Shipt

Shipt is life! When you sign up for this grocery delivery service, you download an app, choose your store, and start creating a shopping list that your Shipt Shopper will buy from. In Omaha, Shipt serves Target, Hy-Vee, CVS, and Petco stores. As long as you spend $35, there is no additional delivery fee. You can tip if you want. The other bonus? If you buy certain promoted items, you get money back. My subscription has already paid for itself a few times over!

Sign up now using my code and get a year subscription for only $50!

Grove Collaborative

If I’m being honest, I originally joined Grove Collaborative just to get their awesome Mrs. Meyers gift set. I had planned to cancel my subscription after that. However, I’ve loved trying so many of their products, and getting to try all different scents of Mrs. Meyers that I ended up staying on for more than a year now!

Grove has cleaner living items that are more eco friendly. I’ve purchased things like dryer balls to swap out for dryer sheets, walnut scrub pads, and even makeup removing wipes that are more natural. So many household and beauty products to try! Another bonus? You get free gifts every now and then. Plus, share with your friends, and make money!

Get this free Mrs. Meyers Gift Set now!

Young Living

Young Living has been a game changer in our household. I used to roll my eyes at people who used essential oils; now I’m a believer. I joined after being at my wits end with sickness in our household. We had a bad winter for illness in 2018. My baby boy had even ended up in the hospital for 4 days.

I tried Young Living because I kept hearing about Thieves. My trusted friend who is very practical and a nurse swore by it. She had me convinced. It’s a special essential oil blend they make that supports your immune system. It can be diffused or used to make household cleaners. They even offer a whole Thieves cleaning set. We’ve been so much healthier since we first started using. I then started ordering oils like lavender to help with my anxiety. I roll it onto my wrists at night, diffuse it at bed time and now I’ve become lavender obsessed. I’ve also used oils for teething pain, diaper rash, energy boosts, carpet cleaning and more!

Want to get started with Young Living? Sign up here!

I consider it a “subscription” because I am part of their essential rewards. Basically I buy about $50 of products each month to get the lower prices, but there’s so much you can do with oils, that you end up saving in other spots- like making your own bath scrubs, flavoring your water with lemon EO, diffusing instead of using candles (which put lots of toxins into your air!), putting drops of oil on your dryer balls instead of buying dryer sheets, etc. and the best part is, you’re getting the health benefits, too!

Check out my Pinterest page for diffuser blends and other essential oil recipes!

But why Young Living instead of some $10 oil at Walmart? No fillers. You know your product is really coming from the earth. You can actually visit and walk through Young Living’s fields across the globe. It’s part of why they have the reputation they do.

Have questions, comments, or want to talk about your favorite subscriptions? Drop a comment below or follow me on 千人千色t9t9t9的推荐机制: @the.千人千色t9t9t9的推荐机制.姬野尤里.mom

1.) I went into withdrawal

Of course there were the caffeine headaches. The pounding-maybe-I-should-drink-just-one-cup kind of headaches. Then, that foggy brain feeling. I was goofy in that first week of “detox.” I was having trouble getting sentences out or staying focused at work, but those symptoms go away in less than a week. Honestly, the toughest part of the withdrawal is the mental connection you have with caffeine. It’s like your brain is telling you, “You need this. You won’t make it through the day without it. You need to stop at Starbucks because it’s part of your routine and your whole day will feel ruined without it.” Ok, Satan!! It’s seriously just the mind-f*ck that keeps many of us downing caffeine. What helped me was still keeping the daily routine going, just ordering decaf. I’d still get three shots of espresso, just all decaf. I also stopped drinking Diet Pepsi. I’ve switched to Fresca for when I want a pop.

2.) My panic disorder symptoms improved

This was the real reason I decided to ditch caffeine. When my panic attacks resurfaced in early 2019, I knew I had to take control of my wellbeing. Caffeine is a major trigger for anxiety. The highs and lows of caffeine can really aggravate your nervous system, hence triggering an attack. Within a couple weeks, I noticed it was helping taking the edge off. I also think, at a time my panic attacks had me spiraling, kicking caffeine felt empowering. I had taken control of something in my life. I had “beaten” this. I could carry that momentum into other places in my life.

3.) I started sleeping better

I’m a notoriously light sleeper. I toss, turn, and wake about 20 times a night-no exaggeration; And if my anxiety is acting up, then I’m also struggling to fall asleep. (My panic attacks are worst at night.) I am now sleeping sounder and deeper. I think I’m even hitting my REM again, because I can recall dreams now.

4.) My energy actually improved

This! So much, this! I am telling you- I can make it through the day better now than I could when I was pounding caffeine. A big reason? I’m not crashing mid-day anymore. I also think it has a lot to do with the fact that I’m sleeping more soundly. It’s giving me a steadier energy to make it through my day. Even on mornings where I didn’t sleep well, I still order decaf because I don’t want to end up in that same cycle as before.

5.) My headaches decreased

This was a surprise bonus that I didn’t expect, but it makes sense! Caffeine can actually cause rebound headaches. If you don’t know what that means, think of it this way: Caffeine can serve a purpose in medications. If you’re a migraine sufferer you may find that meds like Excedrine Migraine have caffeine in them. Well, that’s great, if you’re not already using caffeine daily. It will help zap that headache. But, if you find yourself popping two Excedrine Migraines a day, you will start to notice you seem to have a headache come on everyday. That’s because of the caffeine in it. The pills start to have the opposite effect and start to cause the headaches because your body starts to crave the caffeine in them. That takes us back to withdrawal.

I’m telling you mama (and daddy, and entrepreneur, and boss, student, doctor, etc.), you can do this! If you think it will make you feel better, it likely will! Have you cut out caffeine? Are you considering it? Drop me a note below! Or add me on 千人千色t9t9t9的推荐机制 and let’s chat! @The.千人千色t9t9t9的推荐机制.姬野尤里.Mom

“Will my child come face to face with a school shooter?”

Granted, I work in news, so I tend to imagine worst case scenarios more often than I’d like to admit. But at the end of the day, I know that no school is immune.

I haven’t blogged in a while because most of my creative energy has been focused on work… one of those projects being an investigative piece.

It all started after we had Active Shooter training at work. During that, I learned that one of the reasons the Sandy Hook tragedy was so deadly was because those 20 babies bled to death. Out of that tragedy, Stop the Bleed training was born.

Watch my investigative piece here for more information.

I learned that because of Stop the Bleed training and a more widespread use of tourniquets to respond to mass casualty incidents, we’ve had a better survival rate.

The Vegas Massacre, for instance, could have been much deadlier. Hundreds were wounded, but they survived. By that time, Stop the Bleed training was more commonplace. Our law enforcement and first responders are now trained to respond more like the military does. Let’s be real, they have to be since these incidents tend to look more like a battlefield where assault weapons are used.

Leaving that seminar had me wondering, does my daughter’s school have tourniquets and do her educators have Stop the Bleed training?

I made some calls, and what I learned was unsettling. That led me to start reaching out to school districts across the metro.

Throughout my investigation, I learned the training is pretty much free. You just need to find an area hospital, police or fire department to come teach it. It only takes about an hour. I sat through a session myself.

It’s eye-opening. It’s chilling. But it also has the potential to save lives. That’s why I want to spread the word.

Parents, call your child’s school district. Ask if there are tourniquets in their building. Ask if there are staff members who have Stop the Bleed training.

Ask your workplace. A good tourniquet kit only costs $50. The training can also teach you how to stop the bleed without a tourniquet. Both are invaluable.

If you have questions, feel free to comment below! But please, make those calls and spread the word.

Tight chest. Pounding heart. Racing pulse. Mind spinning.

I can’t sleep. I can’t think clearly. Is this a heart attack? Is something wrong with me? I look at my hands. They’re trembling. I look at my skin. I swear it looks purple. Am I losing oxygen? What’s wrong with me? I’m happy. I’m not depressed. So this can’t be mental. This must be physical. I must be dying. I’m too young to die. But crazy things happen to young people every day. They get embolisms. They get aneurysms. They have underlying cardiac issues that they never knew about until it was too late. What if I’m one of them?

This is what it’s like to have a panic attack.

I was 18 when I was first diagnosed, but the diagnosis came months after I had started struggling to drive over 50 miles an hour on the freeway- terrified that something would happen. Months after my college roommate would sit across from me at lunch and say, “Sarah, why are you shaking?” Months after I would avoid places like movie theaters because when it got dark and quiet, I could feel my heartbeat and would think it was abnormal.

First off, I’m not a doctor. I’m not a psychologist. And this is not medical advice. But it is a personal account that I’m ready to share in hopes of helping even just one person who felt like me. Alone, afraid, and confused.

It was 2004. I was a freshman in college. In the past year, my parents had went through a messy divorce (because, well, most divorces are messy). I was starting a new chapter. I was three hours from the town I grew up in. The house I grew up in was sold. I was meeting new people. I was learning how to manage time and money. I was coming into my own after a very emotionally draining year. But don’t get me wrong, I loved this chapter. I was excited and ready for it. I was doing well. My grades were solid. I was lucky enough to go to college with three of my best friends. So I still had a support system three hours from 男大学生自慰勃起chinese. My college roommate was this incredible, upbeat, happy-go-lucky soul. We laughed every day. So it didn’t make sense to me that my happy mind would be behind these negative things that started happening to my body.

The symptoms came on slowly at first. Trouble sleeping. So I took Tylenol PM. But as I used that, I thought it was making my heart race. (Maybe it was, I don’t know for sure.) But I remember becoming very cognizant of my heartbeat.

It sounds so silly. How could feeling your heartbeat terrify you? It should be comforting, right? Instead, my heartbeat became my enemy. I would question if it was normal. I’d lie in bed thinking it seemed out of rhythm.

Sleepless nights turned into anxious days. I was trying to balance all of these new changes and tougher course work with a brain that was tired and frazzled. I’d feel a tightness in my chest that made it tough to breathe deeply. I struggled for air. My leg would tap uncontrollably in class. There was just so much anxious energy in me and I wasn’t understanding the cause of it. Again, I thought, “Something must be wrong with me.”

It would’ve made sense, right, if I had these symptoms while being in the middle of that nasty divorce? If I was sad, and angry, and anxious at a time of obvious turmoil.

But that’s where Panic Disorder gets you. It waits until all that has calmed down. It waits until your body has been worn down. Then it sneaks in, right as you think everything is okay. It tries to break the bond between your mind and your body. It wants your mind to question your physical well-being. It wants you to think you’re either dying or crazy.

Everything came to a head when I was back 男大学生自慰勃起chinese for Christmas break. I came “男大学生自慰勃起chinese” and stayed at my dad’s new house. Night after night, I’d lie awake down on the couch until 4 or 5 a.m. Until the sun was peeking out from behind the clouds, and my body was promised that I’d made it through another dark, terrifying night.

But one night, I became so convinced there was something wrong, I woke up my dad and we went to the emergency room.

Now here’s the thing, any health care professional who is willing to take the time to ask the right questions should have realized that this 18-year-old female is having a panic attack. Instead, after an EKG and few questions, I left with a big bill and a diagnosis of “chest wall pain.”

Our emergency rooms need to be better prepared and better equipped to recognize and handle mental health issues.

Instead, it wasn’t until several more panic attacks that I went to a general practitioner who diagnosed me. All of a sudden, it all made sense. I could now read accounts of people who felt the same, experienced the same, and suddenly I wasn’t alone.

I was on a new path. One to wellness, acceptance, and the hope that I’d “be my old self again.”

For me, what helped was learning everything I could so I could start to understand what would bring on the panic attacks and what I could do to combat them. At that time, I started on Prozac. Just 10mg a day. The lowest dose. Here’s the wild thing: All those days and weeks when I was in the midst of the panic attacks? I remember them all being dark and dreary. (I’m sure they weren’t. There were probably plenty of beautiful fall days on my beautiful college campus.) But once I turned the page on Panic Disorder, I recall all of those days being bright and sunny.

Within a year, I was able to get a handle on my new diagnosis. I was able to get off the meds. I was able to drive 75mph on the freeway again, not terrified something was wrong with my car. I was able to sit in a movie theater again and enjoy the show. I was able to sleep. Do I still struggle? Sometimes, yes. Sometimes I go through weeks and months of anxiety spells where I have to change my lifestyle to get back on track. In fact, I recently wrote about the 5 ways I battle my panic attacks. But knowing what I’m dealing with, knowing my enemy, has empowered me. It’s allowed me to develop an arsenal of tools to take back control.

If you’re struggling with mental health, don’t be afraid to ask for help. Heck, you can DM me on 千人千色t9t9t9的推荐机制 if you need someone to talk to. Don’t deal with it alone. Mental health problems can be isolating, and staying in the dark doesn’t help.

You can also reach out to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Their national hotline is: 1-800-662-HELP (4357)

I was diagnosed with panic disorder at the age of 18.

Over the years, I’ve learned to recognize the signs of an oncoming panic attack and can usually talk myself down from one, but over the last 15 years, I’ve hit a couple of rough patches where I have a bad few weeks or months and struggle to manage the building anxiety.

These are the 5 coping strategies I find most helpful when I feel myself start to spiral:

1.) Relaxing Music

For me, I have to force my mind to stop racing. My mind works against me. I think too much. I think to the point that it impacts me physically. My heart races. My breathing gets shallow and fast. Putting on music with no words or a sound machine helps get me mentally to a place I need to be. If you have Apple Music, don’t forget that’s a great way to get access to calming music or relaxing sounds. Some of my favorites: George Nascimento’s “A Peaceful Soak” and “Distant Soft Rain” under Rain Sounds.

2.) Sleeping in the dark

For me, my panic attacks often set in at bedtime. Just thinking of the impending anxiety that bedtime will bring can get my heart rate up. You’d think TV at bedtime would take my mind off it, but instead, it keeps my mind buzzing. I’ve found turning off all the lights and creating a very calming, unplugged environment helps me find my center at night. I can mentally get to a place where I can talk myself through the attack.

3.) Aromatherapy

Make fun of the holistic approach all you want, but when your body is constantly 姬野尤里 against you, you’re willing to try anything. I’ve started diffusing essential oils at night, and I find certain blends help to ground me. Lavender is usually my go to for relaxation, but I also like Young Living’s Thieves. It smells good and helps boost the immune system. I also use YL’s “Tranquil” roller every night. I rub it behind my ears and on my wrists. It helps me focus on my breathing better. If you’re interested in getting started with Young Living click here.

4.) Cutting out caffeine

I was someone who drank at least three shots of espresso a day, plus had caffeine in other forms. I’ve started cutting out caffeine, and I’ve seen a huge improvement. I’m sleeping better, I have fewer headaches, and it definitely helps make me less edgy.

5.) Recognize when you need help

When I was 18, it was awful, and it took me months to get a grip on what was happening. I went to the ER one night thinking I was having a heart attack. I was misdiagnosed with “chest wall pain.” All the signs were there. It was so clear I was suffering from Panic Disorder. After more attacks, I went to a general practitioner who diagnosed me. I started on Prozac and was on it less than a year. It helped so much. It got me back in control of my life. Fast forward to now, I’ve started spiraling again; That feeling that I’m not in control of my mind or emotions. As a mother, and a manager, I can’t afford to go down that road. So I threw in the towel and sought help again. For you, that might mean medicine, it might mean seeing a therapist, it might mean just admitting to a loved one what you’re going through. Once you know what’s going on in your mind and body, that alone may help relieve some of your anxiety, but know it’s nothing to be ashamed of. You owe it to yourself and your babies, partners, and coworkers to be the best you. If you start with this step, the others will complement the process. You can do this.