New Favorite Quote

As I am about to turn 16, my past and future is greatly on my mind. I can't help but reflect on how I got here to create such a blog and really try to make a positive imprint on the world (even though it may be small). I can tell you honestly that if I let people's opinions of me affect me and my goals, I would have never gotten here. I can't even begin to count how many times I have shared an idea with an adult and they have turned me down and made me feel like my goals didn't matter. I have gotten, "Just focus on your education because whatever else you do won't matter and it won't become a success." This isn't even one of the worst ones and it still stung. At first all I wanted to do was hide in my room from the world and just give up. But then I realized it's the people who say stuff like this to me, have only fueled me more to try harder and become a success. I can let people's negative opinions of my goals affect me or I can show them I can do it and become a success. I choose the second choice because I know what I believe in-myself. If I believe in myself I can create my reality and my success. And I can tell you that those people who are trying to make you feel miserable don't believe in themselves and are "selling you their fears" (one of my favorite phrases). So here's my new favorite quote:

Other people's opinion of you does not have to become your reality.  ~Les Brown

Permit Test...Ahhhh!!!

My sixteenth birthday is coming up (this Friday), so I have been studying for my permit test. Honestly I have always been an extremely nervous test taker. The thought of my permit test is just quite freaky! I think we all have been waiting for the day when we can get our license/permit, but now that it's here, it's a bit frightening. So how am I preparing for my permit test without getting myself too stressed out? I have been reading the driver's manual (like a chapter a day). The key thing here is I am not cramming for it and stressing myself out. I also have been talking to my friends who have taken the test, and they have taken me through all the steps that I will go through at the DMV. This has helped me, so I am not shocked when I get there. Tonight before bed, when my anxious thoughts about the test crowd my head, I am going to visualize myself taking the test and being perfectly calm and in control and leaving the DMV with my permit. I try to practice visualization every time I have a test because it helps me relax and feel more in control of the situation! These are the steps I am taking to feel more comfortable and confident when taking my permit test!

Late Night Snack

I am not usually a late night snack person, but for some reason yesterday I was starving at like 10! You have to be careful with late night snacks because when you overheat before bed, your body is more likely to store these calories as fat. You can still eat something, just make sure it's the right snack! Last night, I had a half-a-cup of Udi's granola (it's gluten free) and unsweetened vanilla almond milk! So AMAZING! Popcorn, plain greek yogurt, and fruit are always good snacks too!

Summer Beach Workout

One of my favorite things about the summer is the beach and one of my favorite things to do is a intense workout. So when I found this beach workout suggestion on active.com, I wanted to share it with all my readers! I have been running lately, with my friend, Kayla, but we are always complaining that our feet are on fire and it takes away from our workout. We start to slow down and we complain more! So I found an article suggesting running in the water. To start off, first warm up on the sand with a light jog (about half-a-mile) then try some shuffles, lunges, and make sure to stretch! Then go out into the water, till it's just below knee-deep. Now you will run parallel to the beach and stay at this depth. Try 40yd-100yd dashes or time yourself for 30 seconds. The added resistance from the water will increase the intensity in your sprint! Try to repeat this at least 4-6 times!

Yoga for Stress Relief (especially during finals)

I am sorry for not posting in almost a week. I have Lyme disease and my symptoms came back full force, this week. So I am taking the antibiotics, but they make me feel worse. Luckily today is the first day I felt better! YAY! June is the month of finals for most students! Finals don't have to be stressful if you balance them with healthy food, exercise, and practicing some relaxation tips. If you think, you have no time for any of this, you are wrong. I use to freak out during finals and not take care of myself. I slept very little, ate anything, and just studied all the time. I have learned to practice yoga in times of stress and I take a yoga class every Monday. It's a great way to start my week and put me in a good mindset. Yoga helps loosen my muscles that get tense when I am stressed. Yoga poses are great to loosen the muscles, but practicing your breathing is just as or even more important. Shallow, rapid breaths are often correlated with stress. In yoga, the remedy for stress is yogic breathing. One way to do this is to focus on your breath. I like to count how many times I breathe in and out of my nose. Not only does this calm me down, but also distracts my brain from my constant thoughts! Feeling stressed? GO DO SOME YOGA!

Acne Tip from TeenSanity Reader, Spike

Spike commented on my acne solution using apples, and he suggested making a facial mask using strawberries and plain yogurt! So my sister and I did just that! Honestly my skin feels really good, but it smells bad because of the plain yogurt. Strawberries are a natural source of salicylic acid, one of the best acne fighting agents! Some even use it for toning and conditioning skin! If you feel like your running out of acne tips, try this one and you will have success!

Healthy Relationships

Whether it's your friends, family, boyfriend/girlfriend, having a healthy relationship is key! Relationships are fun and exciting, but can be detrimental if they are negative. We are constantly making new friends and leaving old ones behind, especially during these summer months. Personally, I feel, there are many bricks that build a relationship and keep it stable for all involved. Communication and sharing is a very big brick, and I consider it the base of any relationship! You are able to communicate common interests, share feelings, feel supported and not judged, and most importantly DO NOT LIE! Another important brick in the building of relationships is respect and trust. You learn to respect someone's opinion and trust them to respect yours'. Being able to work through disagreements, makes for a stronger relationship. In any relationship, make sure to keep it filled with honesty and trust because those are the best ones:)

Drugs on the Brain

For all those who feel drugs are "cool", well your wrong, it really isn't cool and in fact it makes you look stupid. Drugs make you do stupid things from the affect it has on your brain. Drugs are obviously chemicals; they work by breaking into our communication system and interfering with the way we receive, send, and process information. Because of their different chemical structure, different drugs have distinctive affects. For example, marijuana and heroin, activate neurons because their chemical structure copies one of a neuron transmitter. These drugs have the ability to "fool" receptors, and then lock onto them thus activating the nerve cells. But they don't act like a natural neurotransmitter, so the neurons send abnormal messages throughout the brain. Drugs, like amphetamines, can cause nerve cells to release extreme amounts of natural neurotransmitters or prevent the normal recycling of these brain cells. Thus sending an exaggerated message in the brain, in the end causing a frenzy in the communication channels. These are just some of the effects on the brain and the other effects aren't any better. So why do you do it? For the high? To escape your problems? First of all you can get a high from running more than 20 minutes without the nasty side effects. And I am positive that you are not escaping your problems, you are just creating more!