Rule your mind or it will rule you| Anxiety Chats

'Rule your mind or it will rule you'

This is a personal post for me, it isn't something I would normally want to share or even put up on the internet, to be honest I'm not sure if I'll actually post this but if I have and you're reading this, know this was a bit of a leap of faith for me. I feel uncomfortable right now...ok. Here we go.

From my experience this quote above is very true. The past few years have been very difficult and challenging for me. I know Anxiety and Depression has been somewhat highlighted in social media and especially on Youtube, with a lot of people coming forward with their experiences of it. I'm not personally sure if I will ever be able to share my full story with everyone, there are still things that I'm getting my head around and I am currently trying to get on top of them. However, I do think that anxiety leaves a 'dent' (if you will) that no matter how many times you try to tap it out, buff it out or ignore it; it is always going to be there.. niggling in the back of your mind, ready to pop back out and surprise you. You have to be strong to not let it get back on top of you.

I'm not saying that my experience is worse than anyone else's, as I know that anxiety can be a daily occurrence for some and luckily enough for me, this isn't the case anymore.. I still get anxious but I don't have panic attacks as often now. I've managed to gain some sort of 'rule' over my mind when it comes to going out in public and being in social situations. Again, there are things I need to work on to feel more confident in speaking to new people for example (I never know what to say, this just makes me feel awkward and then the situation turns awkward because of my behaviour- not actually because it was awkward.. you feel me??).. anyway.. When I first really started noticing my anxiety, I had already isolated and distanced myself away from my friends, from my family and my boyfriend. By the time I was actually kind of ready to maybe discuss things a little bit, my relationships had already melted away or weren't as good as they once were- meaning I felt very awkward talking to them about anything, let alone my issues. I felt so alone. Even though in reality my friends actually wanted to help, I just wouldn't let them.

I had never really seen this coming. Now I know what it feels like and how I react I know I've actually been dealing with anxiety for many many years. Its just at the time I was handling it.. sort of.. and to be honest was making the situation a lot worse, building this feeling up inside of me that was eventually going to explode as a MASSIVE panic attack that lasted months. This was so full on I felt like I couldn't live where I was living, I felt like I couldn't go to university or even go outside. My boyfriend by this point was ridiculously supportive and let me move in with him for a bit, supported me going to university (luckily we were in the same class for a little while so he helped me make sure I passed my exam). I am so glad I let him in, because I don't know where I would be right now or how I would be if he wasn't there.

What I'm trying to say is that if you feel like you are drowning and a cannot swim, it is always the best to share the problem to help keep you afloat. Even if you feel like the person won't understand (I'm pretty sure my boyfriend didn't understand but was very supportive non-the-less) it is worth sharing, getting support and advice. You never know if someone else is having the same issue.

I know this blogpost isn't really much of anything, but I feel good about getting a little bit off my chest. I guess I've never really addressed this properly to myself. Baby steps people, baby steps.

Love C. xx

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Motivation Sunday| For the week ahead

Just a little blogpost for this evening.

One to help you keep positive for the week that lies ahead.

I think it is really important to remind yourself how strong the human mind and body is. The body will do what the mind tells it, you just have to believe how strong the mind is to help you get your goals.
Whether it is to improve your goals in exercise, or if you have an interview you're nervous about.. whatever it is, you, as a human being, as the person you are is more than able to get those goals. Sometimes it may take longer than you'd hope but never give up- those who persist will get their goals.

Quote for the week ahead:

The mind is everything. What you think, you become

Hope you have a beautiful week.

Love C. xx

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Compliments| Why it is important to accept them

Compliments are gifts.

When someone gives you a really nice gift that you're not sure about, you accept it and say 'thank you' because that's what we've been told to do and what is acceptable, that is polite. You wouldn't say 'I'm sorry can you take this back because I don't like it'. Well, I mean some people would, but I think that the social norm is to accept the gift and be grateful- it's the thought that counts right?!

People refuse compliments like an unwanted gift.
They ignore, dismiss, argue, rebound it, question and devalue themselves.

Why is it so bad to accept a compliment?
I know I'm the same- I struggle to take a compliment.
But why?

Fear of being smug or feeling like you owe them, (like if someone buys you a gift and you feel like you have to buy them one back). Perhaps its low self esteem or false modesty. Or again is is a social norm to not accept compliments? Is it just women, because I would beg to differ?

My guess is that more than half of us do it. But by doing this we make the person giving us the compliment feel awkward and may not want to compliment you again. You make yourself feel rubbish because you can't accept that someone else see's differently to what you see.
So, in all honesty you're not doing anyone any favours. Not your friend/ partner/ mother, whoever and certainly not yourself.

Next time someone compliments you- just say 'Thank you' or 'That really means a lot'. Even if you don't particularly believe it, its still is heartwarming.

What are your thoughts on this topic? Can you take a compliment? Why/why not?


Until next time...

Love C. xx

P.s You have a beautiful smile, share it :)

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Not Feeling Good Enough| Comparison

As I was saying in one of my previous blogs, I'm on my own confidence journey. Sometimes I feel super confident and feel great about myself. Other times I just feel like rubbish, constantly comparing myself to other people, whether it be friends, family or even people on the street.

It is a terrible feeling, feeling like this- I wouldn't ever make someone else feel like this, so why do I do it to myself? I guess it is all part of being a normal human being but the pressure of our culture, mainly from social media, to be the best version of ourself can be destructive. This is so difficult to keep up with. If we aren't married by the time we're a certain age, if we haven't got a large amount of friends, or don't earn as much as others, if you choose not to have children or don't want to buy a house even though all your friends have, you feel like somehow you haven't quite 'made it' even though all of these things are mainly our own choice or just circumstance.

Having all these pressures and not meeting these standard, makes my inner critic go mental. So many thoughts of 'why can't I be like (so and so)', or 'I wish my life was more like (insert name)', tearing apart my self-esteem until I don't like myself very much and then just want to eat crisps and things that are bad for me.. mm chocolate..

This has been playing on my heart recently, not on a daily basis but on and off. Sometimes it is to do with not looking as good as I want to, not reaching my potential in work or my social life. But maybe I'm comparing myself to a benchmark that isn't me? This day and age blogs about beauty are super popular, as are the fashion blogs. I do feel like this does encourage comparison sometimes, like at times it makes me think 'that product is so expensive, but I could never afford something like that'. This just ends up rolling into comparison of how much I'm earning or just generally consuming information about other people that is almost this fantasy land of wishing I could be more like them. I can't be them, I'm me. That is just the way it is. There are things I can change whether it be trying to improve my workouts to improve my body or trying to get training for work to be able to earn more.
I think I've just got to keep reminding myself that. Yes, I will keep comparing myself to other people, but I also need to keep strong in my believes of changing my life and lifestyle to keep improving the way I want to. Maybe even try and turn that comparison into motivation. Instead of thinking, 'I wish', think 'I can'.

Sure, this won't happen over night.. it will be a constant struggle, probably for the rest of my life, because I'm sure that even the people that I compare myself to, will be comparing themselves to others and potentially even me.

I know this blogpost is a bit random and not really that helpful, but some of you may feel like you're in the same boat and feel reassured that you're not the only one?

Love C. xx

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How To| Get Self Confidence?!

I've got a chatty one for you this week my beauties, I hope you don't mind!

I'm not going to sit here and type about how easy it is to be self confident..because it is definitely not that easy.

Self-confidence is a personal journey for everyone. You'll find that many people take different paths, some people may get there quicker than others with a smoother ride and some people may take years and years with many twists and turns in the road. But, my dear friends, the end result is the same -we are all going to the same destination.

I found this really interesting that confidence is actually derived from the Latin word for 'with faith'. In this case it would be having faith in yourself and believing in yourself. I know we all have our up and down days where sometimes you just think negatively or feel like you can't be that girl or guy who is super confident (without being cocky), but when we have these days -it is okay, it is allowed.

Sometimes however, you've got to realise that you need to bite the bullet and try and change something in your life to make you feel more confident.

For me personally I am still on my own journey to self-confidence, I am nowhere near the confident woman I would like to be. But I have developed some confidence and I would like to share how I have got this far.

Fake it.

Try to think of someone who you feel inspired by or someone you think is really confident. Think about the way they stand and the way they hold themselves or the way they speak. There has been research to back up that your body actually changes the way your mind thinks. For example if you make yourself do a big cheesy smile or force a laugh out for 10 seconds, you'll find that you are happier as your brain releases endorphins. This works for good posture too. Stand up straight with your shoulders back, chest out and head up. You start feeling better and people will perceive you to be a more confident person.

If you're someone who you feels like you can't act like that or something is holding you back ask yourself why? The internal conversation you have inside and those thoughts that go with it can affect your feelings, if you're thinking positively you feel good, if you're thinking negatively you feel bad. Trying to ignore the bad thoughts and get into the right mindset. So for example, if you are walking into a party and you feel like everyone is looking at you or you don't know many people, try and turn the situation around. Ignore the negative thoughts and think about whether everyone is having fun or whether you're in a nice destination, pick up on those thoughts and make them great memories for you to look back on.

If you don't want to practice with people who are in your day-to-day life, practice when there is nothing at stake with someone you don't know. Take the opportunity to practice on a shop assistant or a waiter. These people are paid to be nice and helpful so they shouldn't say anything to make you feel negative and you can develop your confidence on them. Once you've done this to the point you feel comfortable just turn that confident person into the everyday person you are.

One last tip is to dress to impress and no I'm not talking about impressing other people I'm talking about impressing yourself. Wear the clothes that make you feel the most comfortable and make you feel yours sexiest or something that really shows off your silhouette. This will help you get into a positive mindset.

I hope this blogpost helps at least one person. If you want me to do another post like this another time it would be great to know in the comment section below. I would also strongly recommend that you give at least one person a compliment sometime this week, it would definitely brighten up someone else's day and you never know you might cheer someone up!

Love C. Xx

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Too busy to workout| quick workouts

Although I'm trying to live my life in a healthier way, trying to exercise more can at times feel like there isn't enough time to do it.

Well, I'm going to share with you a couple little exercises I do when there is no time- whilst doing your everyday activities.

1) Waiting for a bath to run. I usually try and hold a squat for as long as possible or even put on my favourite tune and hold it for the entire song. That way I can try and distract myself by singing along and potentially even doing a little dance in the squat position- this is not only exercise but a happy hormone booster! 

2) Same principle, waiting for the kettle to boil for your tea- do some squats, one legged or two. You could even do arm exercises. While its boiling, put both arms out at a 90 degree angle and draw tiny circles with your arms. WARNING. This is a killer but so good!

3) Watching a kick-ass episode of vampire diaries or your favourite television show? During ad breaks I sometimes sit on the floor and do as many crunches or sit ups as possible. Have a break when the programme comes back on then the next break try holding a few planks for as long as possible.

4) Cooking prep can take usually between 10-20minutes. Why not multi-task and do some butt squeezes/clenches whilst doing it? Hold the squeeze/ clench for 5 seconds pulse for 10 and repeat. Have a minute break when necessary. 

5) At times, when I'm waiting for the toaster, for pasta to cook or if I just need to keep an eye on the meal then I will hold onto the counter and lift one leg at a time behind as high as possible pulsing the leg up for as long as possible and then swap legs over. Great butt,quad and lower back workout.

These are just five little exercises I try to do if I haven't been able to get to the gym or am feeling like I want to burn a few extra calories. I particularly love the squat whilst waiting for a bath- music makes the experience more enjoyable and then you have a relaxing bath afterwards. 

Do you have any quirky little exercises you do during the day when you have no time for the gym?

I know sometimes I feel a bit silly doing these things but it's just totally worth doing, especially if you're like me and you feel guilty for not going to the gym. 

Hope this helps some of you and maybe gives a little inspiration?!

P.S: Here's what the last blogpost's outfit looked like...

Love C. 

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Fitness| Yoga app

As you may or may not have seen recently, I have been really trying to get into fitness and keep motivated. More often than not, I seem to be working out from home- which has turned out to be great, and I seem to have stuck to this better than going to the gym 4 days a week.

Today I wanted to share with you an app that I have been loving recently, an app for Yoga. Yoga is meant to strengthen the body and mind, whilst also focussing on breathing and flexibility. There is even some evidence to suggest that Yoga can help with high blood pressure, heart disease, aches or problems with lower back pain and can even help with depression and stress.

I've been finding this app great as it not only talks you through the positions but you can even go through the catelogue of positions if you get stuck. From using this app for the past week and a half I can already see improvements in my flexibility and mental wellbeing.

I have found that as a new starter to Yoga this is perfect because they have beginners videos to follow, and then once you feel ready you can progress onto the more advanced videos. They also 

have expert videos for those of you who are more familiar with Yoga and would like more of a challenge. No only this but if you need to organise what class you want to do and when, there is a calendar to keep you on track with your class schedule. 

This app is for iPhones, iPads and iPad mini's only and costs around £2.99. However, I am never one to spend money on an app- this is the first time and I must admit it does seem worth it so far in my opinion. Mainly because I don't have to pay £5 a session to go to Yoga, I can do it when I want and where I want. Simple!

For those of you who haven't tried Yoga, it is hard but so worth doing. I would highly recommend trying it, even if it isn't with this app.

To preview the app click here

Let me know how you feel about Yoga and if you would consider this app?

Love Claudia xxx

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Fitness| Top tips to keeping motivated

Hey ya'll!

I hope you are well?

I wanted to keep this brief and let you in on some of my tips that I do to stay on a 'healthy' lifestyle routine, and how I keep motivated for working out. These are just my thoughts that I think help me keep motivated.

I must stress the importance of having a convenient place to workout. Finding a gym or outdoor space that is easy to access, for example being close to where you live or work, easy parking and or walking distance (or running if you're super motivated). Or alternatively, try and make space for you to workout at home, put any obstacles to one side and push the coffee table to the corner of the room and suddenly you have a workout space- yes, it may not be a large space but some workouts don't need space.

Working out, doing the same thing over and over can get boring, that is why sometimes you're thinking- 'why am I doing this?'
Do what you enjoy doing, if you don't like running, don't run! Simple! Do the things you find fun and you'll find working out ...well..sometimes you won't think it's a workout.
An example would be dancing. If you like dance- even if you think you're rubbish, I can safely say that doing dance in my lounge, following a Youtube video is so fun and when I finish I don't even realise I've worked out- It's great!

In addition to this you can grab a friend and experiment with Yoga or similar. I find that if you're working out with a friend, it can draw the attention away from the dreaded exercise and can make it just fun!

Excuse my big butt, but this was so fun (I've wanted to headstand for ages and now I can thanks to Carly)

Have a reward meal once a week, you don't have to be healthy all the time, especially when you've been working hard. Reward yourself and keep positive by creating a fitness environment. I like to go on Instagram for inspiration. On there I can find clips of routines to do and even motivational body pictures.

Lastly, try to ease yourself into it. It can be quite terrifying thinking 'I've got to workout at least 4 days this week', try and start off with two days and build a routine. Once you've got a routine going you can up it from there. If you fail to go one day or have a bad day of eating and feel bad, DELETE that guilt! We all give in to a bit of temptation here and there- just get back on the band wagon and think about what you've already done for a healthy lifestyle.

Do you have any fitness tips to share with me?

Love Claudia xx

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Loving my natural skin| Bare-face confidence

Hey guys!

I want to share something with you, especially for those of you who are in the same boat as me..
The other day I was walking into 'Boots' and wanted to find a new face scrub. I've never been one to follow a strict skincare routine but I thought I would have a look about and see if there was anything that I hadn't tried before that took my fancy.
I found myself in front of the 'Origins' counter, picked out an fruity orange smelling face scrub cleanser (Smells delicious!) and headed to the lady who works in that section. I asked her about what sort of products would help my skin type, she suggested the scrub I had in my hand but also, was kind enough to give me a few samples to try out of some other products they had...

In the picture you can see from left to right four products that I received:
 Mega-Mushroom Advanced Skin Relief Face Serum, Mega-Mushroom Skin Relief Face Mask, Origins A Perfect World White Tea Skin Guardian, Origins GinZing Refreshing Scrub Cleanser

I came home from this shopping trip excited and eager to try these products and for a good reason.
Having used these product for the last week they have honestly changed my skin complexion.

I have really struggled in the past with combination skin, an oily T-Zone, dry patches that collect the foundation on my face, redness and sensitive skin.
I have finally found something that just works for me!
I start off with the scrub, then if necessary the mask, then the serum and the skin guardian.

After reading a bit more in depth, having the mix of the Mega-Mushroom (which targets red and blotchy areas) and GinZing (exfoliating and radiance-boosting) targets my problem areas. The best thing is that all that is used in Origins is natural ingredients, which means natural products! No nasty chemicals on your skin!

I can genuinely say that, although I have only used this for a week, I have never felt more comfortable in my skin and will be going to purchase these products to have the full set. It is expensive but when you feel this comfortable bare-faced and finally happy with your skin I think it is totally worth it!

Have you found a miracle skincare routine? Or have you tried Origins?

Love Claudia xx

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New Year, New You?| Welcoming 2015

Happy New Year!

I hope you have all rested well over the festive season and been surrounded by your loved ones.

As we all know its the time of the year where we all set goals for ourselves to stop bad habits, be healthier, be kinder, be more confident etc etc..... to basically try and better ourselves either in little ways or big.

The trouble is, is that most of us will be in the chocolate cupboard within a week and the gym membership will be cancelled by February. Is it really worth trying to go on a fad diet to just give up a few months down the line? The reality is that we are HUMAN! We can make mistakes. If you fall off the band wagon.. get up..brush yourself down- put two fingers up to the people who laugh at you and carry on where you set off.
What I'm trying to say is you're allowed a burger or chocolate bar every now and again! Just remember how far you've come and make it a lifestyle choice, not a 'diet'.
My resolution this year will be to a) put me first, because you can only make others happy if you are happy in yourself and b) to choose to have a healthier lifestyle, make it a routine instead of an 'effort' that lasts all of three months.
To me it will be about being realistic, if I want to do some baking- that's fine! I'll just make a 'better for you' version. I'll try and eat less but more often throughout the day and if I'm hungry try and fill up on protein rather than carbs. Little steps, but sometimes you need to walk before you run.

Which leads me to exercise- which is all part of a healthy lifestyle. I used to hate, hate, hate with a passion, exercising. Not because of the actual exercise, I actually enjoy sport, but because of the way it made me look. It isn't because I'm vein, it was to do with what other people thought of me. When I went for a run, I would be totally out of breath, bright red, sweaty and wanting to stop after 5 minutes. I would be constantly thinking about people looking at me, wondering if they were thinking how unfit I was, how disgusting I looked and I just felt so embarrassed.
BUT everyone has to start somewhere. I decided to start putting myself first, persevere, and I'm slowly starting to be able to run longer.. I still feel embarrassed and totally aware of myself when I workout but I just keep reminding myself that this is the whole reason I workout- and if I'm looking like this then it just shows I'm working hard.

So what I guess I'm saying is try and make a new years resolution that you will stick to and if you really want it to happen, you can make it happen.

Let me know what your realistic resolutions are? Are you going to put yourself first?

Love you all and lets hope this new year brings happiness to us all.
Love Claudia xx

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