1. Start studying early: for me, that's about a week before the test. It's probably not enough time, but a) I need that bit of pressure in order for me to be productive, and b) it's better than leaving everything to two or three days before.
2. Start studying early: yes, I did list the same thing twice. But, what I'm getting at here is, start your study day early. My brain is usually fairly fresh (assuming its had a good night's sleep) in the morning. Also, getting up early means having more hours in the day to do everything you want to do.
3.Sleep >> studying: ever since undergrad, I've prioritized sleep over studying. There's no use staying up and cramming because a) your brain is already tired, b) when you wake up, you will be tired, and c) how much of that stuff are you actually going to remember when you're studying with your eyes barely open?
4. Stay healthy: don't skip meals, stay hydrated, and, like I've said already, sleep. You really don't want to get sick during a time where you need to be healthy and alert enough to cram a zillion lectures into your head; and you don't want to compromise your immune system when there's a billion of germs around.
5. Take breaks: walk away from your laptop. Look out the window. Talk to a friend. Grab a snack. Do a chore. Or watch some Youtube. Just, whatever you choose to do, focus your energy on something less intensive. You won't be able to stay sane or alert if you go at it for too long.
Now go kick those midterms' asses!
Love,
Yourself
September 30, 2016
September 21, 2016
HOW TO GET BETTER WHEN YOU'RE SICK: tips from the 'rents
Today marks a week since I was downed by a virus. It started with the most painful, sore throat I had ever felt in my life, followed by headache, fever, and muscle soreness everywhere (it was then I discovered I have abs, because why else would my abdominal muscles hurt, if I didn't have abs!?). And over the weekend, it evolved into a sinus infection AND bacterial conjunctivitis! Yes, it's been a wonderful week.
Thankfully, my parents took me home where I was able to rest up better than I probably would have if I stayed at school (the window in my room doesn't close completely so I can hear EVERYTHING). I'm also really thankful that they're always really willing to take care of me. It got me thinking - there has never been a time where I was really sick when my parents did not have to step in and take care of me. I.e. I always need my parents to take care of me when I'm ill. I'm a huge baby...
This being said... my parents have these weird home remedies that they always get me to do. Are they legit? I don't actually know. I mean, I'm alive today, so that probably says something about them. Here are just a few things they got me to do this time around:
1. "Gua sha (coin-rubbing) will make you feel instantly better - it will cure you!" I retort by saying there's no proof in its effectiveness or any traditional Chinese medicine. "So? Michael Phelps used cupping!"- Mom.
If you've never had this done to you before - I don't know how it's done elsewhere but I'll tell you how my mom does it. Basically, she uses some Chinese oil and a quarter. The oil goes along wherever she wants to scrape, which is generally in two lines along each side of the spine, and in horizontal lines radiating out from that. "The sicker you are, the darker the lines are!" my mom always says. Yeah, I know. Much legit.
Theoretically, it bursts a bunch of capillaries in the skin and releases "stagnant blood" - which kind of makes sense? You want blood flow to areas of the body that need it the most.
It's an agonizing process because it kind of hurts and kind of tickles and you're already miserable from the cold or flu and sitting upright isn't your thing at that moment. And you're left with a lot of bruising that kind of makes you look like a tiger. But despite being skeptical about it, I do have to say, I always feel a lot better after my mom scrapes the hell out of my back. I don't know what it is - the smell of the po sum on oil, the "good" pain as my mom calls it, or both.
2. "Never eat bananas when you have a cold or flu. They're practically toxic." I say I had one the day before and that I'm still alive. "Okay, well. Don't do it again." - Dad.
Generally, the consensus on the internet is that bananas are an acceptable food to eat when you have a cold or flu, which makes sense because bananas are rich in potassium, an electrolyte your body would need after bouts of puking and diarrhea. However, upon further research, apparently it's a "superstition" in some parts of the world that bananas will make your condition worse; and some people have even experienced worsened cough after eating bananas. Strange. Either way, I am still alive despite having two bananas during the course of my sickness.
3. "Warm fluids are always good for the throat!" I take a sip of the concoction and grimace, telling her that this isn't warm, it's scalding! "JUST DRINK IT!" - Mom
According to this source, warm and cold fluids both have pros. Warm fluids are soothing, and help loosen mucus in the throat, which can relieve congestion. Cold fluids are also soothing, and they help reduce inflammation and irritation.
My favourite things to drink out of all the concoctions my mom and dad throw at me are honey lemon tea (spoonful of honey + two slices of lemon or just the juice + boiling water) and ginger tea (diced/smushed up ginger + boiling water, honey makes it more pleasant).
4. "Soak your feet in hot water with slices of ginger while sitting under a blanket." After five minutes of sitting around and feeling like I'm suffocating myself, he pops by my room. "Are you sweaty?" I mumble. "GOOD!" - Dad
According to TCM (traditional Chinese medicine), your feet are very important for your overall health. Soaking them seems to have two benefits: 1) the hot water activates blood flow, and 2) the benefits of whatever the extra stuff you add to your foot bath. Sweating also supposedly "sweats out toxins" but I once read somewhere that this was a myth...
5. "You know what you can do? You can slice lemon - or lime - into thin slices, sprinkle with salt... and eat it!" I tell her I successfully downed two slices without crying. "Only two?! EAT THE WHOLE LEMON!" - Mom
For a lot of things my parents tell me to do, I wonder, "do other people do this, or is it just me?" So, do other people eat lemon slices? Is this a normal thing? Like I said, I usually just drink lemon tea, so eating it sounded... extreme.
If you haven't tried it. It. Burns.
I've decided to cheat and eat the lemon slices that I steep for my honey lemon tea, and they're a little more pleasant with the leftover sweetness from the honey. But is it any help? I can't say from experience, since today is only day two of munching on lemon slices. But lemons are good sources of vitamin C, and a bunch of other antioxidants and electrolytes, which are generally beneficial for the body.
-----------------------
Ironically, we had a lecture yesterday detailing the history of "medicine" and "healing". It really is amazing to see how far we've come since "magic powders" and theories about how we have four humors and bleeding people out to heal them. And yet, people still turn to weird home remedies, and swear by them!
Anyway, I'm feeling better thanks to antibiotics, nasal sprays, honey lemon tea, and naps... and maybe from the gua sha... we'll never know.
Thankfully, my parents took me home where I was able to rest up better than I probably would have if I stayed at school (the window in my room doesn't close completely so I can hear EVERYTHING). I'm also really thankful that they're always really willing to take care of me. It got me thinking - there has never been a time where I was really sick when my parents did not have to step in and take care of me. I.e. I always need my parents to take care of me when I'm ill. I'm a huge baby...
This being said... my parents have these weird home remedies that they always get me to do. Are they legit? I don't actually know. I mean, I'm alive today, so that probably says something about them. Here are just a few things they got me to do this time around:
1. "Gua sha (coin-rubbing) will make you feel instantly better - it will cure you!" I retort by saying there's no proof in its effectiveness or any traditional Chinese medicine. "So? Michael Phelps used cupping!"- Mom.
If you've never had this done to you before - I don't know how it's done elsewhere but I'll tell you how my mom does it. Basically, she uses some Chinese oil and a quarter. The oil goes along wherever she wants to scrape, which is generally in two lines along each side of the spine, and in horizontal lines radiating out from that. "The sicker you are, the darker the lines are!" my mom always says. Yeah, I know. Much legit.
Theoretically, it bursts a bunch of capillaries in the skin and releases "stagnant blood" - which kind of makes sense? You want blood flow to areas of the body that need it the most.
It's an agonizing process because it kind of hurts and kind of tickles and you're already miserable from the cold or flu and sitting upright isn't your thing at that moment. And you're left with a lot of bruising that kind of makes you look like a tiger. But despite being skeptical about it, I do have to say, I always feel a lot better after my mom scrapes the hell out of my back. I don't know what it is - the smell of the po sum on oil, the "good" pain as my mom calls it, or both.
2. "Never eat bananas when you have a cold or flu. They're practically toxic." I say I had one the day before and that I'm still alive. "Okay, well. Don't do it again." - Dad.
Generally, the consensus on the internet is that bananas are an acceptable food to eat when you have a cold or flu, which makes sense because bananas are rich in potassium, an electrolyte your body would need after bouts of puking and diarrhea. However, upon further research, apparently it's a "superstition" in some parts of the world that bananas will make your condition worse; and some people have even experienced worsened cough after eating bananas. Strange. Either way, I am still alive despite having two bananas during the course of my sickness.
3. "Warm fluids are always good for the throat!" I take a sip of the concoction and grimace, telling her that this isn't warm, it's scalding! "JUST DRINK IT!" - Mom
According to this source, warm and cold fluids both have pros. Warm fluids are soothing, and help loosen mucus in the throat, which can relieve congestion. Cold fluids are also soothing, and they help reduce inflammation and irritation.
My favourite things to drink out of all the concoctions my mom and dad throw at me are honey lemon tea (spoonful of honey + two slices of lemon or just the juice + boiling water) and ginger tea (diced/smushed up ginger + boiling water, honey makes it more pleasant).
4. "Soak your feet in hot water with slices of ginger while sitting under a blanket." After five minutes of sitting around and feeling like I'm suffocating myself, he pops by my room. "Are you sweaty?" I mumble. "GOOD!" - Dad
According to TCM (traditional Chinese medicine), your feet are very important for your overall health. Soaking them seems to have two benefits: 1) the hot water activates blood flow, and 2) the benefits of whatever the extra stuff you add to your foot bath. Sweating also supposedly "sweats out toxins" but I once read somewhere that this was a myth...
5. "You know what you can do? You can slice lemon - or lime - into thin slices, sprinkle with salt... and eat it!" I tell her I successfully downed two slices without crying. "Only two?! EAT THE WHOLE LEMON!" - Mom
For a lot of things my parents tell me to do, I wonder, "do other people do this, or is it just me?" So, do other people eat lemon slices? Is this a normal thing? Like I said, I usually just drink lemon tea, so eating it sounded... extreme.
If you haven't tried it. It. Burns.
I've decided to cheat and eat the lemon slices that I steep for my honey lemon tea, and they're a little more pleasant with the leftover sweetness from the honey. But is it any help? I can't say from experience, since today is only day two of munching on lemon slices. But lemons are good sources of vitamin C, and a bunch of other antioxidants and electrolytes, which are generally beneficial for the body.
-----------------------
Ironically, we had a lecture yesterday detailing the history of "medicine" and "healing". It really is amazing to see how far we've come since "magic powders" and theories about how we have four humors and bleeding people out to heal them. And yet, people still turn to weird home remedies, and swear by them!
Anyway, I'm feeling better thanks to antibiotics, nasal sprays, honey lemon tea, and naps... and maybe from the gua sha... we'll never know.
September 11, 2016
SCHOOLBAG ESSENTIALS
Our first day of class was last Thursday, and because it was on a Thursday, in the middle of orientation-week activities, it didn't feel like the first day of school. I'm gonna blame my unpreparedness on that.
FIVE ESSENTIALS TO KEEP IN YOUR SCHOOLBAG:
1. wallet with ID, health card, and some cash
2. extra hair clip/bobby pin
3. a water bottle
4. chapstick/lip balm
5. "the time of month" items
6. a pack of tissue
Usually, I keep items 2, 4, and 5 in a small pouch, which I then put in one of the pockets of my backpack - it makes things easy and convenient. I'm gonna be totally candid here, as I always try to be - I forgot to prepare this pouch, and hence item number 5 never made its way into my backpack; and when Aunt Flo showed up unexpectedly, I was pretty thrown off for the rest of the day. Fortunately, the school day continued without a mess, thanks to a friend.
Now time to pack these things into my bag...
FIVE ESSENTIALS TO KEEP IN YOUR SCHOOLBAG:
1. wallet with ID, health card, and some cash
2. extra hair clip/bobby pin
3. a water bottle
4. chapstick/lip balm
5. "the time of month" items
6. a pack of tissue
Usually, I keep items 2, 4, and 5 in a small pouch, which I then put in one of the pockets of my backpack - it makes things easy and convenient. I'm gonna be totally candid here, as I always try to be - I forgot to prepare this pouch, and hence item number 5 never made its way into my backpack; and when Aunt Flo showed up unexpectedly, I was pretty thrown off for the rest of the day. Fortunately, the school day continued without a mess, thanks to a friend.
Now time to pack these things into my bag...
September 05, 2016
MOVING IN
If any of you reading this will be moving in to a new apartment/house for school, don't forget to pack a cutlery tray. I did, and it sucks. Not too badly, but if you're a person who likes to be super organized like me, then it kinda sucks.
Also, twenty hangers is not enough. Especially when your place supplies you with only one 2-drawer dresser. Maybe it's not so much of a problem for certain people, but if you're a person like me with a generous amount of clothing (hey, I pack for all kinds of weather), then it's kind of a problem.
And, if you're moving in with four other people, make sure to tell them to leave you enough space cupboard space, excluding the shelves that no one can reach, for all your stuff. Who knows, maybe with all this reaching, I'll grow another inch.
Move-in days are frustrating as heck, which is ironic because it's usually a day that I look forward to. I guess I kinda forget about the stress of packing, the struggle to not forget to pack things, the uber slow traffic along the way, and the frustration of finding places to put things and basically adapting your life at home to a brand now environment...
... because at the end of it all, it's just one day. The real adventure starts tomorrow...
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