Tips for a Successful Relationship

This is not advice from myself - although I did very briefly bring up the question of whether an advice column would be a neat idea on my blog or not

I pretty much only read magazine articles if I'm relaxing in a bath - which doesn't happen too often as I mostly take showers. Hence I'm delayed in my magazine reads and there's a huge stack of unread magazines here. So if you wondered why the occasional magazine cut out I shared with you is 8 months old, now you know why LOL

Here is an article in an old Reader's Digest issue that I wanted to share with you.

I rarely read about relationship advice (especially if it's in a magazine like Cosmo) let alone a whole magazine article. But not only did I read this whole article, I decided to highlight what I felt was important and scan it for you  ;)

By the way, I feel that everyone can take home something from this article 

You don't have to be married or dating someone. I felt the strong points of this article should apply to all relationships - even friendships

Click on image to enlarge

**all relationships should be fun & healthy. But reality is, you do have to work with one another and openly discuss your thoughts and feelings with each other. 

**(#6) I find this to be a huge challenge for many: some people expect that partner to fill nearly every void in their life. 

And listen, friendships outside of a relationship are healthy. It's a great idea that there are "friends night" where you go out without your man/girlfriend. Even spending time alone for a bit of "self pampering" and self reflecting is important. And if your partner has issues with you going out alone with your friends (assuming your circle of friends are good people) then there's probably an issue of trust. And from my experience if there is an issue of trust it either needs to be addressed right away or else the relationship will have many tough challenges

I absolutely agree with the "IOU" language comment 

When someone is upset with you, it's very easy to sound accusatory and using "you" can certainly add to that. But even though you use "I" instead of "you", be cautious of what you say. Like, instead of saying "I told you so" (which can sound accusatory) you could reword it and say "I had asked you that" or "I had pointed that out earlier"

Also, always note the tone of your voice 

Did you take home anything from this magazine article?

Do you like when I share magazine articles with you? 

Aveeno Eczema Care Cream does not contain Sodium Lauryl Sulfate

To keep a long story short, the Aveeno Eczema Care Cream (which I have previously reviewed here) does not contain the ingredient "sodium lauryl sulfate"

Here is a picture of the medicinal and non-medicinal ingredients for the Aveeno Eczema Care Cream

*******

The reason I started this post is because last week, I was emailed by someone named John who asked me for my opinion and advice after reading my review on this cream

I'll share the few emails with you below if you would like to read them (it's all regarding eczema) but basically his last email to me was stating that he does not feel that Aveeno Eczema Care Cream would work long term for eczema sufferers since it contains an ingredient called sodium lauryl sulfate

I have a bottle of Aveeno Eczema Care cream right in front of me by my desk side so I decided to look at the ingredients and I did not find his statement to be true

I asked him where he heard that the Aveeno Eczema Care Cream contained such an ingredient....because it is not listed as an ingredient on my bottle of cream. I even took the time to take a picture of the ingredients for him and email it to him (it's the exact same picture as the one posted above)....only not to get a response back :(

Anyways, I just wanted to share this with you in case any eczema sufferer out there are also misinformed

Question & Answer: Eczema advice + a bit on Dale / Evgueni

Happy New Year!!! :)

1st post of the year is me trying to help someone

 I got a question emailed to me from Melina about my experience with eczema and I decided to share my answer for those interested: 

Answer:

Hi Melina, 

I'm really flattered that you've taken the time to ask me for skincare advice

However as much as I wish I could help you, I can only share with you my experience 

There are different types of eczema, different levels of severity for eczema as well as different skin types between individuals.....so I'm not in the position to make any promises or evaluate your health

There are definitely cases (even for myself) where prescribed medication did not work so it is possible that the pills your doctor prescribed may not help your condition. You'll have to check with your doctor if you should fully complete the 15 day cycle of medication or if you're able to stop it since you don't find that it's working for you

I read that eczema can be quite difficult to get rid of, but there's so many factors to consider when treating a skin issue like that

I'm fortunate that my eczema isn't that bad (at least, not anymore) so I believe with my persistent change of habits I can overcome my eczema (for example, I always wear gloves now when I do the dishes or use household cleaners. And I've been very consistent in using either the Cetaphil Restoraderm or Aveeno Eczema Care Cream to constantly moisturize my hands)

Plus, in my review of the Aveeno Eczema Care Cream (which you can read here) I discussed what I thought were reasons that my eczema had developed in the first place - all of which are preventable measures

Hopefully in my case my eczema will go away for good

I know it's a stubborn skin care issue
For me, trying to narrow down the reasons as to why I developed it in the first place and how I can avoid those reasons, was key in fighting the problem

Yes, elocom did work for my eczema - although there are various prescription medications for different types/severities of eczema which you ought to discuss with your dermatologist

Keep in mind though, that elocom is a steroid cream and there are long term side effects

I had to use elocom sparingly or else it worked against me 

And I no longer use (have to depend on) elocom as I stated in my Aveeno Eczema Care Cream review because the cream has worked so well for me :)

So what I would suggest doing is:

(1) Try to figure out why you developed this skin issue on your lip. If you can pinpoint certain reasons, try your best to avoid those reasons

(2) Talk to you dermatologist about #1 ideas and hopefully your specialist can prescribe you the right medication. And hopefully your specialist diagnosed you correctly as my first dermatologist diagnosed me with some other skin issue :S Yeah, it helped me to get a second opinion!

(3) There really is no harm in buying the Aveeno Eczema Care Cream or the Cetaphil Restoraderm. The most you could lose is the cost of the cream - they have both given me unparalleled results

Good luck with things Melina and I really hope you're able to find a solution!

.........

I got a couple of questions about Dale and Evgueni in my last post (and in previous posts) which I thought it would be easier to address here :)

Q: Why no pictures of Dale?

A: I don't (and probably won't) be posting any pictures of Dale because....he's my imaginary friend!!

Jussstt kidding :P

Well, to keep it short - I don't think he'd be comfortable with it 

Q: I'm curious about Dale, he's so generous to you. Is that normal in Canada that male friends treat you so well?  

A: At the moment, Dale is the only person who is very generous to me 

I don't think his generosity has anything to do with him being Canadian, as I have had a fair share of negative experiences with Canadian men

Q: Does he (Dale) have a girlfriend? 

A: I don't believe so. But I wouldn't stop him from seeing someone else if it made him happy. 

Q: Does Evgueni get jealous?

A: No, I've actually never suspected any jealousy from Evgueni

Evgueni is the most understanding person in my life - I don't think I'll ever meet anyone like him

I wouldn't be able to keep someone in my life who has a tendency to be jealous

And I believe if Evgueni was jealous of Dale, Evgueni would have left me by now

So if you have any questions or want to ask my advice on anything, feel free to contact me here on blogger or my email address :)

High Heel Help

Haha - this post makes me laugh but also happy that someone confided in me for high heel advice ;)

I got sent an email from a lovely Carmen asking for advice....and I thought I would share her question and my answer with you in case it can help anyone else.

Hi Karen!!

I googled a phrase looking for nonslip inserts for high heels and stumbled across your blog. I was so excited to find it but I’m not always savvy about leaving comments and trying to find the responses later. I hope you don’t mind that I email you.

I do plan to keep your page tagged and see what all you post!!!

I live in Arizona and my problem is, that when I wear leather shoes or closed toed high heels that my feet sweet and then slide down making the shoe uncomfortable and hard to walk in. Is there any type of insert for that?!?! I have several pairs of shoes I could keep and continue to wear if there was.

I thought about using those non-slip sole grips, and putting them inside but they might be too rough.

Do those cushions help for that too?

Any ideas or advice would be wonderful!

Thanks doll!!

Carmen

My response

Hi Carmen!

Absolutely - you can ask me for advice anytime ;) I just apologize in my delayed response as I have been away for some time.

I understand what you mean when you describe your problem.

First off, are you moisturizing your feet with any creams/lotions prior to wearing your closed toe heels? I would suggest making sure that you do not moisturize your feet prior to wearing those type of heels because it would create more moisture and add onto the problem.

No, I would not suggest putting the non-slip sole grips into the shoe. Those are solely meant to be stuck to the bottom of your high heels (if the sole of the shoe is slippery/slick) so that they grip better to the pavement. For reference here is a picture of the non-slip sole grips I'm talking about:

If you feel that your heels are a half size too big and that's contributing to the problem, I would suggest trying these type of inserts for the inside of your shoes. I think these should help absorb a bit of moisture/sweat as well and would provide a better non-slippery surface than the material inside of your high heels. Plus, you can always replace these inserts if they start to get old or smell from sweat. 

If your feet are still sliding around after inserting these insoles, then I think your heels might be a bit too large in which case, you can try using these foam heel cushions pictured below. They really help my heel from not slipping out of my high heels - particularly pumps. And combining these cushions with the inserts, your foot should fit properly into your shoe if your shoe is within one size too large. 

Make sure though, that your shoe is not too tight either - because then it'll cause your feet to swell and it'll create another problem :S 

If you that find your feet are still sweaty and the problem persists, then perhaps you might have to consider a different type of shoe. Maybe sandals or peep-toes to help circulate some air through your shoe? Or, if you're wearing them to work and you have a no open toe shoe policy, maybe you have to resort to pumps with ankle straps? 
Some people may suggest an oil absorbing powder to use on your feet (like Gold Bond Foot Powder) but personally I have not tried that so I can't say if it works or not. But the website link says the powder absorbs moisture ;) 


I hope this post helps you Hun. Let me know how it goes if you give any of my suggestions a try ;) 


Karen