The dilemma of the dreamer who woke up to the real world

There are people that don't dream at all, 
there are people that dream, wake up, get over it and live their lives,
then there are people that dream but can't remember their dreams once they wake up
and then there are the dreamers that never actually quite wake up.

Arriving at a new place and quickly noticing you don’t belong there can be grueling and scary, especially if you’ve already been looking forward living in this place for a while.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I still love the city of my university. It’s a wonderful place, full of wonderful people and potential adventures awaiting but I didn’t expect being told right after arrival that they were going to kick me out of my temporary home after only two nights which didn’t exactly leave me a lot of time and room to still look for something permanent to live. Yet, I still decided to give it a try and spend hours over hours looking through the websites of estate agencies and accommodations for rent – unfortunately though, all, literally ALL, of the results I had gotten were either way too far, unfurnished, didn’t have any bills included or totally out of my budget.
So I sat back reflecting for a while and came to the conclusion that it eventually was going to be best to just go on a gap year for now, especially since this study year was initially thought of as a time filler until I could apply to another university for an entirely different course that I had only missed the deadline for. I thought to myself:  “Of what avail is this one year insight into a BA in business going to be to me if I am going to be homeless (because, yes, I can afford my tuition fees but, let's be really honest here, I can certainly not afford paying 1000GBP or even more for my accommodation only in addition to that)?!
I’m a spontaneous person, hard to get down, but it did frustrate and hurt me having to scrap the idea of studying this course for a year – especially because rejecting an idea once it has taken a hold of me is not usually something that would ever come to my mind.
It’s not actually frustrating and hurtful because I feel sad since I obviously won’t get the chance to study this course, it’s frustrating and hurtful because this experience has made me feel so weak and immature, not capable of managing my life and getting over any obstacles on my own – simply, not ready for adult life. 
It completely casted the delusional image I have had of myself as the “independent and always secure and extremely emotionally stable 19-year-old” out of the window while the actual me stayed behind staring into the chaotic and stormy ocean aka. "adult life" watching the wind carry it away until it got out of sight.
Let me tell you, when you spend almost your entire lifetime imagining yourself in a certain position, as a certain person at a certain age and then learn that whatever you have imagined yourself to be isn’t the actual you, then that can be extremely challenging and stressful! And that is the exact situation I’m in at the moment. Right now, I’m actually rather frustrated but once that feeling is gone, I suppose all that will be left is going to be fear of the future. What is gonna happen if the very center, the protagonist, of all your plans, concepts and ideas is suddenly gone? That changes everything. It’s like you’ll have to completely redefine yourself.
I felt like an adult, independent and free, after graduating from high school, leaving the protected environment I've studied in to conquer the world (aka. starting university) and all that suddenly vanished and left the scary actual image of myself: an insecure, naive teenager, totally helpless and with no plans of how actual life works.
See, that’s the big issue if you’ve been pampered all your life because at some point people are gonna stop offering their support, being concerned with your problems and taking care of you 24/7 and that’s when the shock, the realization that the real world is not at all the place where you’ve been living so far, hits you and it hits you with an incredibly relentless brutality leaving no room and time for dreams or castles in the air anymore – Now the problem with this is, no room for dreams also means no room for dreamers and no room for dreamers means no room for me. 
So for the coming months, until my actual course at my actual university is going to start it will be my job to “find myself” because, as stupid as this might sound, I’m finally understanding the importance of all this and what people actually mean when they talk about this stuff now!
In a way, I’m even glad I’ve made the experience at this point in time, as there is still time for me to change and find out who and what I actually am. 

I think this is a state most dreamers will find themselves in at some point of their lives, it's scary to suddenly 'wake up', not knowing if or when you'll ever be able to dream again, but although this might a gloomy time, it is certainly not a time to throw in the towel! I'm a firm believer that situations like this are supposed to teach us a lesson, and more importantly, that they, like the entire journey we call 'life', are supposed to be made the best out of. 

My intention is not to scare any of you who are still about to graduate and start university with this post. All I wanted was to simply tell you my story and recent experiences so that you won’t make the same mistake and wake up one day finding yourself in the same quandary that I’m in at the moment. 
So before you start your course/job (or whatever you are going to do after you graduate from high school or college), do some serious self reflection – this might sound ridiculous – but seriously, if you’re not 100% sure of how you are going to manage, live, afford things, arrange your time wisely, etc., think about a way to be 100% sure of all those things. Plan everything in advance, and in addition to that, maybe even develop a plan B just in case so you’ll be prepared if things don’t run as smoothly as you expect them to straight after the motto: "Hope for the best, prepare for the worst."
And then, even in the unlikely case of you getting into a situation similar to mine, always keep in mind: 

xx ♡ Micky

The autumn blues and how to fight it

 The smell of rain and soil is in the air, sunsets look like paintings and the colorful leaves turn the world into a real existing impressionism. No doubt, autumn is a festival for our eyes, if only there wasn't this bad weather and the gloomy, short days!

If you live in a region where the seasonal changes are quite big, say Scandinavia or Canada you will most likely have heard of this or even experienced this yourself – autumn depression or "autumn blues", as experts like to call it, can have many symptoms that stress humans physically and mentally with the most common ones being mood swings, tiredness and sluggishness. 

Now to really fully fight or, in the best case, prevent any kind of depression you need to trigger the cause first, right? 

So why do so many people suffer from the autumn blues?

Well, with this kind of depression this has primarily turned out to be the lack of sunshine in our daily lives and the rapid change of it in comparison to the much brighter summer days.
Darkness in combination with bad weather reduce our body's production of serotonin, the 'happy homone' and could even trigger SAV (=seasonal affective disorder) leaving you really feeling even worse. This is also why autumn blues mostly affects people living in areas where this lack of sunshine becomes really obvious with the change of the seasons

Now what can you do against this?  
  
The first measure you can take against the autumn blues is, obviously, daylight: 

• Try to spend as much time outside as possible while the sun is still up, take a walk or go to jog in the park rather than the gym. According to neuroscientists the daylight, even on overcast days, is still 500-1000 times brighter outside than in your home, so this should already have a really positive effect on how you feel. 

• Of course you can also consider traveling to a warm and sunny country like Egypt, for instance, to soak up some sun. 

• However, if you don't have the time to do all this during day time, daylight lamps could be your salvation. These lamps are especially popular in Scandinavia where autumns and winters can be very gloomy, they are very bright and have a similar effect as daylight does. 

 Next to enough exposure to light and exercise, the right diet is also key to keep you feeling happy. Especially in the gloomier seasons you should pay more attention to what you eat because the lack of serotonin might make you crave serotonin-boosting carbs which can quickly make you gain weight if you aren't careful. 

• So instead of the usual pasta, rice & potatoes, try to switch to delicious pumpkin, sweet potatoes and swedes sometimes, these orange vegetables are all great sources of Vitamin C, antioxidants and fibre. 

•  Apples and pears might also help lighten up your mood on the darker days because they contain heart-healthy flavonoids and soluble fiber which helps reduce cholesterol and boosts digestion. 

• Of course you can also treat yourself with a piece of chocolate sometimes since this is known as a 'happy maker' as well. ;)

I wish you all the luck for fighting the depression this season and, honestly, if you do work against it using some of this advice, you should have some pretty good chances to win this fight! 

xx ♡ Micky

Beauty Pills

Mirror, mirror on the wall – who's the fairest of them all?

Striving for perfection and beauty has been a curse to mankind since thousands of years and since it is apparently something so vital that does not seem to fade away anytime soon, beauty industry is always working on new innovations to make us spend even more money on things that, let's be honest, we actually don't need. Us, a society so thirsty for beauty and perfection that some of us would stop at nothing to achieve their ultimate goal because "beauty is power", right?

Now I'm not here to keep on ranting about how ethically wrong all this is and how we're all tricked by industry and media into believing that only one certain look is the ideal.
I'm here to talk about something much less philosophical, beauty pills. My beauty pills to be exact.
Now hang on a minute! They're probably not what you think they are – they are actually just vitamins & minerals, vitamins & minerals that can make you pretty and I'm gonna share with you what vitamins they are. ;)

So here's a list of the stuff my 'beauty pills' contain: 

Pink pills (these pills are especially good for a strong conjunctive tissue): 

• 80mg Vitamin C
• 1mg copper
• 50µg Biotin 
• Pineapple-extract

Bronze pill (this pill is especially good for a vital skin) :

• Vitamin C 
• Zinc
• Vitamin A & E
• Coenzym Q10 
• Hyaluronic acid

White pill (this is a pill especially for vegetarians and vegans):

• 10mg Iron
• 5µg Vitamin B12
• 5µg Vitamin D
• 400mg Calcium
• 5mg zinc
• 100µg Yod
• Vitamins B1, B2 & B6

*I can't mention the name of the companies that I buy them from because I don't like giving plugs on my blog.

So as you can see these pills are loaded with vitamins and minerals! 
I take those vitamin supplements because I simply don't feel like my diet, although it is very healthy, is really providing me with 100% of the vitamins my body needs each day. As a vegetarian I do rely on iron pills anyways so I thought to myself: why not add some other important vitamins that your diet might not provide in the amounts your body needs them?

I hope you enjoyed getting to know more about one of my little "beauty secrets" and if you're interested in buying your own I think now that you know what my 'beauty pills' contain you might be able to find similar vitamin supplements in your local drug store or pharmacy but always make sure you're not allergic to any of the ingredients before taking them! 

xx  ♡ Micky

Veganism 2.0

Sooo, with the end of this month the end of my little vegan experiment has come and here are some of the experiences I made during this time.
It wasn't always easy to shop for groceries since you always have to keep a very close eye on the actual ingredients of that product, I noticed that 'traces of egg or milk' are literally contained in the most absurd groceries that you would never have guessed. However, I was also equally surprised at how some foods that I would have sworn contained milk or egg, don't. Did you for instance know that dark chocolate is often vegan? Most noodles you can buy in the supermarket also are vegan!
But don't be fooled here! When I did some research on vegan snacks that I could still eat in the beginning of my experiment I often ended up on websites praising 'Oreos' but when I actually went to the official Oreo website and checked the suitability in the FAQ it was strongly pointed out that it wasn't suitable for vegans... shame!
Anyways I didn't give up, especially since I'm not really a fan of salty snacks, which are vegan most of the time btw., and after a while I found that there are actually vegan substitutes to almost any snack you could think of. 
There is even a 100% vegan chocolate made with soy milk and since I'm an absolute chocolate lover I decided to try two of those soy milk chocolate brands out..

The vego bar was one of the bars I tried together with a bar by Cuor Di Soja chocolate.

These chocolates, however, didn't really have me convinced - they were more brittle and really tasted different from the usual chocolate. They did the job to stop my cravings for chocolate though so I think, if you just need a piece of chocolate once in a while and as long as you don't love it absolutely passionately, these chocolate substitutes will do.

The raspberry snack was my favorite here.

Another tasty snack to replace jelly babies, were those dried pieces of fruit for me - they're healthier than their non-vegan alternative and, quite frankly, they taste way better and more intensive!

I have also tried vegan cheese! One pizza topping cheese and one with peppers that you could eat right away.

The vegan cheese I loved so much was the pepper one by violife.

The pizza topping, didn't really melt in the oven and tasted a little too sweet to really confuse it with the actual cheese. The normal vegan pepper cheese was great, though & I ended up absolutely loving it (which is weird because I'm usually not really a big fan of cheese)!

The most important main-meal vegan substitute turned out to be tofu and of course I was already familiar with this since, as a vegetarian, this is something I like to have on my plate here and then, too. I actually came across a lot of tasty and quick tofu recipes in my time as a vegetarian that I really loved so I might be publishing a post about my favorite tofu-recipes on here very soon. ;)

Although these are all great snack- & food substitutes my ultimate lifesaver during this month was Soya for sure! The milk and dairy products that you can get from this bean are all 100% vegan and, since I couldn't properly start into the day without my müsli or a tasty yoghurt, Soya products were definitely a must for me here! 

My favorite brand for Soya products is definitely Alpro.

For those who, like me, didn't quite make friends with the natural taste of the soy milk, there are different taste variations such as coconut and almond - I LOVE the coconut flavored one & the vanilla flavored soy yoghurt to which I like to add some fresh berries, too!
So healthy and so delicious!

So if you are really trying, it's nowadays not hard at all anymore to find vegan replacements to your ordinary foods with many of them tasting really good and authentic, too! Eating out in restaurants hasn't been a big problem either since I was usually simply able to order vegetarian dishes without the cheese or other dairy or egg ingredients and whenever this wasn't possible you could always still order a tasty salad!

Apart from the obvious changes in my diet, however, I honestly didn't notice much of a difference – Quite frankly, I was expecting I would feel a lot healthier but maybe I didn't notice a difference here because I've already been a vegetarian, so already been living pretty healthy before.. 
Oh, I didn't lose any weight either btw. not like that has been my intention but it would have been a nice extra, too! I did notice my skin becoming better, though! It seems to be more bright and there are less impurities! 
Maybe I should have done the vegan experiment for a longer period of time to notice more of an effect or maybe the improvement of my skin was the only thing I would have noticed even then... 

Anyways it was definitely worth the experience! But I am also happy it has ended now and I can go back to my delicious dairy yoghurts & actual chocolate of all kinds but one thing I will definitely keep in my food repertoire is the delicious coconut flavored soya milk for sure!  

Are you vegan or have you tried it before? 

What were the changes you noticed? 

xx ♡ Micky

Veganism

Ok, so I'm planning on starting a little experiment very soon..
After having integrated the vegetarian lifestyle for about 6 years now I actually think it is time to conquer new frontiers. I feel like after all these years of eating veggie, I've just become too convenient in my eating habits - and admittedly they are still not always healthy - that it's time for a change. 
I decided to go vegan because, well, vegan food is very healthy and sooo delicious! 
– also a little out of curiosity..  
I don't know how hard it will be for me to eat vegan only and for how long I will be able to keep up with a vegan diet - I also wanna watch the effects it will have on my health so I'm intending on starting a little experiment of only eating vegan for the whole month of August. 
By the end of August I will then post another follow-up post on my experiences with veganism. 
My expectations however so far are pretty positive. I know it won't be easy for me though, especially since I tend to be quite a yoghurt- and chocolate-addict so I think dairy products will definitely be the hardest to cut out of my daily diet but I will have to find the soya replacements and honestly some of them aren't even that bad.
For information, tips and food for thought I visited vegansociety.com , a website all about veganism. I especially liked their page to why go vegan? where they are stating some interesting information about the benefits of going vegan, so check it out if you're also interested in trying out the vegan lifestyle!
I think this is going to be very interesting and I'm actually intending on including some of my favorite vegan recipes by the end of August, too.
I'm glad I now have something to look forward to for the beginning of next month. :)

Are you vegan or have you ever tried being vegan for a while? 

What were your experiences? 

P.S. I'm going to be in Switzerland from tomorrow until the 2nd or 3rd of August so I'm uploading this a little early but I'm still trying to stay as active as I can on here during this time. 

xx ♡ Micky

Letting go of negative relationships

Since this vacation started I've just surprisingly noticed how good and balanced I finally feel again. 
For a while I thought it was just the fact that there is much less stress in my life at the moment and surely that will have been one factor but another, more interesting point I've noticed is that I stopped worrying about the negative people in my life so much. I'm not gonna lie about it, I've spent the past months surrounded by some really egocentric and narcissistic people and I'm pretty sure them being out of my life is one of the reason for me feeling so much better. . .

"Human beings are social creatures. We are social not just in the trivial sense that we like company and not just in the obvious sense that we each depend on others. We are social in a more elemental way: simply to exist as a normal human being requires interaction with other people." - Atul Gawande

Like you just have read in the quote above from Atul Gawande we all know we are social creatures and we need each other. We need relationships. Unfortunately no matter how much you want them to work, some relationships just don’t... Relationships can be real obstacles to a happy life. I've found some people I've encountered in the past (especially ones that turned into friends) to be surprisingly bad for me and my self confidence. I'm sure we've all known this one person that secretly hated us for no apparent reason at all and constantly tried to make us feel self-conscious by talking us down. 

Is a relationship of any kind filled with negativity or does it trigger you in some way? 
If, then you should consider to let this relationship go.

In a romantic relationship you can come to a point at which you have to think about whether you should continue or end the relationship. But ending non-romantic relationships isn’t something we think about that often.

There’s nothing easy about letting go of a relationship. However, getting rid of negative or triggering influences is crucial for living a happy life.

Here are some tips if you might find yourself facing an unhealthy relationship to someone:

#1 Create some space

By distancing yourself from a negative person in your life you can easily find out if they are really the reason for your unhappiness. If you notice you feel a lot better whenever a specific person isn't around, you can be pretty safe so say that this person is impacting your life negatively! 

#2 Be honest but realistic 
Try, if possible, to be honest with the other person. If there is something that really bothers you about them but you suspect they might be doing it unintentionally, just tell them about it.

#3 Celebrate the positive
Positive influences can make it easier to let go of the negative ones. So if you have just decided to distance yourself from a friend who had a negative impact on an area of your life, try spending more time with people that make you feel better.

#4 Focus on yourself 

 I've found this pretty important; The more you love, care and respect yourself the easier it will be to cope with letting go of someone. If you don't respect yourself, how do you expect other people to do so? 

I believe life is a journey and we are going to encounter all sorts of people on our way but in order to be perfectly happy we need to ensure that only the positive ones stay in our lives!

 I hope this entry was helpful for some of you :)

xx ♡ Micky

Feeling down? Here's 5 ways to use body language to make yourself feel great!

We all have those days, when you just feel like staying in bed all day with internet connection and food. Social interactions? No, thanks! You feel way too low to even fake the happiness and there's absolutely nothing you could do to change the way you feel today.. Wait - What? The title of this post is about how to make yourself feel better inaspects as simple as body language? Yes! And trust me, it's really simple! 

Need a quick pick-me-up? Skip the coffee, and instead, stand straighter, 
smile and even try imitating a cheerful walk to lift your spirits. 

So here are 5 easy ways to transform a 'using-bad-mood-as-an-opportunity-to-be-a-hermit' kind of day into a 'I-really-feel-like-going-out-today' kind of day! 

taken from:http://thespiritscience.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/happiness-is-a-butterfly.jpg

#1 

Increase Your Body Space

When you’re feeling nervous, uncertain and or afraid, you may find yourself crossing your arms or legs or may be putting your hands in front of our face or mouth. That’s called “body blocking,” and it’s a universal sign of discomfort, Carter says. To feel better, he advises flinging your limbs out and taking up more space. Making yourself and your space bigger conveys confidence, not just to those around you, but also to your brain.

#2
Walk like you mean it

Scientists at Canada’s Institute for Advanced Research had two groups of study participants walk on a treadmill, one with their shoulders slumped and with a slow gait, and the other in a more cheerful fashion. As they walked, the test subjects were shown a list of positive and negative words.
The depressed walkers recalled more negative words, while the cheerful walkers remembered the upbeat words on the list, suggesting that their body language during the test had affected their moods and memory. The lesson here? Lift your head and stand tall, and you may just see your spirits look up as well.  


#3
Flash those pearl whites!

You know the saying “If you fake it you can make it”? Well, it’s actually true when it comes to smiling. Since the 1970s, research has shown that even a manipulated smile can boost your mood. A genuine smile - one that involves both the mouth and the eyes - does all kinds of great things for you, like releasing endorphins into your bloodstream and boosting your immune system.
What’s more, researchers at the University of Kansas found that people who smile have better heart recovery rates after stressful events. So, if you find yourself in a stressful situation, a smile could just be what the doctor ordered.


#4
Pose it up

Try a power pose to restore your confidence. Either raise your arms in the victory pose or put your hands on your hips like Superman, and then hold for a few moments. “Power posing” can help reduce cortisol (stress hormone) levels while increasing feel-good hormones.


#5

Laughter really is the best medicine

Laughter is a great mood booster—it allows your muscles to relax, improves blood sugar, and raises and then beneficially lowers blood pressure levels, according to the Mayo Clinic. Because laughing is a social thing (you’re 30 percent more likely to laugh with others than alone), it decreases isolation. But that laughter better be the real thing: It turns out that the brain can easily detect the difference between real and fake laughter.

You might find that some of these tips might work better than others on you but I can promise that you'll feel at least a little better if you try to integrate some of them in your daily routine. :)  

Keep smiling, it makes you look beautiful! 

xx  ♡ Micky

My personal Top 10 foods for healthy eating!

Recently, I have become more health conscious and decided to introduce new and healthier foods into my diet. Not because I'm trying to lose weight or anything, but because I want to take better care of my body, as a whole. There are some foods I have found to be very healthy, make me feel good, and taste good too. So, here are my top 10 foods for healthy eating.

1. Dark Leafy Greens

Leafy green vegetables tend to be low in fat, high in dietary fiber, and rich in folic acid, vitamin C, vitamin K, vitamin A, potassium, magnesium, iron, and calcium. This can help promote heart and bone health. I'm not a huge fan of green vegetables but I love taking leafy greens and incorporating them into smoothies with ice, some water, and fruit. It's healthy and simply tastes like whichever fruit I chose to use (such as bananas or strawberries).

2. Nuts

Natural, unsalted almonds and walnuts for instance make a great snack. Nuts are rich in vitamin E, calcium, magnesium and potassium. They can be great for weight maintenance. The fiber, protein and fat content of nuts means it only takes a handful to keep you feeling full so you won't have the urge to overeat. 

3. Watermelon

Watermelon is a perfect snack for those of you that are maintaining a 'calorie'-oriented diet since they are very low in calories and are even said to be "negative in calories" which basically means the body burns off more calories digesting them then they actually provide. And of course they are also perfect to keep you hydrated throughout the day.
I love to add some salt when I have them since this usually, believe it or not, adds to their sweet taste.  


4. Berries

Blueberries, strawberries, rasberries, and blackberries are delicious and they're also good for you. Berries are packed with antioxidants which can help protect your hair, skin, and prevent certain diseases.

5. Yogurt

Plain yogurt can be a very healthy snack. It contains probiotics which can aid in gastrointestinal health. It may even boost your immune system. I particularly like mine with some oats, fruit and syrup as a natural sweetener. 

6. Fish

Fish are high in protein and low in fats. However, some types of fish are high in Omega-3's which is known as the "good" fats. Omega-3 fatty acids can help maintain cardiovascular and neurological health. These types of fish would include salmon, sardines, tila pila, rainbow trout, or albacore tuna.

7. Pomegranate Seeds

These sweet seeds are loaded with Fiber, key vitamins and and minerals such as Potassium and Vitamin K and can even help your skin to look better and aid in overall making you look prettier and more refreshed! They are also high in phytochemicals that can help to prevent cancer and promote heart health.

8. Avocados

Avocados are rich in satisfied fats and are proven in one study to lower cholesterol levels by about 22%! Like pomegranate they can also help to dramatically reduce the risk for heart diseases.
Avocados are a food that I just love to eat pure - just cut them in half, remove the core, add some salt, pepper and lemon juice and eat the soft inside of the avocado with a spoon. Yum!
But for those of you who don't like them pure I have also found them to be very tasty with bread (I use wholegrain), for breakfast or brunch, for instance, or in a salad.

9. Oatmeal

Oatmeal is full of fiber which can be very beneficial to our health. Oatmeal can help in lowering "bad" cholesterol levels as well. This is one of my favourite food when I need an energy boost right after I get up. I love having them for breakfast, simply add milk and syrup, pop them in the microwave and put bananas (or berries) and or some nuts on top when it's ready. 

10. Dark Chocolate

I know, chocolate is typically not seen as a healthy food. However, this is one of those things where moderation is important. Natural, unrefined, and high quality dark chocolate in small amounts can actually be quite healthy. It's loaded with minerals and packed with antioxidants which can be very beneficial to the body.


Are you hungry, yet?  
These were my personal favourites for healthy eating and some yummy snack ideas. 
What are some foods you like to eat to stay healthy or give yourself an energy boost? 

xx ♡ Micky