For those of you who have had a poop day

Some days are complete poop. Or poop with extra toppings just because. Other days there may be that same poop but with other reasons as to why it feels/ has gone like that eg you find out some bad news or may have forgotten a chunk of things on your to-do list that didn’t get sorted within your time-frame. This is okay, we are human after all we weren’t designed to be robots with no sense of anything. 

Some days we are full of beans. Or beans on toast with some luscious butter underneath to add extra softness and taste. These days may go amazingly well for no particular reason; just as a different day you may get the same ecstatic feeling of happiness from watching a child telling a favourite joke to their friend, or passing by a beautiful, scented flower on your way home. This too is human, to be able to understand joy expressed inwardly or outwardly through various parts of day to day life. 

However, what is not okay, is to feel as though you are having too much of the first days as we weren’t put on this amazing earth to spend it having a horrible time or feeling as though nothing is going right for you – day in day out.  Life is a balance of both of these days and although we can’t guess our future or sometimes try to control how our life will pan out, the only realistic thing we can do is decide to change our way of thinking about it.

What we have for certain is right now, so we need to focus more on the present but just don’t forget your past and your future. Of course those other two parts play a role in shaping your life, but you define your life daily, by the actions you take and the words you speak.

If you are personally struggling with persistently bad days and don’t feel you can cope, or if you possibly feel numb and unable to feel/express different types of feelings well  – I would strongly suggest that you should go to your GP or with someone you trust to see her/him to talk about your mental health.  With there being so much stigma around mental health, people tend to just try and get on with things or not go after the support they need and rightly deserve. There’s so many people I know who cannot always get the help they need; because they may feel judged by others, or that there isn’t a lot of help left in mental health due to cuts from the government anyway. This is why we need to talk about mental health more often, to allow people to feel they are not alone and that things will get better with time, support and strong set of shoulders to lean on and that they are not being looked upon as ‘weaker’ they are quite the opposite.

So here’s me saying I’m sending love and hugs to all!
I hope you have a fabulous weekend and you are welcome to message me,if you want any extra support or tips or where you can go to for some professional help.

For anyone’s poop day here is a virtual bear hug to you for being an amazing human and still being here today, you rock!!

Keep being your best self 🙂

Lottie x

 

Jade Francesca’s MUA | Going out look no.1

Need some inspiration for your nights out and cocktails I hear? Look no further than Jade’s insta/fb  ( @jademua1 ) https://www.facebook.com/jademua1/   page and book an appointment or maybe even just observe her techniques and  ask about colour combinations. She’s really talented and easy to talk to, you cannot go wrong!

Without any further ado, here’s Jade’s cut crease look on myself a few days back with a cranberry smokes and gold glitter creation, topped off with winged liner and tatti lashes to compliment this glam look 🙂

 

 

Let us know if you like this look and have any other suggestions to try,

love always,

Lottie X

 

 

https://tattilashes.co.uk/ go find fab lashes over here! 🙂

Books we should try together this summer ’17

 

 

 

 

 

 

Let’s discover these books together – on your marks ready, set, go!

 

Love Lottie X

Why I hate the term ‘special’ for children with additional needs

Like childhood isn’t hard enough for the young with the different challenges it presents on the road to adulthood. Some extra frisbee’s are thrown at children with additional needs – whether they may be on the autistic spectrum, have dyslexia, EBD or mobility difficulties or any other additional need. It can make the journey somewhat a less than smooth road than others.

The gifted and talented are also under this title, as they are sometimes not pushed enough to their ultimate potential. Therefore this holds them back from chasing and gaining their individual higher ability targets, in the same way that other individuals are often not given enough support to achieve what they desire with a little helping hand to achieve to their fullest goals no matter what they might be.

Labelling and the consequences of this action can be really damaging to any individual regardless as to whether it is meant with a good intention or not. Being classed as a ‘special needs child’ in the classroom whether upon the individual hears it being said, or sees it written down in paperwork has an isolating effect on that child both mentally and socially.

Mentally that child sees that they have been somewhat distinguished as different to the rest of the children in their environment and almost always is accompanied by negative associations. Just a few consequences to name-from some of what I have viewed; destroyed self-esteem thinking they are not capable of attempting/finishing a task incase the answer goes wrong and may be too anxious to ask for help, completely avoiding some topics of difficulty because these children do not want to feel as though they can’t accomplish a piece of set work if they are really struggling with it, displaying self destructive behaviour in order to bring attention away from their work even if they end up being told off . It seems a preferred option to some incorrect/misunderstood work being looked over and discussed, because the child does not want to be the receiver of critical feedback about their work when they have already been made to feel separated and less capable than the other children. Positive praise is often used in these circumstances where an individual is refusing to work or is struggling and support is given, however more needs to be done to further integrate lesson plans with additional needs children in mind so as not to make them feel excluded or less talented than any other child in the class. Often that individual will then grow up with a mindset that there will be a cap on what they can achieve when looking at others they know , might be getting up to and therefore not set out to follow their dreams if their self confidence has been diminished by others causing them to believe there would be no point in trying anyway which is most certainly a sad situation. Every child has the world ahead of them.

Socially friendship groups can be become somewhat to severely affected depending upon the type of need the individual has and how it displays itself in that person. For example a child with autism may struggle to maintain certain friendships that cause them a lot off stress or embarrassment or become quite confused by some slang terms or playful sarcasm as communication can be a great difficulty a lot of things are interpreted very literally. If children are making jokes which involve a required amount of thinking and some light humour a child with autism may find it hard to understand the difference between a joke or an actual indirect insult being thrown their way. There can also be several degrees and a variety of formats of bullying that take place aimed at the young – specifically to try and ‘trick’ a person into a situation or to become peer pressured into something they know the other person might not understand isn’t healthy for them (whether that be the mind or the body. ) That individual may also struggle to operate in the community on their own most effectively if they struggle to converse with members of the public or having to talk to somebody they don’t know, but could be a real blessing to anybody if the right support is given to help that person be the best version of them self whatever it requires.

As we all know anyway, somebody having an additional need or several for whatever reason that may be –  does not mean that person is any less able to carry out the same roles and responsibilities as others their age, it simply means that the person just requires a little something to help them reach their goals and tackle any struggles with some guidance or resources. Too often in society it is sometimes spoken about as though the person is never going to manage some life milestones at the time society expects them to be performed as I have seen this happen to people I am close too. This should not be happening! Each person is unique and beautiful beyond closed minded opinions, so there should be no comparisons between individuals’ capabilities. After all not one person was created to be a replica of anyone else, we’re all talented in multiple ways and for good reason rant over 🙂

Love always,

Lottie x

A poem for the young – The Ladybird’s train journey

The ladybird’s train journey

Pressed against the window,
eyes wide open to the outdoors.                             

Small dog passing by take note –
He’s got quite sharp, alarming claws!

Rattling along the worn out rails,
this is quite an adventure oh my!

If only I was in dream land too,
with an apple and blackberry pie!

It’s been quite a fun time out with my friends today,
I’ve not stopped laughing for the last half hour.

I’ve had some pretty strange looks from the humans though,
but not all of those people are sour.

Not long until I’m home now,
then I’ll pop the kettle on for some tea.

Or maybe visit Mrs. Ant’s new home for scones and jam,
I’m quite a busy bee!

It’s sunny outside as I leave the train,
I wave goodbye to my friends.

Down past the brook and right of the valley,
the train disappears around the bend.

---

 

Hope you all have a fab week, thought I’d have a little change from my regular post styles pointing towards a different age range! 🙂

Lots of love as always,

Lottie x

Appreciation post – Ariana Grande

WOW. Is there anything Ariana can’t do?

The amount of support this 23 year old has gathered in a short time frame, just shows what strength humanity has when it seems to many that all is lost, that actually we have everybody’s back and everything will Be Alright.

No matter the amount of acts, terrorists will try to use, to intimidate or make nations think they should wholly fear them, her actions from the word go after the Manchester attack show that evil never wins. Ever. When they try to scare the public and manipulate those in power to their will through such cowardly acts, what do they presume will be the outcome?! Ariana like many others in this country and beyond, proved to those who commit such actions, that our souls will not be broken or damaged as they desire, but instead we will rise up and let the fire of love, compassion and nurturing Break Free among everybody because we refuse to let them win, we come back stronger and more determined.

The number of people coming together in the name of love and making the best of a bad situation is truly heartwarming to see. Everybody has so much to offer. From the medical teams who have worked hard to save those affected by the attacks, have worked some real wonders at hospital; likewise the police force quickly responding to the situation, to Steve the homeless man providing comfort and reassurance, city folk offering up places to stay for those who were lost or had nowhere to go, cafes offering free meals, celebrities and artists paying tributes, music joining everybody together, red cross immediately raising awareness and providing help.  the dancing policeman providing joy and laughter to those at the benefit concert.

To all the families who have suffered at the hands of IS and felt the world crumbling down around them – Ariana’s quick response to the attacks with her determination and passion to do something big about it,  has given something back to those families and individuals who won’t have quite the same life again as before the attacks. It won’t take away the hurt and the pain of a lost soul, but it shows that even in the toughest of times there is always hope for positive things ahead. Even if your current situation has caused you to fall and hit rock bottom, you will in time be able to stand up again.

Those families and friends  affected will not be beaten and stay there. Instead, they are fighting back murder with love for others and getting back up from the floor with huge amounts of support, donations and show-stopping performance’s at Ariana’s One Love Manchester benefit concert. It really is a large hat’s off ,to such a young woman in the music industry to show lost loved one’s a party from heaven, with a night dedicated entirely to them listening to the beautiful songs from up above One Last Time. Thank you, Ariana.

 

Don’t let them divide us, we all stand together in love.  ” The Lord is my strength and my song” Exodus 15:2

 

Keep being you,

love from Lottie x

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and further to the point our hope for the nation to become even stronger together with all our differences

LONE WOLF – book review

Hi there again,

I must apologise, I‘ve been gone a little while as I wasn’t too well, had a  fever and shaky times, but good now!!

I wanted to tell you about one of the books I’ve read recently which is quite different to any others I’ve tried before. As you’ve probably guessed from the title itself – spoiler alert – the book does involve wolves,  but yes it is a cracking piece of fiction also in relation to the human world so let’s go!

Title: Lone Wolf

Author: Jodi Picoult

My thoughts upon reading this book: 

At first I wasn’t totally gripped by the beginning of the story if I’m completely honest it didn’t take my breath away in the first few pages,  but I was intrigued enough to continue reading. Then decided it was definitely going be a treasure so began reading this more frequently as the plot became more complex and you could see fractions of the puzzle starting to come together.

One of my favourite things about Jodi’s writing is how she effortlessly manages to become each character in the story, writing volumes of detail about each of their thoughts . Similarly,  how aware she is of how one character may be feeling inclined towards another and express it so smoothly to her audience, transitioning tones between such gripping situations with both sensitivity and complete defiance, depending upon the characters role helping feed into the plot.

General summary:

A father is lying is his hospital bed in a bad state, his previously fresh bill of health now left reeling from a severe car crash, from which he was lucky to be saved.  As he lies in a coma his daughter and son are left to come to a decision about his life support. However, the family broke down many years back, so all is not out in the air regardless, especially trying to come to a critical conclusion together for the sake of saving/ not saving a life.

Her brother has been living in a different country for several years with next to no contact, although nobody knows quite why he picked up and left that day, when he spoke to Luke their father and claimed he was not returning home. Does he have something to say the others should know of?

Cara the daughter herself, is living between both her Mum’s new family and daughters before heading off to live with her Dad for a while and his pack of wolves. She knows all about being headstrong and learning to adapt to new places and people and could tell you the different members of a pack in under a minute. She can also see how dearly her Dad loves his job outdoors and wouldn’t seemingly want to live a life stuck in a bed all day unable to be with his pack or nurture young animals back to health.

What does Georgie his ex-wife have to say about all this? How is she going to try and keep both her daughter and son happy if they both have different opinions? Hadn’t she just settled into her new family life, before this situation bulldozed into her recent few years of newly married bliss?

With tension building as the past catches up with everybody, there’s bound to be some twists and turns in the road whilst their Dad is still sleeping, but what will the outcome of it all be?

 

You can purchase the book here from the links below:

 

https://www.waterstones.com/book/lone-wolf/jodi-picoult/9781444729016

 

Let me know if you have any book recommendations to try and if you have any I should definitely read this summer!! Also if you like this review style and would like to see more please like and share with family and friends. I’m also more than happy to hear your feedback to improve my posts from beginner, so just let me know and I’ll be glad to hear from you!!

Best wishes,

love from Lottie x

8 tips for winding down at night to get that much needed zzzZZZZZ

So you’re probably already had your tea, finished some work/assignments for the week, or been thinking over what’s gone on at work , then you’ve been scrolling through your social media feeds seeing what’s going on or watching TV. Stop and give yourself time to wind down for a nights restful sleep, your body will thank you for it. More often than not and I’m certainly guilty of it, we don’t give ourselves the required sleep time to fully rest our bodies for them to work at optimum level the following day to be our most productive self. Whether it’s because you’ve procrastinated and needed to finish something til midnight or past then….. /or you’ve been out with friends for food and drinks and got back late in the week (naughty naughty) or simply got caught up in some episodes watching one after the other until your series finishes and you realise you NEED to go to bed asap, where did the time go ?!?

So here’s some tips to try and ease yourself into a healthy bedtime routine, you could pick a few ideas or just one per night for when you’re struggling to get to sleep. Here we go ↓

1. Eliminate as many backlit electrical items as possible, an hour before you go to bed or turn the brightness down as much as possible.
2. Put on a relaxing playlist to soothe all the buzz of the day in your head or white noise can be a lovely alternative if you don’t want any lyrics.
3. Clear your space to make it a relaxing area  (I’m not great at this, if I’m honest).
4. Take a warm/hot bath with as many or as little added features as you would like – foaming bath soak, a book if you only have this period as your quiet time, a cuppa (yes I do this for real haha). If you’re feeling super fancy mode,  you could light some scented candles , add a red wine glass into the mix and treat yourself to a bath bomb .
5. Read a good book for enjoyment or alternatively one that’ll bore you to sleep.
6. Could try the counting sheep method – not that it works every time I just start getting mixed up the more tired I get and get annoyed at myself for miscounting :’) .
7. Spritz a lavender pillow spray such as  and air it for a few mins before putting your face next to the pillow. Here’s my personal fav http://www.marksandspencer.com/sleep-pillow-mist-150ml/p/p22460183?&pdpredirect .
8. Have a hot milky drink such as horlicks or hot milk as the delight it it alone! 

 

So give these a go and let me know what you think!! 🙂  Please bear in mind though these can help, but not be a replacement for professional medical help with insomnia which would require further advice and support from your GP or local practitioner.

Sweet dreams,

love Lottie x

Mental health awareness week

So this year from 8th to 14th May, this week is given dedication to the increasing issues of mental health throughout our society and many other places in the world. The theme picked this year by https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/podcasts-and-videos/mental-health-awareness-week-preview  is based on ‘thriving or surviving’ aimed to make people think about where they are standing with their mental health, or if they have concerns about other individuals they know.

As you will most likely be aware, there are plenty of different mental health conditions out there including; anxiety, bipolar disorder, body dysmorphic disorder, borderline personality disorder, depression, dissociative disorder, eating disorders, hypomania, PTSD, schizophrenia and more.

Yet, it’s such a shame that so many people feel they cannot say anything to others purely because of the stigma created around these ‘imaginary/time consuming’ issues as some people like to call it. The type of individuals who only see a broken leg or something similar as a ‘real’ injury or damaged area in the body because they can see it in front of their own eyes, that that specific part of the body is not fully functioning to it’s optimum level because it requires care to the wound  – surprisingly much like the organ our brain for people with a mental health condition would you guess ???  This type of ignorance and lack of involvement; or driving up the wrong street with a conclusion of their own on a contradictory level, will only  further lead to other symptoms of depression for individuals such as –  those people feeling unsupported, having no sense of direction or purpose, losing interest in things they usually like doing and acting differently around those they know, eating differently, sleeping less/more ( and plenty others ) .

Statistics from www.mentalhealth.org.uk  show us that only a shocking 13% of people reported good mental health this year, over a quarter of people having experienced panic attacks but feel free to go and look for more stats yourself.  Good mental health is absolutely vital for the wholeness of individuals and society as mentioned below ↓

 

This is very important that we most importantly understand, but also play a large role in our own mental health to help it flourish and grow, and to help others as much as we possibly can without impeding or giving too much of ourselves that we burn out and are unable to help either.  I myself am very familiar with different types of mental health disorders as many of my family and friends have been affected by a variety of these from milder to severe, so I do understand how different each type of condition can cause numerous symptoms you may not have recognised in someone else, I have also personally struggled with 2 of these conditions myself so I am not writing this from an outsider’s viewpoint. If you yourself are reading this and feel you don’t know what to do, or are worried about someone – send me a message and I’ll try to help as much as I can. Not getting the help you need and rightly deserve will only make things worse, make mental health your priority just like heading to your GP about any other problem that’s bothering you, make time to help your head, it will be worth it in the long run!

But for more professional help and medical support here are a few websites below you can check out for in depth info and tips on finding out about and dealing with mental health disorders, or taking some tests to see if you need to take a trip to your doctors, they are there to help support you with your health after all and will surely do what they can to try and find different types of treatment for you, whether that be a type of talking therapy, or a medicine to help you balance your day to day life a little easier .

Now for my extremely cheesy sentence I have just partly stolen……. don’t just survive, help yourself and others thrive! 

https://www.blurtitout.org/

https://www.mind.org.uk/

https://www.time-to-change.org.uk/mental-health-and-stigma/types-problems

http://www.nhs.uk/livewell/mentalhealth/Pages/Mentalhealthhome.aspx

http://www.samaritans.org/

Lots of love from Lottie x

My April favourites

The months seem to be whizzing past don’t they? It doesn’t seem like we’re 5 months into 2017 does it, or is this just me? So why not share a few tidbits from each month as they pass us by with each other?

Here are a few of my faves from April ( in no particular order ) you may already have seen/ tried for yourself. So let me know what you think, or comment below if you have any favourites from the last month you’d like to share 🙂

 

Thanks for stopping by today, hope you have a fabulous week!!

Love from Lottie x