End it on a High Note
July 31, 2012 at 7:45 am | Posted in Friends Then and Now, Relationship Woes | Leave a commentA lesson that stuck with me since college came from one of my dear friends. Leaving things behind on a good note — getting out before you hate it, before your good memories are clouded by the bad. I’m sure I have written about this before, as I have applied this to both my college experience and my career, having graduated college early with this in mind and having left behind several jobs without bitterness.
But one place I never thought to apply this to was in my relationships, because we are taught to hold tight to those we care about. But sometimes holding tight to those you care about can be harmful or even distracting to your life. Sometimes keeping those you love too close can destroy all you have built and worked for.
And sometimes those people have changed, or maybe they haven’t changed, but somehow you aren’t on the same page anymore. Or maybe, though you will always care, you were never able to get on the same page.
And so it seems you have to let go, or at least loosen your grip, because human emotion makes letting go of people you care about pretty damn hard. And that’s why people search for closure. But maybe it’s not always about closure. Maybe it’s about accepting things for what they are and not pushing the envelope. Maybe it’s about building a set of positive memories instead of trying to create a negative portrayal of someone just so that you can move on. Maybe it’s about remembering the good and for being grateful for the time you had together. It’s not about forgetting. It’s in remembering that you keep those feelings alive. It’s in loosening your grip that you honor the time you had and move on to the next step.
In this way, you shouldn’t regret the good memories, or be sad that you can’t make more of them. Those memories will stay forever in your mind as high notes in a life well lived, and more great but different memories are yet to come.
Guest Post: Diabetes Risks for the Pushing Thirtyy Crowd
July 26, 2012 at 7:31 am | Posted in Life and Living | 1 CommentTags: diabetes, health
I don’t often post articles about health. The truth is that I’m the type of person who likes to ignore any sign of illness (much to the dismay of my colleagues during cold season). But as I have gotten older, I have become more in tune with my body and knowing when things aren’t right. Yet still, there is so much I just don’t know about. What follows is a guest post from the experts over at Drugwatch.com about a specific health concern plaguing millions.
According to the American Diabetes Association, 25.8 million adults and children in the United States have diabetes. Approximately 1.9 million people between the ages of 20 and 65 were diagnosed with diabetes in 2010. In fact, 11.3 percent of this age bracket has diabetes. Diabetes does not discriminate based on race or age. For people between the ages of 24 and 32, diabetes is becoming a prevalent problem, so people of this age group should become familiar with the risks.
Type I diabetes tends to appear between infancy and young adulthood. This does not mean that it cannot develop at any time throughout life, but this is just when it is most common. When people develop type I diabetes, generally it is an autoimmune disorder that happens due to genetics or environmental factors. A person is at greater risk of having this form of diabetes if he or she has a parent with disease.
For individuals between the ages of 24 and 32, type II diabetes is also a concern, and in some cases, a controllable concern. Obesity and being overweight contribute to this age bracket developing diabetes. Being overweight also affects diabetes health, since weight issues can worsen the condition. In order to improve diabetes health, a patient should eat a healthy diet consisting of low-carb foods, high-fiber foods and plenty of fruits and vegetables. A patient should also exercise regularly to maintain a healthy weight.
Another diabetes risk factor for people between the ages of 24 and 32 years of age is becoming pregnant. When a woman develops diabetes as a result of pregnancy, it is known as gestational diabetes. Although a patient with gestational diabetes will still need to manage her diabetes health, the disease generally will go away once the woman has given birth.
Patients in this age group who are inactive increase their risk of diabetes. Not only does exercise help to manage a person’s weight, but it also assists with managing diabetes health. In addition, being active plays a role in making cells more sensitive to insulin.
When a person between the ages of 24 and 32 has signs of prediabetes, his or her chance of developing diabetes is increased. Thus, it is important to have regular blood sugar screenings to detect elevated glucose levels. Early detection can assist a person in making the proper lifestyle modifications to prevent prediabetes from turning into a full-blown case of the disease.
Many type II patients required medication, in addition to diet and exercise. Patients should consult with their doctor before usage of any medication and be aware of the serious side effects before they take anything new.
For example, the diabetes drug Actos has been linked to an increased risk of congestive heart failure and bladder cancer. These conditions have led the FDA to issue a black box label warning on the product, and have led many users of the medication to file an Actos lawsuit against the manufacturer.
Although diabetes does not discriminate based on race, Hispanics and African-Americans have a greater chance of having diabetes. As of 2011, 12.6 percent of non-Hispanic African-Americans and 11.8 percent of Hispanics had diabetes. On the other hand, only 7.1 percent of white Americans had diabetes. This means that people in this particular age bracket who are either Hispanic of African-American should monitor their blood glucose levels even more than white Americans, since ethnicity does heighten one’s risk of developing this condition.
Elizabeth Carrollton writes about defective medical devices and dangerous drugs for Drugwatch.com.
Wedding Tears
July 24, 2012 at 7:50 am | Posted in Relationship Woes | Leave a commentTags: barbie, marriage, troll, wedding
This past weekend I watched one of my closest friends get married. I stood beside her in a large bridal party and still I felt privileged to be included. She is the type of girl that everyone loves and she has very few, if any, enemies. I, in fact, can’t even think of a time that her and I ever got into a fight. She is so easy going, never petty, and the type of person who is down for anything.
We have been friends now for more than ten years; have lived together, experienced hookups and breakups together and all kinds of other drama. Both social creatures, we always make it a point to have some time alone together whenever we see each other. And even if we go awhile without talking, we can always pick up where we left off.We have gone through the ups and downs of engagement together, and in seeing her so happy on her wedding day, I couldn’t help but cry. I never really cried much at weddings in the past, but I think the combination of it being someone so close to me and being so close to my own wedding really hit me hard. It all seems so real now.
Because although I wasn’t the type of girl who dreamed up every detail of my wedding day, I definitely thought about it. Society sets it up that way somehow. I would make my Barbies date, loved playing the Game of Life — I even have a bride troll. I don’t believe in this day and age that this is pushed on youngin’s the same way, but there is something there still that makes little girls say “one day, I’m going to get married,” and not understand what that really means.
Men are actually better at understanding this somehow. Men get the commitment factor better than women do. Women often see a ticking clock, see everyone around them tying the knot, truly want to be in love and want that love to be everything that they fantasize about — nights under the stars, rose petals on the bed, surprise love notes, butterflies until the end of time. These fantasies start at an early age with girls and they never truly let go of it.
And while these things are nice, they just don’t happen everyday, and if they did, would they still be special? Not everyday is going to be heaven, that’s why you have to cherish the special moments as they happen, and that’s what my friend was doing. She embraced her moment to the fullest, didn’t let anything bother her, and she so deserved the perfect day she got.
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