Realistic Rejection Remedies

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Whether it is by a boy, girl, friend, sorority, job, or other group. Getting rejected is rough. I was recently denied entrance to a group on campus for various reasons and the leaders and I realized that it was not a good fit. Though I understand why the decision was made, I was still really bummed out. This is what I did to prevent a mess melt down or moping for hours.


1. Take a walk and clear your head, take some deep breaths, try not to melt down.


1.5. This doesn't mean you are any less incredible! I thought about the reasons why it would not work out and I told myself that just because my qualities don't match up with what they are looking for, doesn't mean my qualities are bad. I told myself that I love my traits, quirks, faults, and pastimes; if they didn't want that as part of their association it is OK.


2. Tell the important people. I texted a few people who I trust and who know about the whole situation to let them know what decision had been made. They all made me feel better and very loved. (I have great friends!)


3. Take some ME time to sort things out before trying to be productive. When I got home, though I had a lot of work to do, I had too much to think about and that was going to prevent me from concentrating. I made myself an easy but delicious dinner while listening to my new playlist (In #4). My roomie JT and I have been on a spicy kick lately and so I made pasta with meat sauce that packed some serious heat. The mouth interprets spiciness as pain and that releases endorphins. YAY HAPPY BRAIN DRUGS!


4. Give yourself some music therapy. I made an awesome playlist of all the music I listened to while I was a between the ages of 12 and 16. For you this may be 90's boy bands, classic rock if you grew up with a dad like mine, or punk rock. But whatever it is, make a playlist that makes you happy, makes you want to sing, and reminds you of great times.


5. Weigh the goods and bads, then move on. I talked it over with my roommate and told her the good things and bad things that will come from the rejection. The point is to realize that its not all bad, but to acknowledge the things you will be missing out on. Put it all out on the table and then move on to focus on the good.


This isn't going to cure you or make everything go away. But this really helped me work through my rough time and allowed me to concentrate on studying and other important things afterward. I will continue to see people who were picked and yes it will make me a bit sad, but I have so many other great things going on in my life to be thankful for!


How do you handle rejection? Who do you call?

Having trouble concentrating because you're stressed?

Check out my pep talk on dealing with stress! 

Supermodels Who Aren’t Superthin

I have had this posts in drafts for a while because I was not sure how to write up about a picture article I found. But now I decided to just do what I can and encourage you to click the link to the actual page at glamour.com and check out the rest of the pictures. 

This is from a picture slideshow with captions about each of the beautiful women in the photos. All about how plus size models are gorgeous and healthy.

My favorite picture is this one. The media seems to think only stick thin people can rock a bikini. Not so.


They also talk about previous eating disorders, getting their masters degree, and life of a model.

How do you feel about the media's portrayal of women's bodies? How much do you love these awesome plus size models?

Remove, Cover, and Deal with "bruises" (Part 1-Remove)

A friend of my recently went a bit cray-cray with her bf and later found herself with a couple scandalous looking hickeys. This is not a post to condone or judge this practice. Some enjoy the administering or the receiving and others do not. In my travels I have found both kinds of people and I do not feel the need to voice my particular opinion. I hope only to stay neutral.


But for those of you who wake up to find a inopportunely placed bruise on your neck or chest, I have a few tips that seem to work pretty well for getting rid of them quickly. (2-4 days)


1. Understand your hickey. A bruise is a place where blood vessels have been broken but the skin was not. When these break, red blood cells collect under the skin and that's what causes the discoloration we all know and love. The trick with bruises is to stop blood flow while the vessels are broken, then encouraging blood flow afterwards.


2. Apply ice within 15 minutes of receiving the bruising. Something cold will help prevent swelling, slow blood flow to the area, and reduce the final size the bruise will be. This is  where the "put a cold spoon" on the area idea comes in. But if it's a few hours after the bruising, or perhaps the next morning, it won't do you any good to ice it, because what's done is done.


3. Increase blood flow. You need the body to carry away the blood from under the skin. So "increasing blood flow will allow more healing factors into the area and encourage drainage" (Wikipedia) To do this, there are many techniques, but the best I have found during my recent research involves a toothbrush and hot wash cloth. 


Get your toothbrush (or a $1 one from the grocery store) wet and brush the damaged skin in small circular motions. It best to do it until it hurts a bit because that means lots of blood will flow to the area. If the bruise and surrounding area turn a bit redder then they were before, then you are doing it right. (But please do not scrub yourself raw, thats bad news bears)


The next step is to get a washcloth wet with hot water and lay it over the bruise. This also encourages blood flow. Do these steps as often as you feel and maybe experiment with what combination and frequency works best for your skin type. I would prescribe once when you get up, once mid-day, and once before bed. But from what I have seen, the more frequently brushed/heated the quicker they fade.


4. If it isn't gone within 2 weeks, you may want to go see a doctor, because a bruise lasting much longer then that may mean you are having complications in its healing.


What are your techniques for reducing bruising time? How scandalous do you think hickeys are? What would your mother say?

Lets eat peanut butter- or a guide to basic healthy eating by adding protein to your diet.

I am no expert on super healthy eating, but I like to think my mother is and she has passed onto me a ton of knowledge about easy healthy eating.  Here are some tips that I follow and hopefully they can give y'all some good ideas to help you eat healthier and live better.

The way your body processes food is that protein gives you long term energy and carbs give you short term energy. So if you eat a bag of chips you will stay full for like 20-30 min. But if you eat a scrambled egg you will stay full for like and hour or two. When you combine protein and carbs in a meal, they work together to keep you full for 3-4 hours depending on how much you eat. But the kind of protein/carb you eat can also be a large factor. The more complex the carb, the better it stays with you and the more protein in the item, the longer it keeps you full.
Here are the steps/information to eating and staying full till the next meal and what to do if your hungry before dinner!

1. Know what carbs are great for you and which are empty calories. Starches and sugars are carbs.

So bread/rice/pasta/potatoes ect. are starches. The whiter the starch, the less great it is for you and the less complex the carb is. So eat brown rice instead of white, get whole grain bread to make your sandwiches with and use whole grain noodles for pasta.

Fruit/some veggies/juice and other things with sugar in them are sugars. The sugars in fruit and stuff are good for you, but the sugar in juice/lemonade/candy/snacks are simple sugars and don't stick with you as well. So you will be hungry soon later.

2. Eat high meals with high protein so you will not need to eat as much through out the day.

Things high in protein: eggs, beans, nuts, meat, fish, cheese, PEANUT BUTTER (a big staple in the waking up in waco household)

3. Your meals should have a protein, a starch, and a veggie. When my roommates and I plan our dinners for the week we make sure these three categories are represented. So brown noodle pasta with meal sauce and green beans heated in the microwave and covered in lemon pepper is easy and great for ya. Frozen veggies you steam in the microwave are our favorite because they are quick and crunchy when they are done (if you don't over cook them). Unlike canned veggies that are...less crunchy and fresh seeming.

4. Snack Healthy. If you are hungry between meals, my rule of thumb is drink a big glass of water. If you are dehydrated your body may try to tell you by making you feel hungry. So after a glass of water, if  you are still hungry and not just bored, have a piece of whole grain toast with peanut butter and a bit of honey. Or an apple with peanut butter. Maybe a handful of almonds/granola and some yogurt. Or a turkey and peanut butter sandwich (i like it, though i only know one other person who doesnt think its gross). Or you can just eat a spoonful of peanut butter. (Can be good for on the go) :P

Oh and don't buy junk food anymore, or just buy a small bag/box/can of your favorite junk food and  only eat it occasionally to make it last all week. Instead put that money toward fruit, whole grain stuff(a bit more expensive the regular) and nuts to snack on. If there is no junk food to snack on, then you can make a healthy choice easy!

5. Eat sweets if you really want to. I am totally over this whole feeling guilty for having a piece of that cake covered in sprinkles on the counter. It's there, it looks delicious, and if I have been making healthy choices all day it should not be a big deal.

This is not an exhaustive list. Nor an I any kind of expert, this is the rough guideline I follow when I put meals together for myself and my roommates. Meant to be helpful and not absolutely scientifically accurate, and you can tell from all my technical jargon.

What things do you do to eat healthy? Do you eat peanut butter almost every day?

Five Things You Need to Bring to College You May Not Think Of

1. Clothes hangers- To hang stuff up in your closet, its very difficult to do with them.

2. Hot Glue Gun- god’s gift to those with a tight budget or minimal crafty skills.

3. Air Borne- Buy a thing of it and take it when you start to feel a bit sick each day until your better. This will cut down drastically on the time you are sick.

4. Rain boots/jacket/umbrella- Walking to class forces you to deal with the elements for much longer time then you may be used to.  Showing up to class soaked or with wet shoes is not fun.

5. Insurance Card- You will probably get sick, and may need to go to the university clinic or the doctor/hospital. This is something you don’t want to have to call your parents about at who knows what time of day. A girl who lived across the hall from me got 3^rd degree burns on her hand at like 1 in the morning when she put a PB&J uncrustable in the microwave.

What did you realize you needed once you moved out that you didn't have?