2017 New Year Resolutions… taking control!

This year I’m going to get my focus back and find my caring side. For too long I’ve been in denial, that I already cut out so many things so why shouldn’t I indulge in freefrom processed foods as a treat and enjoy alcohol when I feel like it. I don’t need to watch my weight and I already cut out dairy, wheat, soya, nuts and celery and tomato for health reasons so why limit myself further?

Well I’ve come to a kind of light bulb moment. I have to do this. For myself. For my sanity. Because I KNOW that the above things irritate my skin. I haven’t wanted to face the undeniable truth that my skin will always be dry, parched, thickened, itchy and damaged if I continue to ignore all the signs. But there you have it. I’m going to do this. I may not succeed 100% first time, I may have setbacks and slip-ups, but I have a plan and I am going to stick to it.

1. Cut out ALL processed foods for one month – So my first new year resolution is to see if, just for a month, I can completely cut out processed foods. I don’t know why these foods irritate my skin but the do. Especially gluten fee bread. I can’t work out whether it’s stabilisers, emulsifiers, preservatives or additives but something has a very bad effect on my skin. I’ve blogged about this a lot, and there are a few cheat products that are processed but that I let sneak through the net e.g. rice cakes, oat cakes, plant milks, humous etc. Products that are made from a few very simple ingredients are allowed. And it’s day one of this regime and I already feel so much calmer. My skin is only slightly itching. If I can do it for a day, I can do it for a week. If I can do it for a week I can do it for a month. And if it helps it will soon become habit.
2. Cut down on alcohol consumption – I know that alcohol makes my skin dehydrated. Most alcohol also makes my face flush, a side effect of using Protopic on my skin. But I enjoy a drink. My only vice, but I know that often I drink too much, especially red wine. I enjoy drinking it. I have so few vices so I’ve been telling myself, ‘You can’t be good all the time and avoid EVERYTHING bad can you?’ But I would enjoy having clear skin, sleeping well, itching less and not having such dry skin far more than drinking wine. It’s my birthday this month so I’m being realistic. I am not setting myself a target I cannot keep, setting myself up to fail miserably at the first hurdle. I will enjoy a drink on my birthday and I probably will have some at weekends, But I AM going to drink less. And whilst it may seen horribly unfair, if you want better skin you need to start learning what’s important, because little slip ups on a regular basis will prevent you from EVER getting the skin you dream of. I just need to be strong, because all too often I intend to drink soft drinks but find myself almost pushed, persuaded and lured back to the booze by what I call the ‘beer bullies’. If I ask for a soft drink, just give me one please. I mean it. It shouldn’t matter what someone drinks so please, respect my wishes and help me with this please everyone 🙂
3. Get my skin out and proud – I have also decided that if my skin is bad I’m not going to be ashamed of it any more. It’s my skin, it’s where I live, it’s what holds my fragile body together. I don’t have another one. Just this one. So if you don’t like my skin, please look the other way and don’t comment. I am also going to be kinder to my skin, be prepared and moisturise more. I am going to experiment with natural skincare products to see if I can find things that soothe and heal my skin better than the industrial Epaderm I rely on. I’m going to be kinder to my skin.
4. Practise Mindfulness – This is something I’ve been thinking about for a while and I have looked into it, in a very blase kind of way so far. But if stress and depression can affect my skin in a very negative way, can the opposite thinking have a positive effect? I’m hoping it will because we all know how powerful the mind is. For instance, can I choose not to scratch? Can I use the power of positive thinking to reinforce my mind to ignore the itch impulse? Can learning mindfulness bring me an inner peace that will help me to cope with stress and avoid getting uptight, worrying so much and over thinking?
5. Exercise more and get to a healthier place – I have booked myself onto a yoga course in my lunch breaks for 12 weeks at a local gym near where I work, but this is just the beginning of my plan. I want to try to do yoga twice a week, start running at least twice a week and keep up my regular walking with my good friend at work. Having a healthy body is so important for healthy skin. It’s almost as if the sweating helps to purge the body of impurities and irritants. I do get a lot of pain when I sweat if my eczema is bad but I just have to work through this, get into the shower quick and it will get easier. I am hoping this will also help my asthma, which has also been awful lately; a combination of dust, warm houses, central heating and the wrong foods have all contributed, as well as a lingering throat infection that went to my chest. I think that is finally almost gone (famous last words). I’ve also just done my first pre-work 5k run on my first day back in the office. Start as you mean to go on… hopefully this will be a weekly run so I’ll be so fit you won’t see me for dust. Except I’m also allergic to dust 🙂

I am also planning an blog overhaul to watch out for the new look What allergy.com very soon. I have already got my blogging mojo back so look out for more regular blogging. I have so missed this… it’s been too long but I’m back on this now.

I also have a few books planned for you so watch out for these too once the new blog is in place.

What are your New Year Resolutions?