Author Archives: MonicawithRA

September 2013 Favorites (Caution: Word-Heavy)

09 Wednesday Oct 2013

Posted by in Reviews, Skincare

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I finished my tub of Nivea Soft. I pulled out my half-empty Egyptian Magic Cream from last spring (I had to shelve it for the summer). I adore this cream. I only need a quarter size amount for my face and neck. It is very greasy so I have to be careful. I emulsify the product between my fingers and pat it all over. My skin is very oily but I only break out on this product for the first couple of days before I get used to it. Usually if a cream breaks me out, it will continuously break me out. I am not sure why Egyptian Magic does not follow suit but I am not complaining.

 

I started using Dior Pure Poison as my daily perfume. It is the closest to my all-time favorite Dior Tendre Poison. It is light and floral enough for day. I use the spicier notes of Dior Poison in the evenings and they layer very nicely together.

 

The weather deities granted us a second summer! At the end of August I bought tons of new sweaters. I was so thrilled to start wearing them until the temperatures rose to the 80s. Enter my prematurely stored Urban Outfitters BDG Mid-Rise Alexa shorts. These are the only shorts that fit me well. I am a short, petite, curve-less woman and I can never find shorts that fit. I love all the colors they come in, especially the bright red!

 

I saved the best for last!

Benefit’s Watt’s Up highlighter & Bad Gal Lash mascara and Pond’s Wet Cleansing Towelettes will always have a very special place in my heart. I recently crashed out at a friend’s house and did not pack my usual skincare. When I spend the night out I do not usually wash my face before bed. However, I use the towelettes the next morning to quickly remove grime. Additionally, I wake up pretty pale in the mornings and the rubbing from the wipe pumps blood back into my face.

Anyways…

The next morning my amazing Bad Gal Lash mascara had not flaked or come off. At all. I was amazed. My makeup looked exactly the same as the night before. After “washing” my face, I added Watt’s Up to my nose, the inner corners of my eyes, under my brow bone, chin, temples and forehead. I finished with two swipes of mascara and I was set. I looked fantastic. The highlighter made me look completely awake and blurred any puffiness.

I looked put together enough for work and nobody could tell I did not complete my usual skincare routine.

 

Hi, my name is Monica and I have RA.

NAIL October Theme 2: Autumn Leaves

07 Monday Oct 2013

Posted by in Nail Art

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Below is my submission for the second theme in the Nail Art Ideas Link-up hosted by Eeeek! Nail Polish! and CraftyNail!

 

DSCF4769_fotor

I used two coats of Urban Decay “Naked” as the base.

For the detailing I used Milani “Dark Coffee” and “Foxy Lady”; Zoya “Suvi”; Color Club “Wham! Pow!”; and Urban Outfitters “Westside”.

 

Hi, my name is Monica and I have RA.

Halloween Nail Art Contest

07 Monday Oct 2013

Posted by in Nail Art

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Short and Sweet in Texas is holding a Halloween Nail Art contest and I decided to submit a picture!

I am so excited about this because I incorporated the marbling and sugar-spun techniques. Spiders terrify me so after I finished taking pictures I just ignored my thumb.

 

I hope you enjoy it and please vote for my submission. I believe it is the 3rd picture in the album.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.592089537519139.1073741830.540216189373141&type=3

 

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Bases:

Ring: Color Club “Wham! Pow!”

All others: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear “White On” covered by butter London “Knackered”

Detailing:

Water-Marble: Orly “Bonder”; Wet n Wild “Black Creme”

Sugar-Spin: Essie “No Place Like Chrome”; SpaRitual “Bismuth”

Free-hand Spider and Web: Milani “Black Swift”, Essie “No Place Like Chrome”, SpaRitual “Bismuth”

The bat was a water decal purchased from the Born Pretty Store. I am not sure if I applied it correctly because the sticker came off white.

 

Hi, my name is Monica and I have RA.

Dumb Sh*t People Say: RA Edition – Series One, Part Three

05 Saturday Oct 2013

Posted by in Dumb Sh*t People Say Series, Rheumatoid Arthritis

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“But you don’t look sick…”

 

The silver lining. The very vain silver lining: I don’t look sick!

The visible symptoms would be side-effects of the medications I am on:

  • I bloat on prednisone
  • My hair thins, loses its shine, and falls out on methotrexate
  • If I forget to take my painkillers I pale
  • I break out like mad
  • My eyelashes fall out

The list is extensive.

So is my beauty/skincare regime and so is my diet.

I wrote a couple of posts on my skincare regime earlier. I am very proud of my skincare.

It is nice to know that something in that line-up is working!

After all, if I did not follow it to a tee, I would look very unwell.

 

Part One explains why this comment is not ok.

Part Two contains my reaction.

 

Hi, my name is Monica and I have RA.

Will I Learn?

05 Saturday Oct 2013

Posted by in Rheumatoid Arthritis

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I know I have physical limitations.

 

Sometimes:

I cannot pick up my cat.

I cannot carry the ceramic dog bowls.

I sit on the floor and cannot get up…

 

Let me preface by saying I climbed today after work. YAY! I rock-climbed after almost two months! Serious YAY!!!!

I climbed two climbs. I sat down to put my shoes on for the third climb and I got stuck. I could not roll over and get up. I tried to use a floor anchor to pull myself up and ended up doing a somersault. It was very comical.

Red flashing lights: MONICA! YOU ARE DONE FOR THE NIGHT. DO NOT CLIMB ANYMORE! STOP! STOP! STOP!

If I am stuck on the floor and cannot get up on my own I should not climb. For that matter, I should not do anything at all.

The best course of action was to stop.

Instead, I decided to hop on the climb that I knew was well out of my range for the night. I might have actually said: “What is the worst that can happen?”

 

…

 

I did not complete the climb and I tweaked my hip and knee.

Whoops.

My doctor, my friends, and my dad always tell me I should take better care of myself. I get in trouble with my doctor because I know what the consequences are.

 

I amaze myself. Generally, I am a very calculated person. I never do anything without reason.

I go through periods when I am more careful than usual:

I only take the infusion once a month. If I flare up I can only increase the prednisone. That is not an option.

Everyone is sick. I stay away from them. I cannot afford to get sick.

I am having trouble getting out of bed. Let me rest today and nap a lot.

Then

I go through periods when I do things I am not supposed to and I honestly have no good reason for it:

Maybe this time will be different.

Maybe I am daring my body to break down.

Maybe I am just angry.

 

When will I learn?

(Maybe I should start a “Dumb Sh*t Monica Does” Series…I definitely have enough material for that. Hah!)

 

Hi, my name is Monica and I have RA.

Dumb Sh*t People Say: RA Edition – Series One, Part Two

05 Saturday Oct 2013

Posted by in Dumb Sh*t People Say Series, Rheumatoid Arthritis

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“…but you don’t look sick!”

 

I struggle with my physical limitations but I also struggle with the new and unfamiliar mental strain.

The thoughtlessness behind this comment always reminds me of the demons lurking at the back of my mind:

 

How much does the disease actually affect me?

vs.

How much does stress or over-though affect me?

 

(These ideas will come up again in another series)

I am battling an invisible illness. Everyone bases their opinions, ideas, and plans of action on how I feel.

 

Maybe I cannot brush my teeth or pick up my pets because I am more stressed. After all, the mind is a very powerful tool.

But it is not powerful enough to create an entire disease, right?

An over-active imagination cannot allow my immune system to destroy the cartilage around my joints, right?

…Right?

 

And when people say this and suspend belief at their convenience, I realize no one sees what I am going through.

I feel alone.

I feel like a hypochondriac.

 

Part One conveys why this comment is not ok to say.

Part Three contains the silver lining.

 

Hi, my name is Monica and I have RA.