My experiences on anxiety medication

I was honestly not sure whether I should make this post given the stigma against mental health, but then I decided that I should do it because of the stigma (which is completely unnecessary) against mental health, because keeping quiet about it suggests that there is something to be ashamed about, that it's a taboo topic that shouldn't be spoken about. I really don't want to perpetuate that, so I'm going to open about it, especially seeing as I'm pretty open about it in real life.

I know that everyone has a different experience on medications used to treat mental health conditions, so this likely won't reflect everyone's experience taking such medication, but I'd like to share how I've found it and the effects it has had on me so far, especially as they have been largely positive.

Just a bit of background info- I'm not sure how long I've suffered with anxiety-like symptoms but it's been a pretty long time (hence me not remembering). I'm not going to discuss my symptoms in this post because it would became way too long and ramble-y; I'm contemplating writing a separate post about it but it's a pretty personal topic and I'm not sure whether I want to be that honest. Anyway, in October 2016, having been encouraged by a wellbeing adviser (who was awesome, she helped me a lot during a very difficult period) at my university, I made an appointment with the GP on campus. I received a diagnosis of Generalised Anxiety Disorder, though I didn't receive any treatment for it. I struggled for a couple more months, and at the encouragement of the same wellbeing adviser I made an appointment with my GP at home, who prescribed me the medication.

I take an SSRI called Sertraline (50mg), it's commonly used to treat depression but can also be used to treat anxiety disorders too. I started taking it in December 2016. I have to say, so far my experience has been a pretty positive one. I'm not sure if I'll be saying this some time for now, especially when I'm off the medication, but at the moment I can say it's honestly helped me a lot!

I experienced a few unpleasant side effects in the first few days of taking it, including nausea, bad fatigue, and feeling very spaced out, almost as if I had been zombified. Though they made it pretty difficult to function, they cleared up within the space of a week, which is good. I have to say, though, side effects can vary greatly for different people and I think I might have gotten lucky with having them clear up so quickly. SSRIs have a cumulative effect, so the medicine doesn't work straight away. I started noticing an effect about 2-3 weeks into taking the medication, though I was told by my GP that it can take up to 6 weeks to work.

Having been on it for five months now I surprised and pleased at the difference it has made in terms of improving my symptoms and, as a result, my life as a whole. I've coped much better with university work, in fact while I normally would have been shaking with nerves for my exam I was unbelievably calm- I don't think I'd ever felt that calm in an exam situation before! When not overwhelmed by anxiety I was able to deal with the exam in a more rational manner, instead of seeing it as the end of the world. My driving has also improved vastly- I'm a much more confident driver and I've found I really enjoy it.

I know that taking medication is often frowned upon for whatever reason, but I'm so glad I've made the decision to take it as it has made such an impact and generally made my life so much more easy and pleasant. I guess I wanted to convey a good experience with taking medication to treat anxiety. Perhaps it would have been better for me to write this post having taken it for a longer period of time in case I'm not so positive about it in a few more months time, though I'll try and do a follow up post either when I come off this medication or if anything changes. All I have to say is that, so far, I'm not a drugged up zombie who's just a little slow and out of it, I'm better than I've ever been.

If you have any questions about my experiences feel free to comment or tweet me at @amandamd25

Thoughts on 13 Reasons Why

I haven't posted anything for a v e r y long time, I'm sorry, university got in the way. I'v enow finished for the year, which I can't believe, and since I have. Avery long holiday I'm going to try my best to give this blog a bit of TLC, starting with this post. I thought it would be fair to warn anyone reading this that I will be discussing suicide in some depth so don't read on if this could affect you.

When I watched 13 Reasons Why I had no idea it was going to be as popular as it was. 13 Reasons Why is everywhere. It's been all over my Facebook, either with people liking memes or sharing articles written about it. in fact, the articles are numerous- the show has certainly made an impact and proved... controversial. I suppose this is understandable given the subject matter, a show which tackles suicide and its consequences in such a forward manner was probably never going to fly under the radar. I've decided to get in on the action and share a few of my own thoughts on the show, especially as I haven't seen too many people who reflect my thoughts.

I wanted to start off by saying that I really enjoyed the show. It's dramatic and fast paced and emotional, everything that makes for a captivating show. I acknowledge it has flaws. The one that stands out to me most prominently is that the show failed to effectively address the part mental health plays in suicide, and the fact that suicide is, most of the time, a fatal result of illnesses such as depression. Instead, it makes it seem like Hannah took her life solely because of the behaviour of others, and possibly even as an act of revenge in order to make those who humiliated and/or hurt her feel bad. I understand the sentiment behind this (which I'll discuss shortly), but this, in my opinion, increases the stigma surrounding mental illnesses, making it seem like mental illness and suicide are choices made by an individual.

However, I also understood what Hannah was going through, and how that could push someone towards committing suicide. I even got why it would motivate her to record the tapes. What seems to be lost in a lot of articles in which people share their views on the show is how it is possible that actions such as those of the recipients of the tapes (with the exception of Clay) can make you feel so awful about yourself that suicide actually seems like a viable option. If you're already predisposed to feeling worthless and hopeless (which, as I said, isn't captured in the show though it really should be, as far as I could see there was no evidence of Hannah having any such thoughts before everything happened, though maybe I just missed it) behaviour like that can add serious fuel to the fire- it provides justification for your thoughts. You must be worthless, because that's what other people are conveying through the way they treat you. It gives your negative thoughts evidence, which in turn allows them to take over and overwhelm you. These negative thoughts can then be used to justify committing suicide. I'm presuming that all of this is what Hannah experienced.

Also, while I agree that making the tapes in order to hold the individuals accountable is petty I also understand her motives for doing so- the immense anger and hurt she must have felt towards all those people for evoking these feelings within her, for robbing her of whatever happiness she might have had with their stupid actions. Again, I'm not saying it's not wrong of her to carry it out and force the recipients to shoulder the blame for killing her, but I get how anger towards them might have directed her to take revenge in the only way she felt she could in order to make up for her hurt.

The one thing I've learnt this year in my English degree is that even if a fictional piece aims to reflect real life it is, ultimately, fictitious and this should be taken into account. I feel this definitely applies to 13 Reasons Why- it may reflect a situation which is very real for many people but it's sole purpose isn't to educate- it's to entertain. I'd also like to stress that these are my own personal opinions based on experiences etc., and I don't take them to be facts in any way.

Product Recommendation: Aveeno

As someone who suffers from terrible eczema and skin so dry it could rival the Sahara desert, moisturising is vital to maintaining the skin, keeping it healthy and just generally feeling comfortable. However, finding a decent moisturiser that soothes my skin without leaving it feeling heavy and slimey was incredibly difficult.

Until I found Aveeno.

A few years ago, I was researching remedies for eczema, when I came across a post discussing Aveeno, and the effect it had on someone's eczema. Seeing this, I decided to research Aveeno further, and discovered lots of glowing reviews, which encouraged me to try it for myself, and it just amazed me.

I would like to emphasise that it did not clear up my eczema- I have yet to find a way to eradicate it, unfortunately. However, it has made living with eczema much easier. It makes my skin feel like it has actually been moisturised, leaving soft and smooth. It also brings great relief when suffering from terrible dryness. As I said, most other moisturisers that I'd tried left my skin feeling pretty disgusting (they did nothing to help with the itchiness and would just peel off, resulting in my skin remaining very dry), so it's been great having something that's compatible with my skin. It also lasts for ages, which is a major bonus.

I would really recommend Aveeno to everyone (and I think, having seen what a lot of other people have to say about it, there are many other people who would), especially people with very dry skin and even more so people who suffer from eczema. It's such a great  product.

Ways To Relieve Stress

Stress can have a detrimental effect on our health, and can be responsible for or contribute to the worsening of multiple health conditions. Therefore, it's important to try and keep your stress levels as low as you can. Sometimes it can be difficult to do this, as high stress situations are sometimes unavoidable (e.g. important exams, which pretty much always cause a lot of stress), and in these cases it helps to have something that relieves some of this stress and presents you with an opportunity to properly relax and unwind for a bit. I've decided to make a list of things that help with stress (some of these are things that help me, but I haven't tried all of these) in the hopes of inspiring people and perhaps providing them with some ideas (though I'm sure there are hundreds of posts like this out there). I'm also hoping this post will provide me with some ideas for myself (seeing as I'm basically permanently stressed).

• Pamper yourself- I suppose the definition of pampering yourself would vary from person to person, but it could be anything from running yourself a hot bath filled with bubbles and putting on a face mask and some relaxing music, lighting candles and pouring yourself a large glass of wine to just painting your nails or changing you bed sheets. I have to say, it's not one I've indulged in much personally.
• Indulge in a spot of binge watching. Netflix is particularly good for this
• Eat/drink something that you really enjoy, they're called treats for a reason
• Bake or cook something- I've found that cooking can actually be quite good for easing stress (though it can also get stressful at times, it really depends on your mindset on the day)
• Make a playlist of songs you enjoy or that make you happy or have good memories attached
• Read a book you really enjoy. This could be something new or a book you've read a dozen times.
• Actually, read anything- a magazine, a blog, some online articles
• Sit outside, particularly on a sunny day
• Try an adult colouring book
• Try some yoga, or perhaps meditation
• Exercise, but make sure that it is exercise that you enjoy and will make you feel good. I have to say, I haven't always found exercise effective (at least not in the way people make it out to be)
• Invest in a lava lamp, it's pretty soothing to watch the wax float around, plus it gives your room a cosy glow
• Make a blanket fort
• Hang fairy lights
• Get straight into your comfiest pyjamas
• Light some scented candles
• Go for a walk, especially in a calm soothing area where there's lots of nice scenery (if you're lucky enough to live close enough to anywhere like this)
• Go for a drive
• Pop bubble wrap
• Window shop
• Prepare a picnic and sit a nice park or scenic area
• Spend time with a pet

Here's a picture of my lava lamp and fairy lights to soothe and (hopefully) inspire you.

I've tried to come up with as many ideas as I can, though I'm sure there are many more! I might make another post (or posts) like this if I think of a few more ideas, I like the idea of having a bunch of posts with a ton of ideas on stress relief. 

A Health Rant

When I said I wanted to discuss health problems on this blog I had a specific issue in mind. I wasn't sure when to get round to discussing this issue but it has really been getting to me for quite some time, so I think that now is probably the best time to rant about it, especially as it will probably end up being pretty relevant in some of my future posts. This one is a little embarrassing, but it's been causing me so much distress for so long I now feel that it would be a really good idea to discuss it.

So, what's the issue? Well, for quite some time I've been feeling really bloated. I didn't bother sorting out in the past as I had a pretty bad diet and assumed that that was what was causing it, or that it was even just stomach fat that had accumulated after over eating for way too long. However, as I got stuck into my new diet and lifestyle, I noticed that this problem persisted. The longer I kept eating healthily and exercising the more the problem stuck out (literally, haha) to me. I put it down to drinking too much diet coke, and stopped drinking it. This didn't work, and left me more confused.

The more time goes on, the more miserable it makes me feel. The one thing I wanted to achieve regarding weight loss (which is a big part of what motivated me to change my diet) was a flat stomach. I wasn't bothered about any other area, I really just wanted to work on reducing and toning my stomach. I did not want to end up with a stomach so huge that I often look pregnant. The bloating has made me feel so terrible about my body, and I feel so uncomfortable and unhealthy. It kills me to think about what might exist underneath all the awful, puffy swelling, and that it means that I am unable to see the results of all my hard work. It's also testing my motivation- it's difficult to push myself to persist and eat healthily and exercise when I feel so disgusting and unhealthy.

I've been told that it is most likely an irritable bowel (as my blood tests have ruled out everything else). The tablets I've taken so far have not helped relieve my symptoms much, but I will be starting some new tablets and I've been referred to a dietician, so hopefully I will be able to find a solution. I'm also keeping a food diary to see if I can spot any patterns between symptoms and any foods I eat. I'm worried I won't be able to fix the problem but I;m determined to try everything in order to find a solution.

Staying Motivated

I've discovered that one of the most important elements of successfully maintaining a healthy lifestyle in order to achieve weight loss is motivation. However, staying motivated is one of the most difficult aspects of leading a healthy lifestyle. I've struggled with motivation pretty badly myself, so I've come up with a few strategies to help me stay motivated. I'm sharing them in the hopes that they inspire others and help them to stay motivated too.

• Focus on your goals. The end result is what you're ultimately striving for, so reminding yourself of what you'll achieve in the end can really help give you that push when you need it (especially when it comes to exercise). 
• Read motivational posts about people who have successfully achieved what you want to achieve. These are often accompanied by before and after photos, which can be quite encouraging, though I always take these photos with a large pinch of salt since they could very easily be edited or taken a less/more flattering angles with better/worse lighting. However, it's always inspriring to hear about people's journeys, and I find that it makes me think of my own and encourages me to work harder at it so I can achieve what I want.
• Follow/view health/fitness/food accounts on Instagram. I find that this keeps my mind on health and distracts from things that can evoke temptation (pictures of tasty but unhealthy foods are lethal). However, it's important to make sure that they promote a healthy lifestyle and are not advocates for disordered eating- you might then find yourself in very dangerous territory. 
• Watch videos on healthy recipes/ people who lead healthy lifestyles on YouTube. This is motivating in a similarly to the former point (about Instagram). It can also provide you with some excellent recipe or snack ideas!
• Find tasty but healthy recipes and make them. I always get a lot of satisfaction from doing this, especially when it comes out tasting great. It provides you with something tasty but healthy to eat, and allows you to kill cravings quite easily. It also alleviates stress, which is a huge bonus!
• Find healthy foods that you enjoy and work them into your diet more often. This is another one that can help with cravings. It might not be a substitute but it helps you stick with eating healthily whilst also enjoying he food you eat (which just makes everything easier). For example, I really enjoy pitta pizzas, and I've found a recipe for a blueberry smoothie that tastes delightfully like a milkshake though there's no ice cream involved at all.
• Allow yourself treats (i.e. foods you largely avoid). Sometimes cravings are just a bit too overpowering, and the more we try to fight them the bigger they grow. Allowing yourself food you normally don't every once in a while satisfies your cravings, preventing them from consuming you (which would most likely result in breaking free from the healthy lifestyle you're trying to develop. Well, that's at leat what has happened with me in the past).
• Start a blog (or a tumblr, or an Instagram, or even a handwritten diary, basically anything that allows you to keep track of your journey while continuing to motivate yourself). You can remind yourself of what you've achieved, keep track of the goals you've set and keep your mind in the right head space, especially when temptation creeps in. 
• Take progress photos. It's easy to lose sight of where you started and convinced yourself that you're in the same body you were in when you started. Progress photos remind you of how far you've come and the fact that you're body has changed thanks to all the hard work you've put in. When you're feeling down about your progress they're virtually a necessity in motivation as they lift your spirits so effectively, providing you with the knowledge that you are making the progress you set out to make. They've certainly helped me!

These are the things that I've found really helpful so far. I guess different things work for different individuals, and I don't think my ideas are particularly unique, but I hope they may be helpful and inspiring in some sense. If I find other effective ways to motivate myself I'll make sure to post about them. 

I would also like to stress that it is important that all your motivation is healthy and positive- take care to avoid people who encourage others to adopt disordered eating habits as this can have a significant negative impact on your health, both mental and physical. 

A Few Things I Have To Say About Clean Eating

Recently, I've noticed clean eating has been getting a lot of flack, and I am delighted. I'd known about clean eating for a while and it's a diet I'd always aspired to have. When I get healthy, I told myself, this is how I'll eat. Clean eating involves cutting down on processed food and eating more 'raw,' 'natural' products. Refined sugar is banned, meat is banned, dairy is banned, gluten is banned. Seems a bit restrictive doesn't it?

All the food they eat is super healthy, and words like 'nourishing' and 'nutritious' are flung around by the so called 'wellness gurus' who preach about the abundant benefits their diet provides those who follow it with. Avocados are used as substitutes for butter in cakes and spiralized courgette in place of spaghetti. It's easy to be fooled into thinking that by following this lifestyle you'll be transformed into a health goddess. I certainly was- I believed that if I could find a way to follow this diet as closely as I could (budget and time permitting) my eczema would disappear (in fact, my skin in general would clear up and develop an ethereal glow), my hair become glossy, I'd develop an amazing body, my mind would become less foggy and I'd be able to think with renewed clarity.

I realised, however, that this sort of lifestyle would not be realistic for me. I could barely cook (and certainly not well enough to make vegetables taste amazing. This has now changed) and I couldn't afford the expensive products required to uphold the lifestyle. I also became sceptical of just how little the 'wellness gurus' allowed themselves to eat. No carbs? No dairy? No meat? How do you get by on so little? I knew I couldn't do it; I'd miss normal food too much.

That's why I'm so happy to see articles popping up depicting the unhealthy side to clean eating. I love the fact that they discuss how unhealthy it is to cut out food groups when it's not necessary, and the fact that this can also have a detrimental effect on your well being. I love that they stress the importance of a balanced diet that includes carbohydrates, dairy and fat, because we need all of these to be healthy. It makes me feel so much more comfortable about my own diet- when I'd started to embark on a healthier lifestyle I'd felt like I was still unhealthy and that I was doing something wrong by including carbohydrates and dairy products in my diet. These articles confirm everything I'd known since I was little, everything I'd ever been taught. It's made me feel much more satisfied with my lifestyle, and more comfortable about what I eat.

There are other issues with clean eating, some I've read about and some I've detected myself. I remember reading about how even using the word 'clean' to describe the diet is somewhat problematic as it attaches morals to food and implies that all other food is 'dirty' and those who eat it are, by default, dirty themselves. Food is just food. No one food product is better than another because it has a higher nutritional value, and all food serves its purpose in context. One thing I picked up pretty swiftly was the cost of these ingredients- they're not exactly affordable for the average person. A little research into the backgrounds of some of these 'wellness gurus' lead to the discovery that they aren't exactly poor. For example, Ella Mills (aka Deliciously Ella), the poster girl for clean eating who's seen ferocious success promoting her clean, vegan diet, is the daughter of the heir to Sainsbury's and an MP. According to Google, her parents are worth £40 million. When you have that much money to play with it's more than possible to allow expensive items that would be considered luxuries for the majority to become everyday staples. I suppose that doesn't really matter, since she, and others like her, are still wildly successful.

I'll be the first to emphasise the fact that I'm no nutritionist but, then again, neither are most of them which, to me, makes a lot of what they promote pretty questionable. The most important thing is that what you put in your body makes you happy and healthy, and I respect their decision to eat how they want. However, to act as if their diet is the only way you can be healthy (at least this is how I've interpreted it) is wrong, and I personally feel that they should promote the idea that all food is healthy and that a balanced diet is important. This is a topic that I don't feel I'm done discussing, so expect more posts on clean eating from me!

A Typical Day For Me

I feel as though I've been slightly vague about my diet so far, so I think it would be nice to write a post about what I typically eat, to give you a bit of insight as to what my diet looks like.

Breakfast- Breakfast almost always includes some sort of juice (which is made up of a mixture of vegetables such as spinach, lettuce and carrots, and fruits such as...well I've used most fruits in these juices! I want to do a more detailed post about my favourite juice recipes sometime in the future. I also try and include something solid, to help my digestion (I'm not sure if it actually does, but I feel safer including it). At the moment, this is in the form of cereal, because I'm lazy and it only involves pouring, though it can also include anything such as porridge (plus topping(s)) or Weetabix.

Lunch- Lunch on a weekday typically consists of either soup, baked potato and tuna, or tuna and wholemeal pitta (or wholemeal toast...I've recently discovered that this is a delicious combination!). Alongside this I often, though not always, have some satsumas, and most times a granola bar and/or a healthy treat I've made myself, such as a muffin or biscuit. These treats, I must emphasise, are different to the other treats I allow myself- they're home made and probably healthier.

Dinner- Dinner varies quite wildly, so it's less easy to state the meals I typically eat. It depends on who's cooking, whether anyone is cooking, the ingredients we have at home, how much planning has gone into the dinner. Some of the dinners I've enjoyed include stir frys, turkey meat kebabs, falafel, pitta pizzas, chicken fajitas, beans burgers, regular burgers...there's so much more, I've probably forgotten loads!

On top of this I try to exercise regularly, I do Wii Zumba (as I've stated in a previous post) which I really do love. I hope to keep Zumba as a part of my exercise routine for as long as I can, whether it's on the Wii or an actual Zumba class (which would be so awesome to take part in, I've love to if I had the opportunity). I've recently been doing a one hour class three times a week, but I have done it more frequently in the past (and will do it more frequently in the future) when I do shorter workouts. I typically do my workouts across the weekend, including Friday and/or Monday, though this definitely does vary depending on my mood.

I also drink almost two litres of water a day. I had been drinking two litres, but then I decided what to work out was a healthy amount to consume for my size and it turns out that it's just under two litres, so I now drink that. I have a 600ml bottle of water that I refill three times a day- once in the morning, once in the afternoon and once in the evening.

I hope this gives you more of an insight into what I eat. I'm pretty happy with my diet- it feels realistic and is easy to maintain, plus it allows me to enjoy eating. I'll probably do a post outlining what I've eaten on a specific day in more detail. In fact, I might do these quite regularly, to show you changes in my diet and give you an in depth look into what my diet and lifestyle is like in a variety of ways.

Changes I Still Need To Make

This post is basically a follow up of my previous one where I outlined all the changes I have made to my diet and lifestyle so far. While I feel like I have made lots of great changes so far, there is still a lot more I feel I could do. These are a few changes I've failed to make, but still want to work on:

• Eat more vegetables. I don't particularly like vegetables that much, which makes it difficult. The NutriBullet has helped me get in a few more vegetables than I would have, and sometimes I cook them into meals, but I would like to get to the point where I'm having at least one portion of vegetables with my dinner.
• Develop a more regular sleep pattern. I often sleep late, which means I wake up late, and sometimes I barely sleep at all. This is definitely something I need to work on to help boost my health (and to also help me make the most out of my days).
• Eat treats in moderation. I mean, I mostly do this, but I do this by avoiding eating treats on most normal days. However, I do find that on quite a few (though not all) of the occasions that I have allowed myself to have treats I struggle to have them in moderation, consuming more than I should. I really need to learn to let treats be treats. 
• Work on dealing with my stress more effectively. I actually want to discuss this in a bit more detail, which I plan on doing a bit later on. I am prone to stressing very easily, and this has such a bad effect on me. Stress can be terrible for your health, so I think it's hugely important that I find ways to deal with this effectively. 
• Lessening the amount of fat in my diet. I have lessened the amount of fat in my diet, but I'm still too partial to having a bit too much butter and mozzarella on my food.

There are probably even more that I could add, but these are the biggest ones and the ones that stand out to me as needing to be changed. I'll post updates if I achieve (or at least try to achieve) any of these things.

My Progress So Far

I decided to start gradually, making a few small changes that would be easier to sustain. I didn't what to change my diet and lifestyle drastically straight away- I honestly think this would have made it more difficult for me to maintain and I most likely would not have kept it up for as long as I have. These are the changes I've made so far:

• Exercise. I feel like this one is probably the place most people would start, as I did. I decided to start slowly and gradually build up, but this didn't last long. I did (and am still doing) Wii Zumba, and I love it. The Wii appears to be dying out, and this is the only thing we really use ours for now, but it's helped me so much on the exercise front. Though I'd planned on doing only 20 minutes of Zumba three times a week, I promptly increased this. How often I Exercise a week varies. If I'm doing an hour I exercise around three times a week, but if I'm doing less than an hour I'll exercise more frequently. I thoroughly recommend Zumba, whether it's a class at the gym, videos on YouTube or on the Wii if you still happen to own one- it really is great fun and provides an excellent work out!
• Drinking more water. I didn't start with this straight away (I think I only began drinking water when not exercising about two months in!) but it was surprisingly more easy than I thought it would be. Again, I started slowly and gradually increased my intake, which helped get used to taking in a huge amount of water. The only downside is needing the toilet all the time- if it weren't for that I would have borderline drowned myself in water.
• Buying a NutriBullet. I didn't actually buy it myself, but I certainly make good use of it! It's been great as it's allowed me to get in lots more fruit and vegetables, and it makes them taste so good too! I'm having great fun experimenting and coming up with new juice flavours.
• Cutting out junk food (mostly). This one has been incredibly difficult, but I think I'm doing pretty well! At the moment my cravings have died down, but they're quite often all over the place, which makes it difficult to cut down completely. I never actually planned to cut out unhealthy food altogether- I believe that part of leading a healthy lifestyle is allowing yourself foods you enjoy that are not as healthy as forbidding yourself from eating these foods can very well lead to you binging on them later on as cravings spiral out of control- but I do think I've indulged more than I should have. Still, I've been doing a lot better than I have done, so that's a start!
• Learning to cook. I've only started cooking very recently, but I feel like I've been pretty successful so far. I'd always told myself I was a terrible cook, but it turns out that this isn't really the case! Cooking puts you in control- you get to eat what you want, how you like it, and you know exactly what's gone into your meal. It's also far healthier than eating processed food that's full of additives and other crap.
• Cutting down on diet Coke. Diet Coke (and Coke Zero, Pepsi Max, Diet Pepsi- I don't discriminate!) is truly my vice. I can drink tons of it, I really do love it. Considering this, it was incredibly difficult to cut down on, and I was very reluctant to do so (only managing to cut it out about two months in). I feel like the reasons one is not supposed to drink diet fizzy drinks is a bit vague, but thinking about all the chemicals in diet Coke makes me feel a bit queasy, and I don't like to think about what it could do to my body.

The changes I've made haven't been perfect but I've managed to integrate them into my lifestyle with great ease, and I've found that they've really suited me so far. I hope to further improve my diet and lifestyle in order to become healthier. I also hope that reading this might help someone to take the steps to improve their own lifestyles and become healthier. I know that I all of this has been reiterated time and time again. It really isn't as difficult as it might seem (though it's not as easy as others might make it out to be)- the best thing I've found is to make changes gradually and to be patient and not put pressure on yourself. You know you best!

About Me

Now I've welcomed you to my blog and you have a bit of an idea of what it's about, I'll tell you a bit about myself and give you a bit of background information that will hopefully put a lot of what I write about into context. I'm nineteen years old and am currently living at home with my family, though I'm planning on going to university to study English in September.

At the moment, I'm pretty much in limbo. I started university in September 2015, but absolutely hated the university I was at. A short while later, I decided to leave and start again at a new university a bit closer to home. I've written about the experience in a lot more detail on my other blog, which I started around the time I left university so that I would have something to focus on as I adjusted back to being at home (and the fact that I now, for the first time in my life, had nothing to do). I'll link the post to this one as I really don't want to write about the experience much more. I was the left with an abundance of time that I had to fill. Naturally, the first thing I turned my attention to was applying for jobs. However, job hunting only leaves you occupied for a somewhat small period, especially when there are only a few jobs available, which meant that I still had a lot of time to fill. I've been planning to get healthy for a long time, but something has always acted as a barrier, or my motivation crumbled almost immediately after beginning. However, this time I had all the time in the world to dedicate now, and little to distract me or tear my motivation down, so I decided that this time period would be the best time to make a start. December was looming, and since the festive season is one of great indulgence I allowed myself to let go, to eat in a completely unrestricted fashion, as I would only ever do it again very rarely. 

 As December melted into January I began, though my start was very shaky. I might have been eating slightly better, but I still had a few too many treats. However, by mid January I managed to put a stop to that and sorted out my diet a bit more. I've pretty much kept it up, though I'd be lying if I said I was completely healthy all the time. It's been incredibly difficult, and I've almost fallen off multiple times, but I'm determined not to give up. I don't think I've ever kept up any lifestyle change as long as I have this one, so I'm certainly proud of that. I don't push myself  very hard and I make sure I still enjoy my food, and less healthy foods are not forbidden either. I feel like these were major mistakes I made in the past and contributed greatly to me not being able to sustain my diet effectively. I hope to get even healthier, but I think it's important to take small steps and make small changes that are easy to take on board and incorporate into your daily life.

I've been unlucky on the job front (I don't know if the job market is tough or if I'm doing something wrong), but it ended up causing me a lot of stress, so I've decided the focus on other things as the high levels of stress were not doing pleasant things to my body! This blog is one of the biggest things I want to focus on (as well as my health), as I feel it will help me with the stress and give me something else to think about (other than what an awful mess this year has been). I'm really looking forward to getting it started.

My University Experience: http://deeperthanthestars.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/the-mess-that-was-my-month-at-university.html

Welcome!

Welcome to my new blog

A few months ago I decided that, since I had a lot of time to kill I should take the opportunity to improve my diet and lifestyle. It's something I'd always told myself I'd do, but had kind of ended up putting off. I'm pleased to say, about four moths later I haven't given up, which is honestly a bit of a shock. Having said that, I still constantly need motivation, and I guess that's the main reason I've created this blog. I'm hoping it'll serve as  reminder of what I've achieved and help me keep going, because it's something I'm going to be doing for the rest of my life. I'm also hoping that it will help motivate and/or inspire anyone else who is in the process of changing their lifestyle, or wants to change their lifestyle (especially if they're like me and have always struggled to make/maintain these changes).

I want to be completely honest and frank about my diet and lifestyle. I'll share lots of the good but I'll also share the not so good, the slip ups, the off days, the days I just feel like shit. I don't want this my whole lifestyle to revolve around losing weight, but I have to be honest, weight loss is a large part of what has motivated me and what continues to motivate me. I'll also post about things related to my lifestyle, such as physical and mental health, fashion and beauty.

I would like to emphasise that I am certainly not an expert in any way shape or form. I probably don't know what I'm talking about at all (though I will try and do as much research as I can), and my posts will be largely based on my own subjective experiences, which are completely relative to myself. I am learning, and this blog is a tool aiding this process.

This is the first of a few warm up pieces I'm posting as a bit of an introduction to my blog, my lifestyle and what I've achieved so far. This one is short and sweet, I really just wanted to say hi and welcome.