For the past few years, and when I say 'few' I mean at least 6, I've been very into wellness. I love reading about wellness trends, trying new supplements and products that are going to better my life, and overall just trying to better myself in any way possible.

Wellness has become so broad and mainstream over the past few years it seems that everyone has their own special wellness routine and there are constantly new products & companies popping up everywhere with the goal of bettering people's lives.

As we start the new year (25 days in), I've been thinking so much about what I want my wellness routine to look like for the next 340 days and I wanted to write about it, as I do almost everything in my life.

Overall, I want to be healthier, I want to take care of my chronic pain, I want to sleep better and have more energy, and I want to be more mindful and intentional. All my 'goals' fall into at least one of those buckets.

I went off of birth control in January 2022 and honestly, life was never the same. My body went a little crazy; my cycles were all over the place, my PMS turned into PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder), and my mental health plummeted. 

It got better after about 8 months but then things started getting weird again this past summer. My anxiety was pretty bad again, my cycles all out of whack and my sleep was not good. After some googling and enough sponsored posts, I decided to take the plunge and buy an Oura Ring.

I've been an avid user of activity trackers for years but none of them were ever exactly what I was looking for. Eventually, I stopped using them all and thought that was it - I would never use one again. I think the thing I didn't like about any of them was the fact that they were being worn on my wrist. I love jewelry but sometimes I just don't want to wear a bracelet.

However, rings are my favorite piece of jewelry and I never get sick of them so the Oura Ring seemed like the perfect solution. I knew it was going to be more accurate than wrist trackers, and the major selling point was the cycle syncing. I thought that if I was more aware of my cycle and the different phases, I'd be able to handle it better.

Oura Ring is synced up with Natural Cycles, which is a period tracking/fertility app, that takes your temperature every morning and can predict the start of your period. It seemed to be exactly what I needed.

 Last year I experienced intense back pain that left me unable to function for about two weeks. I got myself into a chiropractor and after a few sessions, along with at-home exercises and remedies, I was as good as new. The pain wasn't anything serious - just some inflammation, a slight case of scoliosis (which isn't even a big deal - that's how slight it is) and a bad at home desk set up.

I purchased a new desk chair, a new laptop riser, keyboard and mouse, along with tons of fluffy mattress covers to try to prevent new pain from coming through. It definitely helped and going to the chiropractor once a month has helped me stay pain free. 

At the chiropractor she uses a TheraGun on me, the industrial, professional size, and it feels so good so I started playing around with the idea of getting a mini one for myself to help with any pain that comes up at home. I also have dealt with chronic wrist pain since I was 16 years old and while the chiropractor helps, I figured the TheraGun would be a good tool to have in my arsenal.

I didn't get a chance to buy it for myself because my sister's boyfriend bought me one for Christmas! It was the best surprise and I've loved using it the past few months. 

I would say I've used it pretty regularly and have a decent understanding on how it works and what the pros & cons are so let's get into it.

 I've been struggling with my mental health for years and while things have gotten better at times, and I'm much better than I was years ago, the past few months have been really hard for me. I've been having a lot of panic attacks (which is proof in itself that my mental health is on the decline because I only have panic attacks when things are at rock bottom), and just having an overall anxious feeling on a daily basis.

The issue with my anxiety is that it is not situational, though I do experience anxiety in high stress and pressure situations, but rather my anxiety is just always there lingering underneath the surface. Everything could be going fine and I'm extremely anxious. When I don't know why my anxiety is flaring up it's harder for me to fix and find a way to feel better. It's torturous to live with a lump in your throat, your heart beating fast, and just an overall feeling of nervousness and discomfort.

This post is for the ladies and it's going to be a little TMI so proceed with caution.

I went off birth control in January of this year. I had been on it for 8 years and was just ready to be done with it. I was having horrible migraines and my mental health wasn't great. I thought that maybe the birth control was contributing to that so I figured I'd try to get off it.

Well, that was a mistake, and I kind of regret it. That's an entirely different post but basically, my mood swings and PMS symptoms have been out of control and I finally feel like now, 9 months later, my body has adjusted. 

However, along with those mood swings and PMS comes a period like I haven't had since I was 15 years old. I used to get bad periods, like staying home from school, leaving school early, or, spending the day in the nurse's office bad. 

Because of this, I needed a solution that wasn't panty liners, tampons, or pads. I wanted to be comfortable and didn't feel like dealing with disposable solutions. Menstrual cups are not something I want to try so that was definitely out. I had tried period underwear (both disposable and Thinx brand) before but wasn't impressed with the fit so I was at a loss.

I am someone who will do anything to feel better, make my life easier, or just try something new and innovative. That's why I respond so well to all the new products that the wellness industry releases. I'm big on anything minimally invasive and will help me feel my best. 

Enter The Patch Brand.

*Full disclosure, the brand sent me the entire line to try a few months ago and I've been wearing and testing them since then and wanted to wait until I tried them all, multiple times, to put together a brand buzz review. This post isn't sponsored but I received the items for free!

I've tried wellness patches before and I think they are the best, easiest, and most carefree way to add a little self-care into your life. All you do is slap the patch onto your skin and let it do its job at making you feel better.

The Patch Brand has five different wellness patches, all targeting different areas:

• Focus
• Energy
• Immunity
• Sleep
• Stress

 Mental Health Awareness month is so important to me because I struggle so much with mental health. It is so empowering to me that so many other people around the world struggle with the same things I do and I am so grateful to live in a time where speaking about your mental health is normal. 

Perhaps I am lucky because I grew up in a household where mental health struggles were normal. Whenever I was feeling sad, anxious, or just out of sorts, those feelings weren't pushed away. Because my family members understood what I was going through my feelings were taken seriously and they pushed me to get better. 

I've been extremely open with my issues on the blog and social media over the years. I have never been ashamed that I have anxiety and depression because I have never felt shame around it.  The last time I gave an update was in May 2021, aka the last Mental Health Awareness Month so I guess we're making this a tradition.

 I have always been someone who will take a pill to make me feel better. I don't really care if that is right or wrong, it's just how I feel. Modern medicine has come such a long way and as long as you do your research, talk with your doctor, and make a decision that is right for you, I think why not. 

If I'm sick I always want to feel better. I will take anything to make a headache or a stomachache go away. I don't want to be in pain so if I could take two Advil I will. 

That idea has also come with me in my wellness journey and how I feel about supplements and vitamins. I am not someone who loves vegetables and I'm allergic to every single fruit so I always need the extra vitamin and minerals from elsewhere. 

Over the years I've been pretty good about taking a multi-vitamin but this year when I went off birth control (separate post for a separate day) I had some crazy side effects and I felt like I needed to take better control of my own health. 

That is what inspired this post... my experience with a new wellness routine, including some new products and some that I've been using for at least a year. 

Please note that I am not a doctor or have any medical education, this is just what works for me right now.

 Over the past few years, my allergies have gotten worse and worse. And it's not just me, allergy season is proven to be getting worse thanks to good old climate change. Last year was by far the worse allergy season I've ever experienced and it lasted pretty much from March until mid-November; it wasn't until the dead of winter that I felt mildly better but over the past few weeks I've been preparing myself for another bad season.

Because my allergies were so bad last year I went to an allergist for the first time and found out that I was in a much worse place than I thought. I'm allergic to every type of tree, grass, and weed and then allergic to the food that grows on those trees. It's really bad so I've had to pay closer attention to the things I eat, but also have to take allergy medicine every single day otherwise I'm a mess.

There are also other products and 'tricks' that I've found to help my allergies, especially before the season starts. When you have really bad pollen allergies it's key to start caring for them before allergy season hits, that way you have some sort of immunity against pollen before it gets bad.

This is how I am preparing for allergy season and how I try to combat my allergies on a daily basis.