A Simple Method to Fall Asleep Faster

Lately, I've been testing out a different sleep cycle called biphasic sleeping, which, like it sounds, refers to sleeping in two sections a day instead of one long chunk during the night. To do this, I sleep about 4.5 hours during the night (usually 2am-6:30am) and then take a 60-90 minute nap in the afternoon around 2 or 3pm. Supposedly, according to mostly anecdotal evidence, this can make you feel just as rested as if you were sleeping eight hours during the night, even though it only adds up to six hours (or less!) a day. 

I'm going to talk about this little experiment more in the future, once I've been at it for a little longer. But for now I want to talk about a cool method I've learned to help you fall asleep faster. Before I started this experiment, I was more in the habit of watching Netflix or noodling around on Bloglovin' until I got sleepy (which is horrible, I know). 

So I'm not used to laying around, waiting to fall asleep. I started to get in that irritating mental state where you try to hard to fall asleep that you never get sleepy. You know what I mean? So naturally, I took to the all-knowing google to look for ways to fall asleep faster so I don't have to wait through that waiting period. 

And I found out about 4-7-8 breathing. 

There's a medical doctor from Harvard named Dr. Andrew Weil who developed this technique and he calls it "a natural tranquilizer for the nervous system." And the awesome thing? It's super super easy.

That's all there is to it! Dr. Weil claims that if you practice two sets of four breaths every day for two months, you should be able to fall asleep in around a minute. While I'm skeptical of that, it definitely helps me relax whether I'm stressed or just trying to fall asleep. 

Have you every tried 4-7-8 breathing? 

A Better Way to Respond to Stress

Wow, what a week. Right after I posted on Tuesday, I came down with a gross flu sort of thing that has had me in bed way more than I'd like for the last few days. Luckily, this is really the only couple day stretch where my schedule isn't jam-packed. After this weekend, I start my finals. So I'm just glad that I should be on the up and up before then!

Since I know a lot of you are students and the next two weeks are probably the most stressful time of the year, I thought I'd share this TEDTalk about stress and a healthy way to manage it. H showed me this a few weeks ago when I was stressed out of my mind and I loved it! 

What do you think of this video? Do you have any other methods for tackling stress?

Weekly Goals #31

For the record, let it be known that I'm completely aware that these "weekly goals" are more like "every-few-weeks-aka-when-I-feel-like-it goals". But for clarity, let's keep calling them weekly goals. 

This past weekend, I visited my future college for the bajillionth time. I'm getting so excited to move myself into my apartment/suite in August! Yay college! But now it's back to my last few weeks of school before I graduate. And let me tell you guys....senioritis: so real. It's so, so real. 

Let's review last week's (aka the goals I made like a month ago...on my birthday, no less) goals! I made a goal about exercising. Like I've mentioned, H and I have a big event coming up in less than two weeks. Personally, I hate everything about the idea of a "big event" because that means a late night, lots of people, lots of socializing, and lots of anxiety. The last time we went to an event like this one (and it was much, much smaller), I had a panic attack, got sick, and had to leave after only half an hour. Even thinking about that night, I get a little emotional because I've never felt that nervous and out of control. 

I'm not generally an anxious person. I don't get stressed about work or classes, like ever. Something about feeling like I have to live up to some expectation of how to act and not knowing how makes me feel lost. It's a totally confusing feeling for me. And obviously, a really miserable one too. 

But H really, really wants to go to this event and so we're going. I don't want a repeat of last time so I've been trying to take steps to avoid it. I've been practicing doing 4-7-8 breaths (in for 4 counts, hold for 7, out for 8) whenever I start getting anxious, using my anxiety beads and journaling. It's seemed to help, so far, but I'm not convinced that I'll be feeling this confident about it in two weeks. 

Part of my anti-anxiety plan is making sure I don't have any other sources of anxiety. I made sure to get a dress that I really like, I'm going to practice my hair and makeup ahead of time and most of all, I'm exercising to lose a couple pounds before the event. I figure if I can feel great about how I look, I'll be a little less nervous about how to act and all. 

As part of that goal, I joined the #1800minutechallenge, which you might have heard about on Twitter or other blogs. Basically, the goal is to exercise (in any way!) for 1800 minutes during April and May, which comes out to about 30 minutes a day. I play soccer 2-3 times a week with a recreational team, but I'm supplementing that with running intervals on the treadmill and the occasional elliptical workout. 

This week, my goal is to exercise for at least 45 minutes, three times outside of soccer. I'm also tracking my steps and my water intake and working to cut out desserts while eating solid servings of vegetables (my weakness). 

What are your goals for the week? How do you manage your anxiety? What do you like to do for exercise?

weekly wishes #21

(source)

Hi loves! Merry Christmas Eve Eve! So I've always said that it's impossible to get in the Christmas spirit in NC. For one, it's raining out. Oh and it's also 75 out, which is so not okay. But I'll be in Michigan soon enough, frolicking in the snowy goodness! Haha I hate warm winters...

Last week, I made a wish just to be efficient. I had finals + lots of stuff to do and I'm oh so happy to be all done. I really feel like I succeeded pretty well in being efficient though. I didn't really feel overwhelmed about any of my finals! But I should probably wait to get the results back before I get all confident.

This coming week is probably going to be stressful for me. I'll be honest, it's hard for me to spend time with my family. And it's not because we fight (much), but I'm just so different than the rest of my family. They're all extroverts, love dinner parties and family game nights while I just want to hide by myself somewhere. I know I sound kind of silly--I love my family. But it's hard to be constantly pushed to be social when that's just not something I am capable of doing for long.

So I have two goals for the next week:

+Spend time with my family members on my own terms. If I'm intentional about spending time together in small doses and in a comfortable environment and all, then everyone is bound to be good to go. This might mean spending a little time cooking with my mom or reading with my grandmother.

+Clean for at least half an hour every day (until I leave on Friday, that is). I've been in a pretty big cleaning kick lately, which actually never ever happens to me. So I fully intend on getting as much as I can out of this weird mood of mine. I cleaned my desk the other day + actually scrubbed my bathroom (please be impressed). On the hit list? The bins in my closet + the top of my dresser (which I haven't actually seen in years).

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And can I just share a little dose of happy? First off, I'm not the hugest (sorry, not a word) fan of A Beautiful Mess because who has time to make their own giant Jenga set? Not me. But I do really love their app. If you don't know about it, it's a (99 cent) app where you can add doodles, filters, borders + words to pictures. I also got the new iPhone 5s (you bet I got the gold) so I can actually take good pictures now. So there are a multitude of selfies to be had. And happy dose #3? I got this lovely scarf c/o Dottie Q and no, it's not cold enough to wear it, but I still wear it because it's freaking gorgeous.

What are your goals for the week? How do you survive a lot of time with family?

weekly wishes + being efficient + volcanic lightning

Hello friends! Happy Monday! Unfortunately, today's not too happy of a Monday for me. I've got a big week with papers + tests + prepping for midterms next week. So the blogging may be a little sparse for the next two weeks but I'm here, I promise!

So how did I do on my weekly wishes this past week?

Goal #1: Unpack (on Monday). Okay, that definitely did not happen on Monday, but I did unpack Wednesday night, which is so much faster than I've ever unpacked after a vacation before. So I'm counting that as a success.

Goal #2: Catch up on design. Did I succeed? Sort of! I've finished Kelly's moodboard/plans and am working with Hannah. I definitely will work to be efficient this week to get it all done though!

Goal #3: Update my list of post ideas. Done, done and done! I can't wait for you all to see what I have up my sleeve for the new year! :)

For this next week, I'm making one overarching goal: be efficient. I have more to get done than Martha Stewart does at Christmas (not really) and in order to do it all, I need to be organized and focused! Expect a post about organization later this week ;)

That's really it for this week! Short and sweet.

Science Bit of the Day

Can I just say that it makes me really happy to know that this is actually a thing? Volcanic lightning (aka "dirty thunderstorms") is basically what happens when you mix a volcanic eruption with a lightning storm. And because eruptions are kinda sporadic these days (duh), they're also really difficult to study. Read a cool article about volcanic lightning for more information. And enjoy this photo for a minute please (from the link).

That's all for today, loves! Tell me--what were your weekly wishes this week? How can I be more efficient?

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For Starters: Quality vs. Quantity // It's Your Voice--Take it Back! // 5 Steps to Less Stress and Better Sleep

Why I Like Jerry Springer

I feel like a thousand people are about to [x] out of my blog after reading just the blog title. But it's true, I legitimately enjoy watching Jerry Springer on some level. Yeah, it's twisted, I know. Judge away!--but first, let me explain.

Dislaimer: I don't agree with most things on the show and I doubt you do either.  I think most sane people feel the same way. It shows way too screwed up relationships and yeah, I do feel sorry for the guests on the show.

But here's the tricky part: as much as I want to hate the show, I can't. Every time a girl brings in a cheating boyfriend and yells at him, I get a small amount of satisfaction. I somehow get pleasure out of watching people get things out in the open and stand up for themselves when they've been wronged.

Ignoring all the slapping and swearing and et cetera, if we could all be that honest all the time, wouldn't we be happier?

Awhile ago, the boy and I had a bit of an argument. There was something that was bothering me for a little while but I kept ignoring it because I didn't want to argue about it. So I just stuffed it down deep and didn't say anything. But then later, after something little he said, I got mad. It all comes out sometime. And because I let it build, I was upset enough about it that it was hard to discuss like mature people and it came out as an attack on him.

Once we had come to an agreement, he just asked me why I didn't tell him. And that's a hard question, why we aren't honest.

Is it because I'm afraid of making things uncomfortable, I just want peace or am I just self-centered? I don't know the answer.

Get yourself a giggle out of this "brutal betrayal".

When I think about it, my dishonesty is everywhere, and with all honesty, yours probably is too. Not straight up lies, but we sugarcoat, we tame things down or leave out important information. In the example I just mentioned, I withheld something important deliberately. I try not to, but I'm human and I do lie more than I would care to admit. But then really, am I not almost continually lying?

A customer at work (I scoop ice cream) last night asked me how I was. And I answered with my standard, "I'm good, how are you?" little spiel. But in truth, my head hurt, we were severely understaffed, I had just cut my hand on the shake blender (those suckers are weapons, I tell you) minutes before. I wanted advil and a nap, not to make four chocolate peanut butter banana shakes.

But would it really have been acceptable to answer with that? Even politely, to say "It's been a long night; I'm a bit stressed"? I doubt anyone would like that. I think most people would be caught off guard and at least slightly uncomfortable. Because when people ask how you're doing, a huge percentage of the time, they don't care about your answer. And we know this.

And I can't wrap this post up with an answer as to why we treat each other the way we do; I'm guilty of the same. But I just had to get that off my chest and I think it's worth recognizing that our small dishonest moments change the way we treat other people and by extension, the happiness of people around us.

Be honest--do you watch Jerry Springer? Are you totally judging me? And you deserve a prize for reading this whole thing. Props to you.