stressball monday from hell

Sooooo....not only did a bunch of bs go down at work today, but I came home to my brand new laptop crashing on me. Wonderful. Just flipping wonderful. So now tomorrow will be devoted to spending eons on the phone with HP and trying to find a solution that hopefully doesn't involve mailing it to Timbuktu to be returned months from now. If that's the case I'm going to get infuriated and then I'm just going to roll over in my bed and say fff it.

A continuation of all things "stepping out of the matrix."

With the ways in which I've looked at food lately, I've helped not only myself, but also many of the people close to me. In the food journey, I've decided to incorporate more raw living foods into my body on a daily basis. So far, getting fruits and berries hasn't been an issue. I tend to enjoy those raw foods the most, and I've made several smoothies for breakfast/lunch with them. This tends to give me plenty of energy in the morning so I've decided to continue with it. My biggest challenge has been getting more greens into my diet. I tend to make fruit salads or just overlook the greens in general so I think it's time to start reminding myself to work on that. My goals with this are to lose weight so I don't feel like I'm carrying excess around and to enjoy better health overall.

In researching ways to enjoy better health overall, I looked into something else that's a little more personal for me. Since going down this natural foods/natural healing path I've also had to look at some things in my life that don't involve food. Late last year I eliminated fluoride toothpaste and conventional deodorants from my life. My teeth appear to be just as healthy as before, and after some trial and error with deodorant I've finally settled on Tom's lavender. There are also some foods out there that help eliminate body odors such as parsely, cilantro, celery, and mint.

Head here for more information:  http://www.naturalnews.com/004417.html .

In going down this path of discovery and looking critically at my choices, I've also had to stare the only pharmaceutical dependency I have in the face... that's right- my birth control pills. I have NEVER been one to advocate methods like "pulling out" or  praying (haha), but as I learn more I have to ask myself if taking hormones is really necessary. Since I've been on the pill my body has reacted in weird ways. The first pill I took cause my periods to almost completely stop which led to constant pregnancy paranoia. The current pill seems to work better with my body, but in general since I've been on birth control I've noticed what seems to be an enlargement of my breasts (which some women would probably love), but they also feel tender and swollen much of the time which is typically what happens when one is pregnant. This makes perfect sense because the body on the birth control pill is fooled into thinking it's pregnant so it mimicks the signs of pregnancy. For the most part I've ignored this for the convenience of not having to worry about becoming pregnant, but I said to myself today: If there's a natural way that's just as effective as the pill I will consider using it.

This is when I stumbled upon Cycle Beads. Cycle Beads (http://www.cyclebeads.com/) are a natural way of tracking your cycle and your fertility days. In using cycle beads, a woman with a cycle between 26 and 32 days (only!) can use a color coded method with a string of beads to track when she needs to use birth control methods and when she is free to have intercourse without the risk of becoming pregnant. Do I trust this method? ...Not...yet... but I went ahead and ordered the beads anyway so I can begin tracking my body while I use the pill. There are some downsides to the pill I've read about such as a decreased libido, weight gain, and other health issues, and if I can manage to use the cycle beads system without any issues in cycle length, I just might give it a try. The website claims that cycle beads are 95% effective whereas birth control pills are 99% effective. Like I said before, I'm not completely sure about this yet, but I will keep you posted. 

Throwing things out to the universe.

So in the past year I've learned a hell of a lot. I started out on this blog trying to hold myself accountable for making improvements in my life, and I also did a bit of throwing out messages to the universe. One big one was to find out what I was going to do with my degree and my potential career. The answer came in the strangest form, but I am now teaching high school and in that I am teaching English and Journalism classes. I can't begin to express how much I enjoy what I do right now, and I would rather be doing this than writing full time or working as a reporter. It sounds entirely too crazy because I was so fixated on finding a career in journalism before, but I am content teaching.

Some other things I learned about are social justice, health and what's really in our foods, and the oppressive shadow government that rules the world. It's overwhelming sometimes for me to realize just how much I've woken up to in one year, but I could never go back to the place I was before. I'm re-opening this blog to myself and the world because I finally feel like I have something worth talking about. It's not just about the ego anymore. It's about sharing information that will help change the world. It's about holding myself accountable to the information I discover. It's about helping to wake up the world.

Right now I'm really focused on health foods and how they raise energy and fight diseases. I'm by no means in a great place with my health. I am still overweight and my skin isn't so great, but this year I intend to change those things. My reasons behind this are not just cosmetic. Sure, I would love to be slim and slender, and I would love to have radiant skin. I also would love to never have to worry about coming down with thyroid problems, gallbladder issues, or cancer. All of these problems and more can be eliminated by simply enjoying a more raw vegan diet. I am NOT going one hundred percent raw vegan. I will continue to eat eggs, I will continue to eat cooked pastas and soups etc. on a limited basis. I will probably never give up cheese, but I am going to work on cutting it down. Adding more fruits and vegetables to the diet is something anyone can do, and I intend to do it to gain better health and energy. I'm sure by the end of this year I will own a juicer and a food processor, but I am taking things one step at a time.

I'll be back again soon, and I will update more on my progression with uncovering the truth in general. For right now, I want to send two messages out to the universe:

Please let this year continue to be a journey of learning and spiritual evolution with any stressful corners of this life resolving themselves and coming to a close.

Please help me find the right balance of diet and activity to sustain an ideal weight and health.