/hb/ - Health & Beauty

Made me crave cheese, made me crazy, made me gain 10 lbs, fucks with your brain in general. I don't know the point of getting on it in the first place. If you don't want to get pregnant then don't have sex with someone you don't actually completely trust and use condoms if you do and you're in your fertile window. Your periods are harder without it but you can also just suck it the fuck up and take a midol because it's better than being on hormones and brain altering pills.

I also recently started taking contraceptives, I'm a little worried, because I think my anxiety has increased (I don't know if there would be any correlation). I don't think all pills make you gain weight, but I'm eating less and exercising more anyway.

Pills equalized my moods but dampened them too. Good to rein in crazy periods. And not being pregnant.
That said, I regret taking them for so long. I finally feel like myself now, and it was a long time coming.

I had short hair for years until one day I came to the conclusion that it was causing me to feel less feminine/more insecure. Throw your shears away!

>>19192
Ty nona, I don't cut my own hair but I do feel less feminine and more insecure with short hair. It's a bad coping mechanism I have when I think things are out of control but it makes me sad whenever I have super short hair. So, I guess I just have to put more faith/confidence in myself

If it's that bad it's likely abnormal and seeing a gyno would be your best bet… it sounds like you might have something like endometriosis. I relate to not wanting to go on BC and many doctors might recommend that as a first attempt at treatment because it's cheap, try to find a good one who will listen to your concerns and explain possibilities for alternative treatments. However if you truly have a disorder like endo, there may not be many other options besides surgery.
At home you can try using a hot water pack or using NSAIDs (ibuprofen, aspirin). Some women find that changing their diet to avoid certain foods helps.

Gyno + laparoscopy would remove any Endo/cysts making periods painful. No hormones needed

If a doctor immediately throws you on BC with no further testing do not see that doctor again, BC can make endo worse

Honestly, masturbation is probably the most immediate and effective period pain relief there is

Also staying hydrated + taking ibuprofen. I drink a lot of sugar-free Gatorade or something with electrolytes during my period

Anons are right you should probably go to a gyno, but it you can't/don't want to, try painkillers with a different active ingredient than what you've been using so far. Not all active ingredients work the same.

sorry meant to post this in /hb. mods please remove

Radfem pill cured me, made me realize I only wanted to be hyper feminine and skinny because I hated myself. I had a bf and did what I thought was expected of me. Girl need to be pretty girl need to be skinny, no one will love me if I'm not pretty and skinny, was my thought process for so long until I was introduced to the obvious explanations on why I thought that exactly. Misogyny beauty expectations etc, right before I got radpilled I even thought maybe I'm trans nonbinary because I'm a human and don't want to live up to rigid stereotypes. Anything to escape. Luckily I didn't and now I'm fine I gotta thank the transphobic women on here for introducing me to the concept of being a woman comes from being female nothing else. Misandry is the cure, accepting yourself is the most radical thing you can do to stick it to people who want to put you in a box. Radfem pill, pink pill, in general made me start appreciating and loving women, and in turn myself more. Don't miss it and, I wish the same positivity or neutrality on body image for any other girl or woman.

Had pretty severe BD (wanted to kms constantly because I thought I was so fat and ugly, despite being a completely normal weight, also heavily relate to the no-photos thing) and binge-restrict cycles. Now I'm fully recovered, really, and life is a lot lot better. For me, it was a period of letting myself eat whatever I wanted, with no restricting (the kicker for me was reading Brain over Binge). I gained weight but not to the extent of becoming overweight, before things stabilised and I lost most of what I gained over the span of ~3 years.
I do not miss it. The only thing that came out of it is probably my depression art, and even that is shit. Some advice:
- it's a process, you don't magically get better overnight, but incrementally over a long period of time until one day you find yourself 'recovered,' and eating food like everyone else.
- Even then there will still be bad days where you fall back into the ED-depression mindset, but you must acknowledge them as bad days that will pass. And then they do. Idk but it works for me.
- the biggest mindset change for me was probably that my BD was vanity. Like, caring that much about your appearance, hyper-focusing on it in any situation, crippling self-hatred - that's vanity, and also a distorted sort of narcissism. What's important isn't you, it's what's outside of you, and that's what you need to focus on in order to live life properly. And so now I can go outside, talk to people, and experience things without constant anxiety. So it's pretty worth it.

>>18410
I was taking the radfem pill even before developing an ed but it's not working.

>>18408
When I really recovered, it took me around 4-5 months to gain what believe was around 30 pounds. It happens really fast, and you have to force yourself to do it and have someone for accountability. I knew I wasn't recovered mentally, so it felt like another fake attempt. But you really can not recover without being weight restored, which is not only dysphoric but also uncomfortable physically (you can be really bloated much of the time). However, AFTER that process, I continued to work on my mental health. I just had to tell myself over and over again, writing it down even, that I'm more than my appearance. Look into body neutrality and try to really internalize it, it's okay that you don't believe it at first. Avoid mirrors and scales (obviously) and social media and any focus on your body during this time. I can tell you that it is completely worth it once it's over. For me I still don't view food 100% neutrally unfortunately, but I never feel guilty for eating until I'm full or enjoying desert. Best of all, I don't control my food portions and can still maintain a natural weight. If you are eating intuitively, you will NOT remain overweight (even if your natural weight is slightly overweight BMI-wise, it really won't matter, no one would think you look fat. fat people are really overweight or obese, and that won't happen if you are recovered). Intuitive eating works only AFTER being weight restored, before you need to eat what is advised medically. Now that I'm recovered, I feel like this is my body, how it is if I just eat what I want and exercise when I want. And I can have a significant other that loves my body as it is uncontrolled and I don't have to worry about 'letting myself go', because it is in its natural state when I eat a balanced diet (which includes some 'unhealthy' food!) and only really walk (which I love to do). Social events are so much easier because I eat what everyone else is eating without any guilt. It is real and worth it, but it takes at least a year of hard work and faking it. Weight restored is necessary for recovery, but weight restoration =/= recovery, and when you quit at that state you quit at the hardest part without reaping any rewards for your efforts.

>>11710
Thank you for your well wishes. I appreciate it, sincerely.
Healthy meals and good regimented sleep is a great start. Just keep it up. The hardest part is making it a habit and sticking to it. Takes a lot of willpower. You can do it. I believe in you!
The bad days where you don't feel like doing it or eating well are the hurdles that you really need to strive to clear. Once you get past the hardest days everything else just becomes easier.
Best of luck!

>>11724
yeah i figured a three month response was a bit iffy. would you say prices have recovered from being raised by covid or are they still going to be high?

>>11734
depends on where you buy from. you have to wait for someone needing to get all their shit out of the garage asap. older gym guys want like the down payment of a house plus a kidney for this kind of stuff, no idea why they price so insanely high. prices will probably drop further tho so if you can wait, i'd say do it. secondhand bikes were insane like two months ago and now they're cheap

My entire waist is sore from hula hooping. Is it going to widen my waist. I already have some abs, I'm just hoping to cut down even more.

to anyone buying used power cages they often have nylon insert nuts which can't be reused so if you take it apart to move it you'll need to replace them.

get something basic in your mouth to neutralize the acid, like toothpaste, but don't brush them, just like gargle it, not sure how well it works but its probably better than nothing

Rinse your mouth with sodium bicarbonate after vomiting. Drink a lot of water to flush the acid from your throat. Go to a doctor and get help to stop vomiting because it will cause permanent injury even if you do damage control.

You should rather find out why you vomit a few times a day. For how long is this going now? You sound like you don't just have the flu…

Offtopic, but are you swiss or why the picture? Would be nice to have another miner here :3

I have really bad memory, short-term and long term. I'm in my thirties but my memory is that of someone in their 60s/70s. My dad and paternal grandma also have/had memory problems dating back to when I was a kid.

I tried brain games, but they don't really help. They just help you get better at the games.

Make sure you are getting dha, I think gaba helps memory as well.

>>19137
you have a tumour in your brain. go to the doctors. NOW!!

>>19137
I do the same thing but I abuse alcohol and get really flustered when socializing. Are you similar?

>>19143
In the past I would drink something light on family gatherings, but recently I stopped completely. I've always had issues with socializing but now it feels hopeless, I mostly talk to my family and usually it's through calls/texts. Idk I guess that could affect speech?

try B12

I know it will sound fake, but you can do your research. Viagra helps with menstrual cramps, I found out they killed the research when results where appearing bc 'not very important' or something like that. Has helped me a lot, BUT mine were never disabling, just eventually bad, so YMMV

I wouldn’t say periods are a beautiful thing necessarily but they force me to take care of myself both physically and mentally every month. If I don’t want to get suicidal ideas and feel like total shit for a week, I have to prepare the week before and get my shit together mentally so I’m less inclined to have emotional bursts. I meditate more and try to be more aware so that I can put things into perspective and remind myself that it’s a vulnerable time for me. I used to have very bad cramps the first two days, I can now limit that and keep it to a few hours if I make sure I don’t eat greasy, salty food or red meat the days before it starts. It forces me to eat healthy digestible stuff and drink more water, as alcohol and sugary drinks also trigger pain for me. I also have to stretch more and exercise as it helps a lot with body aches (my hamstrings and legs get super tight if I don’t). Used to be really annoying to prepare that much just to avoid pain but I got used to it and I feel like my body is hacking my brain to get and feel better, like a hamster that gets shocked if they don’t run the wheel.

>>19068
Based and witchpilled. I think abrahamic religions had a big share in fucking up the relationship of the sexes.

>>19068
What are some mythologies that are more period-positive if you don't mind me asking? Is it all new-agey stuff or is there stuff from antiquity?

>>19133
There are a few scattered modern tribes around the world that have different menstrual rituals like the Yurok of North America or some African cultures with women's societies that are not as bad.
Most period-positive mythologies that existed in antiquity have been either completely wiped or edited to match a patriarchal narrative, so a lot of the new agey stuff is people's attempt to piece together ancient female religions (or completely modern frameworks) with limited historical information as well as their own modern needs. I'm not an historian so it is difficult for me to know for sure how much is woo and how much is real, but something in it feels really intuitive and meaningful so I can't help but be moved by the idea. Of course take all of this with a grain of salt and look into it yourself if the idea interests you.
A great book about mythology and menstruation was The Wise Wound by Penelope Shuttle, it was my intro into questioning narratives behind menstruation. I think it was the first major book contemplating why menstruation is such a taboo. It brings in mythology, history, psychology, and some medical science to explore the question. it is a bit old, bit still good. its on the internet archive: https://archive.org/details/wisewoundmythsre00shut/mode/2up
I also liked some books by erich neumann. specifically fear of the feminine. It doesn't directly imply menstruation but it was still useful in making a good female-positive mental framework. He uses a jungian framework to examine feminine psychology and mythology.
Blood Magic by Alma Gotlieb is an anthropological book on different culture's ideas around menstruation. It's on my list but I havent gotten around to it yet.
In general, mythologies in which the moon or the number 13 (13 lunar months in a year) are prominent usually have some proximity to the menstrual cycle. The king arthur myth about the 'grail that bleeds' could be read as a menstruation myth. It is a stretch, but even jesus christ could be seen as a menstrual symbol (born of a virgin mother, bleeds, and is resurrected again. 13 disciples if you count mary magdalen). Though both of these are heavily colored by patriarchal narratives.
Definitely read one of the books I listed since I probably don't do thPost too long. Click here to view the full text.

>>18798
Oh nona, I'm the exact same way. I KNOW I cannot drink forever, I'm one of those people who are a 1 or a 0 with anything and everything, I absolutely cannot with drugs and I fucked up hard with alcohol. You don't sound dramatic at all, alcoholism is a very serious addiction that society should pay way more attention to but aren't. At least for me, the crushing defeat of knowing I can't drink forever (especially during bad cravings) absolutely destroys me. Things like "I'll try quitting again later" or "I can just move it to once every x days" and "why am I even doing this? I should just die young" surround my mind, so I just tell myself "alright, but later" and it helps pacify those thoughts for awhile. I understand if it doesn't work for you, it's really not for everyone. I know one technique that helps is writing down why you want to quit, what you want to get out of it and different rituals you could do on a piece of paper, and then read it whenever it gets difficult.

I'm going to be honest, I have my delivery app open with a bottle of that poison in my basket, just waiting for the order to sent. I just switched my phone off and decided to procrastinate and check threads on CC instead. The craving is lesser than before right now. It's still there, but I don't want to mess up. In a way I'm so glad that you came by this thread and replied, I would've cracked otherwise. I need to hold myself accountable. I hope you're doing well too. WAGMI

>>18791
try meth :) this is a JOKE please dont lol just remember that being drunk is gross and makes you smell bad and you're so much prettier when youre sober :)

>>18798
I used to feel the same way as you, nona. Not just with alcohol but in general. However, I've come to realize that more people struggle with substance abuse than you think. You'll also find that half of those people who you see "partying" do not feel in control of their usage and wish that they could cut back on or quit altogether. Someone "partying" (AKA binge drinking) 3+ times a week undoubtedly has a problem regardless of whether or not the "party" setting makes it socially acceptable. We also have no idea whether or not these people continue these patterns in the privacy of their own homes, when they are not out with friends.

Hope your journey to sobriety goes well :)

I feel dead inside. I want to look for comfort like I always do, staring down at the bottom of a bottle.

I've been sober since April but I was having a really bad time last week and snuck a drink. It was really nice.

I might have, problem is I don't really know what my earrings are made of

Is it possible there are an issue with my earring holes themselves?

Have you tried sterling silver or genuine gold earrings? If those are fine you've probably got nickel allergy.

I experience the same thing. I don't wear earrings for long periods of time now (weeks to months) and whenever I fight to wear earrings again I have to deal with them being super irritated because I had them pierced in the mall with a piercing gun, twisted them a throughout healing (they told me to), changed the jewelry too early it reacted pretty badly, all back when I didn't know any better and so they didn't heal 100% unproblematic and still act up almost as if they're 6 months into still healing since getting them rather than 7 years. And I only wear one pair of 18k gold earrings now rather than any pair I don't know the material of back when I used to wear earrings all the time in the immediate years after getting them. I guess having earrings in all the time is a necessity to keep the irritation and acting up down to the very bare minimum of fucked up-ness.

That sounds super similar to me, I guess I might have to try some real gold or silver earrings then.
Anyone have any recommendations on where to buy some cute ones?

wait you guys can still wear earrings after years of not wearing them? I stopped for a few years and when I wanted to wear them again, I found that the holes had sealed shut, so now there's just a dent instead. I haven't felt like repiercing them since my new hairstyle covers my ears
I got them done in a mall and twisted them nonstop as well but mine never had any complications. Maybe because at that time I took the aftercare so seriously and would literally wake up in a cold sweat because I only applied the anti-infection cleaning fluid 2 times that day instead of 3 times like they said.