Thankyou + Random Haul

Helloooo
Before I begin the haul, I just wanted to say THANKYOU!!! I have had some lovely comments about my previous post (if you haven't read it yet, make sure you check it out!!) So many people have been saying such encouraging things. I was very nervous to see how people would react to the post, so seeing people enjoy reading and learning about Anxiety and Tic disorders means so much to me!! 

<3

Anyway, on with the haul!! For a while, I have been meaning to show you all what I have bought recently. I've been waiting a while so the haul wouldn't be just a couple of things. So here it goes!!

Priceline

The first thing I have to show you is some nail polish I bought from Priceline. I have recently gotten back into wearing nail polish. So I decided I needed to get some colours that are a bit more bold. On the day I went in, they had a sale on, so I ended up buying 3 for the price of 2 I think. They are $7.95 each, so I only had to pay 15.90

The first one is a called Apricot Punch, no. 053. It is a nice light apricot colour. This is probably my favourite, it’s so pretty!

The next one is called Sunny Days, no. 450. This is a bright yellow that sparkles..I haven’t tried this one yet; it’s definitely not something I’d usually wear. But maybe when I am feeling brave..

The last one I bought is called Sun Downer, no. 440. It's not quite red, just really close to it I think. 

Lavisa

The next thing I bought was a couple of necklaces. I found these on the sale rack and were $7 each from Lavisa. They are the same shape and style just different colours.

This one is a nice, bright and bold orange. I have been into orange a lot lately. It sort of goes with nearly everything in my wardrobe. So I expect I will be wearing this one a lot!

This one is a light pink and purple pattern. I will probably wear this when something a bit lighter.

Ally Fashion

The first thing I bought from Ally Fashion was a knitted jumper/top thing.. I didn't really have anything like this, and I really like what other people are wearing in the knitted department. So I thought I should buy something and give it a go. I love it!! Every time go shopping I am always looking out for something knitted I can buy!! They are so warm and soft!! I just LOVE it!! I also bought a blue knitted top, but I couldn't find it to show you, It's my favourite at the moment.

The next thing I bought from Ally Fashion was a dress. When I saw this I knew I had to try it on. It is maroon with black velvet pattern. It was $30. It's nice and formal, but something I could get away with at a less semi formal thing I think.

The last thing I have bought recently from Ally Fashion was a t-shirt. It was on special for only $5, I couldn't not buy it!! It has a star above 3 arrows that point downwards.

Cotton On

Cotton on in my town has recently had a sale of 40% off pretty much everything!! I went in on the last day of the sale and had a bit of a look.

This first thing I spotted was this jumper. It was $18, and has a nice, soft fleece material  on the inside. It is a nice reddish colour with 'NY 1975' on the front. This jumper will be very handy now that it's winter!!

Next I found this really pretty top with 'We make the world shine' on it. They are very short sleeves with the ends rolled up. It is also quite baggy, so it will definitely be comfortable. I think it was about $5?

Lastly I found these really cute ballerina flats. I love wearing flats, especially when they are bright. This pair is a peachy colour with a nice bow at the end. They are also really soft to touch. I haven't worn them yet, but I am expecting they will be my go-to pair of shoes this weekend :).

I think that's everything! I know I have definitely missed things, but that was probably enough;). Comment below or message me on my twitter (kinah97) and tell me if you enjoy these sort of posts, and I am happy to hear suggestions of what some of my posts could be. I am also thinking about starting a YouTube channel and do these sort of videos.. So thoughts about that are also very welcome.

Byeee

~kinahgrace

P.s. Random Favourite Photo;
This was taken a couple of months ago at a local fair:)

Anxiety and Tic Disorders

I have been writing this for about a week, writing bits and pieces here and there. But it’s finally ready for you to read!! 

I’m not quite sure how to start this, as there is so much to say, so I think I will start by telling you why I’m telling you. I have read and watched many of the people I admire on YouTube and in blogs, sharing their stories and experiences with Anxiety and Tourette’s (Zoella's Blog, Capsar's YouTube). They gave me the confidence to share and explain my own story and experiences.

Anxiety.

I was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder when I was around the age of 8 years old. I am now nearly 16, so it has been half of my life, but it has gone quickly :)

What is anxiety?

 Everyone feels anxiety, and get anxious, but we all have it on different levels. My mum always explains it like this; “you might be on level 7, but others are just around 1”. When I get anxious I sweat, I begin to shake (whilst writing this I am shaking, because I am anxious to tell you..), I can’t concentrate, my breathing changes,  I get fidgety, I feel uncomfortable, I feel like I need to leave the room and  I feel sick. I haven’t really explained this very well, so I would highly recommend going to Zoe's Blog (linked above) and have a read. She explains it really well!! 

Why and when did it start for me?

I don’t think I will ever be sure when and why my anxiety started. I have always struggled with being around certain things. But there was a time where it really began to show (my behaviour changed around certain situations, so we looked more into it). It became more obvious around the age 7-8 mark.

What am I anxious about?

I am anxious about lots of different things at various times, these are some that I can think of now;

• ·         When I think I, or someone is in danger, even if it in actual fact all is well
• ·         When I think I could get in trouble
• ·         When I think I have done something wrong
• ·         When I think I have to confront someone (even asking a question to my teacher during recess) as I think I am being annoying, when I’m actually not
• ·         When there is a lot of attention on me
• 
  

Have I ever had an anxiety attack?

Yes, I have. There might be a time where I have none in a month, then sometimes I can have more than one in the same day (those attacks are normally about the same thing). I find myself very lucky, as most of them are small enough that I can sit there, relax, and try and talk myself through the situation. Sometimes I try and leave the situation. Although I have had some that I need to be away from people, and with my family. When I was in year 6 I was stressing so much that I faked sick and went home from school ( when I think about it now, having an anxiety attack is a pretty good  excuse to go home), but that was my first “big” one that was away from my family. Of course, my parents saw right through the “I feel sick” ploy straight away. When I think about that now I’m glad they did, because they took me back to school so we could explain to my teacher what really was happening (but they did let me have the rest of the day off:)

What do I do to relax?

Through the years I have figured out what works for me, everyone is different so different things will work for different people;

• ·         I tense up parts of my body, then release them.
• ·         Slow breathing (breathing in 5 seconds, breathing out 5 seconds)
• ·         Thinking about different things
• ·         I try not to talk to people, as I sometimes feel like crying
• ·         Reminding myself it will be alright
• ·         I also have an emergency exit card at school, so that when I do have an anxiety attack I can leave the room to go to the office. Although I haven’t used it, as I worry I am being a nuisance. But knowing that if it gets really bad I can leave, no questions asked.

Have I ever been on medication?

I have. A few years ago my anxiety levels were quite high, so I was put on an anti-anxiety medication. This helped in amazing ways! One thing I achieved whilst on the medication was being able to walk home from school by myself. That might not seem much of an achievement to some, but it meant the world to me! I was on the medication for about 2 years. As well as being on medication I have seen a few different psychologists, luckily I have only had to see them every now and then.

Tic Disorder

 As well as having an anxiety disorder, I also have a General Tic Disorder which was discovered just before I was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. We discovered it when I was getting blisters on my fingers by rubbing them together, we went to our doctor and he noticed other things. He referred me to a paediatric-neurologist who helped us out. When he was explaining it to me, he said that I just have a lot of energy in my body, and the only way I can release the energy is to do my tics. This made me a lot comfortable, and something I tell people when they are curious about why I have to do my tics.

Does this mean I have Tourette’s?

No, when I was first diagnosed I was told that to be diagnosed with Tourette’s, you had to have;

• ·         vocal tics
• ·         motor tics
• ·         have had it for more than a certain amount of time
• ·         had to have had no break from them (can’t have had a tick free few months)

As I don’t have any vocal tics, I wasn't diagnosed with Tourette's.

What do people with a tic disorder do?

Everyone has different tics. Some people might only have tics that use the muscles in their face, and some might only have vocal tics. I have several tics and have to use many different muscles to do them, just a few are;

• ·         A grimace on my face
• ·         Moving the back of my shoulders
• ·         Tightening my stomach muscles
• ·         Tightening the muscles around my knees.

Do I do them all at the same time?

Sometimes I will do a few tics at the same time; it really depends where I am. But I physically can’t do them all at the same time.

Does it hurt?

When I have been doing them quite a lot in a short space of time, it does start to hurt. But there is one that I really don’t like doing because it hurts and is uncomfortable every time I do it.

Do I constantly have to do them?

Depending on how I am feeling (if I am anxious, etc.) I might be just sitting there for a space of time constantly doing some tics. But a lot of the time, I might not even notice myself doing them as I have gotten used to doing them so much.

For some people, they might go a time where they don’t do there tics at all. But I have always (since being diagnosed) always had to do them. I also am noticing more that I wasn't aware of a few years ago. But sometimes they kind of fade, and I don’t notice them as much, and they aren't as sore (but are still there). But they always come back to their previous extent.

How do I overcome them?

I have gotten used to having tics. This year, I will have been diagnosed with a tic disorder for 8 years. Some of them are discreet, and can only really be noticed if you look carefully. But my facial ones are more obvious. But I can hide them by covering my face with my hand when I know I need to do a tic. But it doesn't really bother me if people know. It’s who I am; I don’t want to hide it too much. There is medication for severe cases, but I have never really felt that I have needed it. I also tense up my body, then release, it relaxes my body.

Are there times when I do them more?

Yes, when I am;

• ·         Tired
• ·         Uncomfortable
• ·         Feeling claustrophobic
• ·         Anxious
• ·         Nervous
• ·         Thinking about them

I would also like to mention, that my family has been so helpful and supportive.  My family always listen when I need someone to talk to. And I know they are and will always be there for me. They know when I am feeling anxious or am having trouble with my tics. As soon as I get home I feel relaxed and comfortable. They make me so happy!!

I decided to make this post so I could share this important thing about me with you, and because I believe the more we talk about these sorts of things people will understand more, and won’t be embarrassed by them. And hopefully, you might understand a bit more about neurological disorders.

I hope this might have helped some of you understand a bit more about some neurological disorders. If want more information, visit these websites- Beyond Blue (Anxiety) and Kids Health (Tics + Tourettes) 

If you have any questions, leave a comment below, or message me on my twitter (kinah97, link above to the right)

~kinahgrace

Favourite pic;

This was taken in the back hall of my church a few months ago-

May!!

Hi again. I'm so sorry that I haven't put up a post for over a month!! I've been so busy that I've had no time to write anything:/ I have definitely missed writing!! So in this post I am going to write about all that I have done last month.

My Fall

In the first week of May, I kind of fell over.. My foot fell asleep at my school assembly and when I got up I moved a couple of steps and my foot kind of collapsed under me. Luckily, I was surrounded by people, so only the people closest to me saw it:). Except, a lot of people saw me when I was wheeled in a wheelchair to the other side of the school, but they were more worried about be then to laugh. I was on crutches for four days, it was so much fun... that's me being sarcastic;).

Rostrum Speaking Competition

Earlier this year, I was asked by a teacher at my school if I would like to compete in a speaking competition. I had already competed in events like these before and had enjoyed them very much, so I immediately said yes! My speech had to be eight minutes long, with the choice of about five topics. I chose 'Born to Run'. I spoke about how in life we all have races we want to win, with hurdles being in the way. I talked about how Nelson Mandela and Helen Keller won their races, and had a group of people on the sidelines cheering them on. At the end, I spoke about how even the smaller goals can be hard to achieve, and that we should try to defeat the barriers in the way. As this was the night of 'my fall', I was on crutches. The audience and judges found it very ironic that I had to sit as I was unable to stand, whilst talking about being 'born to run';). After we all did our prepared speeches, we had 15 minutes preparing time to write a three minute speech on a topic. I chose 'Time Wasting'. I spoke about how to enjoy life, we need a mixture of working and having fun. Unfortunately, my short notice speech didn't go long enough. But I came second, and I know I tried my best and I am very proud of myself! All the judges spoke to me afterwards, encouraging me to come back next year. Something I will definitely be doing!

Simulation Baby

The week of me spraining my ankle, I was supposed to have a Simulation Baby as a task for my Child Studies class at school. My teacher agreed with me, thinking it would be hard caring for a baby whilst on crutches, so it got postponed.

When I got my Simulation Baby, I was excited. It didn't cry to much during the day. But when it got to night, I had what felt like no sleep. And when the baby wasn't crying, I couldn't sleep because I worried I wouldn't hear it crying!! The next day it only cried during class. It was so embarrassing! Luckily, people weren't too annoyed.

My dad, I think enjoyed having the baby in the house more than anyone in my home! As soon as I got home he held it and took photos of him holding it. Any excuse to burp it or feed it, he jumped at the chance to do so.;)

Eurovision

I love Eurovision! Every year me and my family sit down every night when it's on and watch it. This year we missed the first night, but we loved it nonetheless. My favourite was Malta, who sung Tomorrow. I have been constantly listening to this song at school. Did you watch it? Comment below what your favourite performance was!!

Red Shield Appeal

I am part of the Salvation Army, and every year we have the Red Shield Appeal. This is where we knock on doors, sit in in shopping centres, stand at intersections raising money so the Salvation Army can continue to help the less fortunate. I enjoy helping anyway I can for this cause. So last weekend, that is what me and thousands of people were doing.

Homework

I have had heaps of homework. I am in year 10 so as the years go on, I am finding myself getting more and more homework. As you would expect. It's half way through the term now, so this is when we get all our assignments and such. I just finished today one of the biggest assignments I think I have ever had. Luckily, I enjoyed doing it. To a point ;)

So there you have it, what my days have been like during the past month. I was thinking about doing this type of thing at the start of every month. If you have any thoughts on this or any other type of posts leave a comment below.:D

~kinahgrace

Favourite Photo;

I decided that at the end of each post, I am going to put up a 'favourite photo' that I have taken recently. 

This photo was taken when at my church. You can see the neighbouring church's spire.