Psoriasis

I was diagnosed with psoriasis when I was about 6 or 7 years old. I will save the journey of my diagnoses for another blog post. For now, I just wanted to say that I have been on another kind of journey. I am trying to find natural alternatives to care for my psoriasis. Even though I am on Enbrel injections, 50 mg once a week, I still have "stubborn" psoriasis that will NOT go away. This blog will be dedicated to natural ways of improving my condition. I hope to bring insight to others that are suffering from psoriasis as well. I hope you follow along! The next post will be about psoriasis. Essentially, I will explain what it is and what kinds of treatments are offered as well as which ones I have tried.

-Annie

Progress

Day 2...

I need to drink more water

I need to get more sleep...I would like to be in bed by 11:00 and construct my schedule around that during the day.

I need to get up earlier to do more work in the mornings

I need to stop eating so many sweets and focus on eating healthier during the week.

Routine

I'm a creature of habit. I thrive on it. If I don't have it...I am not living to my fullest potential. I'm going to be keeping a little diary of sorts to get my life back on track. It won't be a witty narrative of my daily progress, it'll be a quick list of what I did during the day as far as eats, work outs, telling myself nice things etc. AKA: Nothing anyone will want to read. This is for me...just me.

Today, I cut down on my chocolate problem and I ate pita chips instead of real chips.

That sorta thing.

See ya tomorrow.

Resolutions

I usually stick to the same old resolutions each year: be more environmentally friendly and get organized.

Those don't usually pan out the way I'd like them to. The reusable water bottle is used for about three months and I slowly stop using my file folder that I spent so long picking out. This year, I decided on a new goal...be a peace with myself.

I haven't always been easy on myself. That is an understatement. I have been more harsh on myself and abused myself mentally more than anyone ever could. I have called myself names like: fat, stupid, ugly, undeserving, boring, fat, oh and did I mention stupid and fat? Years and years of battling bulimia and binge eating left my mind broken, my body weary.

I resolve to be at peace with wherever I am at the moment. If I am five pounds overweight, so be it. If I do somewhat poorly on an exam, life goes on. Life isn't about judging ourselves, it's about living the best life we can possibly live.

What are you late for?

I was doing some last minute Christmas shopping (as usual) last night. My brother and I decided to stop at the only place that was still open, Walmart at about 6:30. I pulled into a parking spot, got out of my car and proceeded to rush as fast as I could into the store, power walking that could have turned into a light jog to be exact. My brother noticed my pace, then looked at me and jokingly said, "What are you late for?" I looked up at him (he is six foot two) and said ...I don't know, ha! I sort of realized how routine it is for me rush everything. I'm a fast walker, fast driver, fast eater, fast talker, everything is super fast. I even try to read fast...but why??? No reason really. Even in the store I proceeded to maneuver the cart as quickly as possible, through each isle. My brother became a little irritated and jokingly asked why I was racing through the isles. I began to slow down, and realized...that's exactly what I need to do...slow down and stop worrying.

That question is still ringing in my ears like a wake up call...

He meant it as a joke but it struck a chord in me. I've been panicing about silly things lately. "How many calories was that?" "What are they thinking about my shirt?" "Will my professor be able to tell that I haven't written a literature review before???" I need to SLOOOOW down and only think about one thing at a time. I need to take my time walking, reading, eating, etc.

What's the point of rushing through the day only to wake up and rush through the next day?

Hello!

I think it's about time I put this little blog of mine to use. It's been sitting and waiting for me to come back to it and fill it with my ideas. I'd like to dedicate this blog to finding happiness. I have a tendency to think too much about the past and future (don't we all) and forget about what's most important, the present.

Let's start with casualties first, shall we?

My name is Annie, I am from a little town in Western Pennsylvania, roughly an hour from Pittsburgh.  Maybe someday I'll reveal the name of the town but for now, let's just keep it simple, I'm livin' in a college town (song reference anyone?) I'm a college student working on my Master's degree in sociology trying to find my center. At 22 years old, I feel as though nothing is planned out so I figured this is the best time to find out what makes me most happy. I am in love with writing, blogs, food, the outdoors, beauty products (my feminist professors would sigh and shake their fingers at me), sociology, and so much more. So, posts from now on will be on several different topics, food, fitness, sociology, beauty, news, anything is possible! I hope you enjoy reading!

-Annie