using a needle, simply use astringent until it goes away. It will, eventually, resolve naturally. To speed up the process, exfoliate your face. Exfoliation is good for getting rid of and preventing any type of acne because it removes dead skin cells, which are part of the culprit duo. A good acne cream with salicylic applied directly to a pimple helps, too. But for the love of all things good and sweet, don’t pick at it unless you really know what you’re doing.

2. Pustules

Basically, pustules are really inflamed whiteheads, though sometimes they can have yellow pus instead of white. Absolutely, under no circumstance, should you pick at these. It will hurt, it might bleed, and leave scars, which is no fun. The best way to go about getting rid of yellowheads (pustules), is to wash your face with a mild soap or acne cleanser in warm water, use an astringent, and then apply a cream that contains benzoyl peroxide to speed up the process. It won’t go away immediately, but if you do this in the morning and at bed everyday, they will eventually go away. To prevent the return of more yellowheads, continue this regimen. Exfoliating your face very gently helps, too, as it removes the dead skin cells. To reduce painful inflammation associated with these buggers, use some aloe vera gel. It really helps, I promise.

Too long, didn’t read?

Here is a simple acne regimen:

Every morning when you get up and before you head to bed, Wash your face with a mild anti-bacterial soap. Use warm water.

If soap doesn’t provide the clean you are looking for, find a acne facial cleanser that has salicylic acid. Wash thoroughly with warm water.

Exfoliate every few days. Exfoliation gets rid of dead skin cells, which are part of the problem when it comes to acne. You can use a store bought one, or you can make one with a little bit of sugar that you can find in your kitchen. Don’t rub too hard!

Steam your face. Boil a pot of water, and then take it off the burner. Make a little curtain with your towel, and let the steam rise onto your face. This will open up your pores, which will make your face easier to clean. The same effect can be achieved by taking a hot shower. It is best to exfoliate right after doing this.

Use an astringent. This will clean up all the oil that is sitting on your face. Apply it with a cotton ball all over your face. Avoid using a strong astringent (such as 2% salicylic acid) if you have delicate skin.

If you like to wear makeup, try to buy makeup that doesn’t have a lot of oil or is kind to the face. Make sure you wash your makeup off before you go to bed.

If a pimple has popped, treat it like a cut. Apply isopropyl alcohol and then some anti-biotic cream.

If you have just one pimple that is bothering you, apply a cream to it that contains benzoyl peroxide until it goes away. It will help speed up the process.

You are what you eat: Avoid foods that make you break out!

Some other important things to remember:

Stress and hormonal changes can cause acne. Sometimes all you can do is wait for it to go away, and that is okay.

If you still have trouble even after trying these tips, consider making a trip up to a dermatologist’s office. They may be able to help you out.

And most importantly,