how to beat a cold

Colds are the worst and I get them all the damn time no matter how much Vitamin C/D/B/Q I take.  If you're not as delicate a flower as me maybe you can just supplement your Vitamins D and C and take some Zinc at the onset and you'll be good.  But if you're like me here is how I battle the demon:

1. When you start getting symptoms THAT is when you have to go full force.  This is a war and you have to catch the germs unaware.
2. Wellness formula is great.  It also is somewhat disgusting because they're big horse pills and they smell like garlic, but shit works.  Depending on if you're taking the pills or capsules you either take 3 or 6 2x a day when you're getting sick.  Whole Foods and any health food store will sell them.  It's a blend of Echinacea, Olive Leaf, Garlic, Zinc, and other goodies that boost your immune system.  I suggest not taking it on an empty stomach if Zinc makes you queasy.
3. Oregano oil- a natural antibiotic, I recommend getting the gel caps because the taste and burn of the liquid are fierce, but this works and you can buy it any health food type place.
4. Vitamin C. My favorite is Lypospheric C, which doesn't have the garbage that's in Emergen-C.  I personally like the flavor, you just put it in a bit of water, and it supposedly is a more bioavailable form of Vitamin C and more of it is absorbed than water-soluble vitamins.  IDK science but it feels like it's doing good things.

5. Baths with epsom salts and other good shit.  I love to have a good bath and sweat stuff out (as you all know), and as an added bonus you can pick some salts with Eucalyptus oil to clear stuff up, and even rub on some Vicks or the all-natural version, Hope Gillerman's Chest Remedy oil.  You can also put that on your footsies and cover them with socks to open stuff up. Sup.

6. If all else fails and you need 'real' medicine.  Lemsip- which is only sold in the UK because of Parametacol which may or may not kill you- cures body aches, clears you up, and makes you feel like a temporary rockstar. If you must go to work and spread your germs it's the way to do it.

Namaste bitches

It's 2015.  Resolutions are a bit yawn especially if they have to do with diet/ exercise/ losing weight/ being the sexiest you ever. BUT. It is a nice kind of new beginning and way to reevaluate things.  So here's what I'm thinking about doing for the new year. Real casual like, but some things to spice up my life.

1) Find a fun exercise I like to do.  This isn't like get in the best shape of my life or run a marathon, yo! More like try out some things that have always seemed interesting like gyrotonics or a barre class and see if I'm into them.
2) This might be a Southern girl thing or just me becoming a semi-adult, but I'd like to start looking more like my best when I leave the house. I just feel like it's not flattering to look like a hungover college kid going to brunch in the dining hall when I go to work even if it is a chill environment.  Also I want my life to be a romcom where I could have a meet cute in the grocery store, which is fairly unlikely if I look like garbage.
3) Express my creative side.  I'm taking a writing class to see how that is, and even realizing that I still know how to knit over the weekend was a fun thing.
4) Decorate my apartment.  I moved nearly 3 months ago, and while to an outsider it might look ready there's so much more to do to it, and I'm excited that I'm alone and can make it look exactly how I want and just nest and make my own decisions.
5) Breathe, relax, and chill out on myself.  My ambition and expectations are high for myself, which isn't exactly a bad thing but can make life tougher than it needs to be.  If I don't know exactly where my life is going for a month or two that's ok, plans derail and it might not be so bad to go along for the ride for a little while.
6) Figure out things I enjoy- like being in nature, at the beach, and having friends over- and people I actually enjoy spending time with, and focus on them.  I spend a lot of free time too focused on my to-do list and sometimes get lazy and end up spending time with people who are proactive about planning even if I don't get a lot of joy spending time with them.  Weekends should be fun and filled with people I love being around.
7) Cook more.  Like 1x a week, which would be more than now.  Cooking is healthier and cheaper than eating out, and I know exactly what's in it.  Plus, I'm actually a halfway decent cook when I make the effort. My friend reminded me that my turkey chili is on point.

So OK my resolutions aren't like move to Bali and meditate or skydive, but I feel like I can actually do these things and they will make my life more dope. What are yours?

Bulletproof Coffee aka BUTTER Coffee

All the cool kids in town have jumped on the bulletproof coffee train.  While it's become a bit of a Paleo trend to pop some butter and/or coconut oil in your coffee, as far as I know Dave Asprey is the one that 'invented' bulletproof coffee based on his experience drinking yak butter tea in Tibet.  Just a standard vacay.  For his coffee he uses his beans, which he created to avoid the mold that is apparently prevalent in a lot of mass market coffee beans, grassfed butter or ghee, and his MCT oil which is a concentrated version of coconut oil.  If you want to know about the science of it read his book or go here: Bulletproof

I'm not a scientist- I took astronomy as my science credit (and didn't really kill it, truth be told).  All I know is how it makes me feel- pretty fucking good.  And as a delicate flower who tends to get jittery and crash if I have normal coffee, even if it is an artisanal almond milk latte, it's nice being able to drink coffee again.  While selling his own coffee brand might sound shamelessly self-promoting, I actually buy the mold/ mycotoxin issue with coffee beans.  Do you know how long Starbucks beans have been sitting around?  And have you noticed how sometimes you feel fucking amazing after a cappuccino, and other times like straight up garbage?  Just me then?  Cool.  Regardless I am pro anything that supports healthy fats and whole foods, and it fills me up so much that I usually don't eat until lunch.  I don't like to skip meals but I believe I've effortlessly lost a bit of weight drinking this stuff despite the fact that it's probably the most caloric cup of coffee you can have.  But we all know calories are kind of bullshit by this point, no?  ALSO it seems to kill sugar cravings and hypoglycemic crashes.  And that dirty hippie actress princess Shailene Woodley is into it. If me + Shailene doesn't sell you than GTFO of here.

If you try it let me know how you feel.  The book is also worth a read although if he thinks he's going to convince the world to give up cheese and ice cream forever he may be sadly mistaken.

the perils of irritability treatment

I'm super into Tata Harper. Her skin looks like milk and honey and basically like Heidi grew up, stopped eating cheese on toast (because gluten, dairy, hello) and but still maintained her youthful mountain radiance.  THAT is how good it looks.  She makes this stuff on a farm in Vermont or something and you can tell.  If anything shows the efficacy of organic skincare it's her face.

I'm already a big fan of her Resurfacing Mask for glowy skin before a hot date/ crowded night in a bar discussing work with friends, and I recently purchased the Aromatic Irritability Treatment before a long flight.  The good: it smells like a delight, is potent, comes in an adorable roll-on, is probably made of moonbeams, and most importantly-- it works.  It helps chill me out at work when I'm feeling irritable and anxious, and it is particularly nice on long flights with smelly, stale air.  I'm slowly converting my officemates to the wonders of this 100% natural treatment.  The only minor downside is that this stuff is strong and especially if you get a crew wearing it others will most definitely know.  As a person with a healthy amount of selfishness I am totally fine having other people notice the scent but I've started using it sparingly just for my own well-being (and so that the cloud of scent doesn't overwhelm me).  A little goes a long way. 

the joy of the detox bath.

My body has been feeling extra toxic lately.  Like a hangover gone awry, despite the generally virtuous way I've been living.  Copious naps and infrared saunas (and watching Gilmore Girls in bed all day) help these sorts of things, but with my job and the ensuing exhaustion after hours, none of these things are really happening during the week.  Enter-- the detox bath.  I am a little bit obsessed, despite the fact that I share my bathtub with a male roommate who, while lovely, is also a male type human.  Anyways, my love is so great that I am down to (cursorily) clean the tub pre-bath.  Because when I get in there with a cup of epsom salts and a really delightful bath oil and just sweat for 20 minutes, I come out feeling a lot better with glowing skin and open pores.  An added bonus is that I kind of feel like I've exercised, and even sweat for a while after, which is more than I can say for any exercise I do.  (This is me questioning my lack of exercise. I suppose tottering around Beverly Hills in high heels on my lunch break doesn't count).  Anyways.  If you are going to do a detox bath, and this doesn't have to be because of a health issue, but just because you're tired or hungover or stressed or just want glowy skin and to feel like a young Hollywood ingenue bunking at her manager's house in the Hills until she gets her big break, I suggest the following recipe from Dr. Alex:
-1 cup of epsom salts, any plain drugstore brand will do
-a couple of tablespoons of baking soda
-a delicious bath oil or magical bath salt type thing (for scent, color, and luxurious feel)

My current favorites are from Aromatherapy Associates and Michelle Roques-Oneill's Therapie brand.  They are both fabulous and also fairly expensive.  But a freaking delight.  And you're worth it!  Michelle is I think a bit of a genius.  I used to have a delightful aura spray from her which was stolen by a minx at the office (or possibly misplaced) however I trust anything she does.  The ingredients list is always impeccable and it just has good vibes.  My personal favorite is her Himalayan detox salts, which really were my introduction to the detox bath.  The ingredients list is just Himalayan sea salt and quality essential oils, but the scent is spot on and the packaging is a delight.  If I could afford the habit I would pour them exclusively into my bath instead of epsom salts.  Also if you read this copy and aren't sold then you are frankly a smelly robot: "The pace of modern life can stretch both mind and body to the maximum. The over-indulgences we use as comfort to combat this can often lead to us feeling even more jaded and lethargic. But help is at hand - a bath with Therapie Himalayan Detox Salts is the perfect release to daily overload."

Aromatherapy Associates has a host of natural products, but I am all about the bath oils that come in a multitude of scents that all claim to do different things.  I say claim as if AA (because we're friends like that) claims to have invented the internet, when really they accomplish what they say in my experience.  Through AA I've learned that bath oils can have purposes beyond relaxation.  I am a huge supporter of their Revive Evening Bath & Shower Oil, and my friends can attest to that as I often like to jump in an Uber for a night out still steaming and smelling like a freaking delight from it.  Baths are a surprisingly amazing energizer even as they destress, hence them now being known as the lazy woman's workout (by me).  Next on my shopping list is Inner Strength because I love the idea of getting it through a bath.  Like many products I adore, both brands are sold at http://www.cultbeauty.co.uk/