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  • Healthy Living
    • General Health
    • Fitness
    • Weight Loss
    • Healthy Recipes
    • Natural Remedies
    • The Keto Diet
      • Keto for Beginners
      • Keto Meals
      • Keto Snacks & Sides
      • Keto Desserts
  • Family
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    • Pregnancy
    • New Baby
    • Parenting Tips
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    • The Team
    • Contact
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    • Hair
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    • Skin Care
    • Fashion
  • Healthy Living
    • General Health
    • Fitness
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    • Healthy Recipes
    • Natural Remedies
    • The Keto Diet
      • Keto for Beginners
      • Keto Meals
      • Keto Snacks & Sides
      • Keto Desserts
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Hair

Looking for simple and easy summer hairstyles to keep you cool on hot humid days? We've got you covered! We've rounded up 10 cute no heat looks you can create in 10 minutes or less. Perfect for medium hair, long locks, short bobs, and pretty much everything in between, these updos are quick enough for days you're running late while still offering a bit of style and trend to help you make a statement.

10 Summer Hairstyles in Under 10 Minutes

Whether you want to learn how to get beach waves with a flat iron, without heat, with a wand, or overnight, and regardless of the length of your hair (short, medium, or long), we've got all of the tips, tutorials, and techniques you need to sport sexy beach waves year-round!

14 fabulous tricks to teach you how to get beach waves

While the Mom Ponytail may be one of the easiest hairstyles for hectic days, there are heaps of cute ways you can dress up your locks on crazy mornings. When done right, high pontails are sexy and chic, a little volume on top can really transform your look, and while I tend to prefer messy updos, a perfect, slick-backed pony is great when you need to dress to impress. We share all of these ideas AND MORE in this collection of fabulous and easy ponytail tutorials

10 tutorials to teach you how to make your mom ponytail more stylish

When styled correctly, side bangs can look amazing with short, shoulder-length, medium, and long hair, and that's why we've rounded up 18 different hairstyles to compliment every face shape. These tutorials are filled with great ideas - from parting your hair in the middle and leaving it au naturel to pinning your bangs up with bobby pins into a sexy updo for a night out. No matter what your haircut or texture (curly, fine, etc.), these ideas will make your locks look chic and sexy!

18 different ways to style bangs (tutorials included!)

Whether you're looking for lazy, messy hairstyles for summer, or a more formal look for prom or your BFFs wedding, prefer a low, chignon-inspired look with braids or a high ballerina bun, this collection of easy bun hairstyles for medium and long hair is for you! Step-by-step tutorials included!

8 super easy bun hairstyles

Whether you're a fan of side swept bangs, or you're in the transition period of growing out blunt bags and need ideas on how to keep your look fresh, these tutorials will teach you how to style side bangs properly. I have learned so much from these tutorials, and I am amazed at how versatile side bangs can be if you style them correctly. Also? They are the perfect compliment for fall fashion, and look great in winter as well!

6 ways to style side bangs

Whether you have straight, curly, thin, or thick hair, need hairstyles that work with bangs or with layers, or need easy updos that are professional enough for work, formal enough for a wedding, or casual enough for everyday, we've got you covered. We've rounded up 15 DIY step-by-step tutorials for medium length hair that work for a variety of looks and occasions. Looking sexy has never been easier!

15 hairstyles for medium length hair

The half up top knot is one of the most versative hair updos since the messy bun. It's the perfect hairstyle for so many different occasions, and can be dressed up or down depending on your mood. Check out 3 of my favorite top knot looks, which are the perfect running late hairstyles for busy gals like me!

Half-up top knot 3 ways

Hair growth is something many of us struggle with, but if you want to learn how to grow your hair faster, we've got you covered. From foods and vitamins to DIY tips, products, and hair masks, we're spilling all of our at-home remedies to get thicker, healthier, sexier hair ASAP. Make sure to take before and after photos to track your results!

How to Make Your Hair Grow Faster: 10 Hair Hacks That Work!

This is a FABULOUS collection of hair tutorials to teach you how to get perfect, sexy beach waves for short hair or shoulder-length hair. I am particularly in love with the first tutorial as I think it is one of the most glamorous short hairstyles I've ever seen, and I'm tempted to cut my locks off every time I watch it! Full tutorials included!

5 tutorials to teach you how to get perfect beach waves for short hair

Whether you have long, medium, or short hair, prefer cute braids, a classic French twist, a messy bun, or a simple half up, half down look, this collection of easy DIY wedding hairstyle tutorials is for you! Perfect for brides and bridesmaids alike, these step-by-step videos will teach you how to get a chic look from the comfort of your home!

10 simple & elegant wedding hairstyles

Along with the more typical spring hair and makeup trends, like light, dewy skin and tousled tresses, there are always a few new ones that wedge their way in. Cobalt blue liner was huge on the runways, along with new twists on the classic French manicure. And don’t forget the hair! Accessories are big again, from simple black headbands to ornate barrettes, and bangs have definitely made their comeback. Here are 5 of our favorite spring 2016 trends we can't wait to try!

Spring 2016 Trends: 5 Hair and Makeup Ideas We Love

If you're looking for a moisturizing DIY hair mask for damaged hair, or want some homemade options for hair growth, for split ends, or for dandruff, this collection of 12 hair masks for all hair types is a great place to start. These recipes are simple and easy to make, and by using items you already have in your kitchen (coconut oil, eggs, banana, avocado, etc.), they offer a cheap alternative to expensive store-bought products. Beautiful, shiny hair has never been easier!

12 Homemade Hair Masks For All Hair Types

If you're on the hunt for dry hair treatments, want to know how to make your hair grow faster, struggle with thinning hair, trying to figure out the best foods for hair growth, or all of the above, you may be surprised at what a difference a few additions to your daily diet can make. Check out 5 of our favorite foods for healthy hair - your locks will thank you!

5 Foods for Healthy Hair

Looking for the perfect DIY holiday hairstyles to dress up your favorite LBD? We’ve got you covered. Whether you have short, shoulder-length, medium, or long hair, prefer simple half-up looks with curls or like to sport something a little more complicated with bangs and braids, we’ve rounded up 15 simple, easy, and elegant holiday hairstyles to get you from Christmas right through to wedding season. Full step-by-step tutorials included!

15 holiday hairstyles for all hair lengths

There are a bundle of hair remedies for cold weather that defy the elements and keep your tresses healthy and soft all season long. From a mask treatment that intensely moisturizes your locks to a serum that enhances your hair’s elasticity with pro-vitamin B, check out 5 amazing hair remedies for cold weather we're crushing on right now!

5 Hair Remedies for Cold Weather

If your hair has fallen victim to the damaging effects of highlights and permanent hair color, this is a fabulous collection of tips to teach you how to repair damaged hair so you can restore that natural, healthy shine we all know and love. All of these hair tips have been helpful to me, but the hair product recommendations as well as the guide for controlling the heat settings on my hot tools have made the biggest difference. Good luck!

How to repair damaged hair: 5 tips that work!

If you're looking for drugstore beauty hauls to keep your skin glowing, hair healthy, nails stylish, and bank account content, this collection of drugstore beauty products for fall is for you!

5 Drugstore Beauty Buys for Fall

8 Fishtail Braid Hairstyles for Long Hair | Whether you’re looking for a basic fishtail braid ‘how to’ tutorial for everyday, or want something more complicated like a side, dutch, messy, crown, or double fishtail braid updo for a big night out or a wedding, we’ve rounded up 8 styles you will fall in love with. Have short hair? We’ve included a couple of product recos to help keep flyaways in place.

The Fishtail Braid: 8 Hairstyles for Long Hair We Love

When you have bangs, it feels like they constantly need to be trimmed, but once you decide you're done with them, they take FOREVER to grow out. Amiright?! The good news is that there are heaps of different hairstyles that will teach you how to grow out your bangs without compromising your look. These are 13 of my favorites!

How to grow out bangs: 13 hairstyles we love

Whether you’re a hair dye fanatic, or are thinking of plunging into the world of fun hair colors for the first time, we’ve broken it all down for you and are sharing the pros and cons of highlights, semi-permanent, and permanent hair dyes. Because looking good shouldn’t be complicated.

Hair Dye 101: Highlights, Semi-Permanent, and Permanent Hair Dyes Explained

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‘A NEGATIVE MIND WILL NEVER GIVE YOU A POSITIVE ‘A NEGATIVE MIND WILL NEVER GIVE YOU A POSITIVE LIFE.’ —Unknown
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As I was flipping through a magazine a few years ago, I read a study that has been a real game-changer for me.
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It went a little something like this:
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A research group studied feelings of tiredness in 2 groups of people. Both groups got the same amount of sleep and exerted the same amount of energy throughout the study, but the Test Group was led to believe they were more well-rested than they really were.
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The result?
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[Nearly] everyone in the Test Group reported lower levels of fatigue and higher levels of alertness compared to the Control Group, which led the researchers to believe our PERCEPTION of how tired we are plays a huge role in how we actually feel on a daily basis.
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I admit I was skeptical, but I’ve always found that when I stop focusing on the negative and concentrate on the positive instead, I can almost always talk myself out of feeling tired, moody, irritable, impatient, or whatever other negative emotion that’s plaguing me.
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I really believe there is something in the notion that we can change the way we feel simply by changing our perception, and that is more important now than ever.
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So the next time you wake up feeling exhausted and cranky, try changing your mindset. Put the negativity down, choose happiness, and see where it takes you.
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I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
‘DEAL WITH YOUR FEELINGS.’ —Tanisha Herrin . ‘DEAL WITH YOUR FEELINGS.’ —Tanisha Herrin
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I started drafting a post with tips for staying positive when you’re struggling with motivation this morning, but I couldn’t bring myself to finish the post because I have been the exact opposite of positive and motivated the last few days.
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Ontario announced a 3rd stay-at-home order this week, and my sweet girl was a puddle of tears when I picked her up on Tuesday. Teachers were given a 10-minute warning to tell students to pack up their belongings, and while I held my daughter in the school yard as she cried, my heart broke for her.
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This has been hard on all of us, but it’s been especially difficult for kids. I can’t imagine how it must feel to have school, extracurricular activities, playdates, sleepovers, family trips, and holiday celebrations taken away as a child. I feel like all I’ve done over the last year is dish out one disappointment after another, and with no end in sight, it’s hard not to feel the weight of it all. 
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If you know me IRL, you know I’m all about finding light in times of darkness. I believe every situation is design to teach us something, and try not to stay stuck in the suck for too long, but this week was different.
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I felt really sad, and for the first time in a long time I realized that what I needed more than anything was to just feel all the feels. So I emailed my daughter’s teacher to let her know we were taking the night off from homework, shut my computer down, left the laundry in the dryer, ate peanut butter out of the jar (highly recommend btw), and polished off a bottle of wine with my husband, and it felt so good.
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We all woke up with renewed positivity on Wednesday, yesterday I wrote out a list of goals I want to tackle over the next 4 weeks, and today I feel more motivated and excited than I have in a long time. I feel blessed, grateful, and ready to handle this lockdown like a boss.
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So instead of writing down all of those tips I planned on sharing with you today, I wanted to remind you that sitting in discomfort and allowing yourself to feel sad isn’t always a bad thing. Just make sure you don’t get stuck there for too long. 😘
‘FILTERS ARE GREAT, BUT GREAT SKIN CARE IS BETTE ‘FILTERS ARE GREAT, BUT GREAT SKIN CARE IS BETTER.’ —Unknown 
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#ad
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Do your hands crack in the cold weather?
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Mine do. ⠀
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And this year has been particularly bad. Between my regular cooking and cleaning routine, buying and renovating a new home, and all of the required pandemic-related hand washing and sanitizing, my hands physically hurt at the end of each day. I’ve lost count of how many cracks I’ve dealt with so far this season, and right now I have a doozy on my right thumb that makes simple tasks like buttoning buttons, texting, and typing feel impossible and painful.
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I once read that beautiful skin takes a commitment and not a miracle, and this couldn’t be more true. I have battled with my skin for as long as I can remember, and I know exactly what I need to do to prevent - and treat - dry, cracked hands. But when life gets busy, I simply get lazy, and it doesn’t take long for it show on my skin.
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The good news is that it typically only takes me a few days to get things back under control thanks to my friends at @yoronaturals 🙌🏻
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Their Organic Manuka Skin Soothing Cream does wonders when it comes to healing cracked hands, and their Remedy Wear gloves are my secret to overnight healing! Instead of strategically covering every crack with cream and a bandaid, I just apply a generous amount of Manuka Cream to my hands and pop on a set of gloves  before crawling into bed. Works like a dream!
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(And YES, the gloves stay put alllllll night long!)
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If pandemic protocols are leaving your hands dry and cracked, click the link in my bio and use code GWEN for 10% off my favorite YoRo Natural products!
‘A woman with a voice is by definition a strong ‘A woman with a voice is by definition a strong woman. But the search to find that voice can be remarkably difficult.’ –Melinda Gates

Wishing all the strong, bold, loud, messy, and amazing women in my life a Happy International Women’s Day! 
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When we found out we were having a girl, I was so excited. I couldn’t wait to share my love for fashion and beauty with a smaller version of myself, and had such a strong vision of the kind of mom I wanted to be.
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I promised myself I would be present, involved, loving, and empathetic, and that my sweet girl would wake up and go to sleep each night knowing there was at least one person in this world who believed in her 1000%.
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I thought I had everything mapped out, but failed to realize that being a ‘girl mom’ would require so much more from me. It’s not enough that I listen to her, support her, and encourage her to be assertive and to own her truth.  I have to model that behavior, too.
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And that’s not easy.
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I was raised at a time when women were encouraged to make themselves as small as possible - both literally and figuratively. 
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No one ever encouraged me to speak up when someone did wrong by me or someone else, and when I did start to find my voice as I got older, I was told I was ‘too much’.
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Raising a girl has forced me to challenge everything that was taught to me about being a woman. I want my daughter to grow up believing she can achieve anything and everything she wants in life, and that she never has to make herself small to make others feel more comfortable. She’s bold, brave, assertive, and loud, and she’s doesn’t apologize for ANY of it.
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And I hope she never does.
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My girl keeps me on my toes, but being her mom has already been the ride of a lifetime. I’m so incredibly proud of her and can’t wait to see the mark she makes on the world. 
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‘Here’s to strong women: May we know them. May we be them. May we raise them.’ –Unknown
‘HOW YOU DO ANYTHING IS HOW YOU DO EVERYTHING.’ —Jess Sims
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While some people love reading self-help books or listening to inspiring podcasts, quotes, mantras, and song lyrics are my jam. I spend hours upon hours scrolling through my social media feeds each week searching for motivational quotes and sayings, and I copy the ones I love most to the notes app on my phone so I never forget them. 
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I have a quote and lyric for pretty much every feeling and occasion, and if you follow me on stories, you know that I try to share something motivating and inspiring every morning. 
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I’ve recently been using short quotes/mantras to help me stay focused. Mantras are typically used in meditation, but they are also a fabulous tool to help you stay grounded. The idea is to pick a word or phrase with meaning to you, and each time your mind starts to wander, you repeat the mantra over and over to bring yourself back to the present moment.
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I use mantras to help me stay productive with work, to keep me motivated when I want to push myself during my workouts, to stay present when I’m overwhelmed and trying to do too many things at once, and to stop me from ruminating about the things that make me stressed and anxious. 
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If you’re looking for inspiring quotes and mantras to help you stay focused, present, and calm, here are some of my favorites!
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‘Be present where your feet are.’
—Unknown
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You don’t have to. You get to.
—Jess Sims
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Easy is bullshit.
—Christine D’Ercole
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Feel the burn, step closer to the fire.
—Emma Lovewell
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A setback is an avenue for a comeback.
—Alex Toussaint 
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Hold the vision, trust the process.
—Unknown
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No challenge, no change.
—Robin Arzon
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Acknowledge the fear and do it anyway.
—Emma Lovewell
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Impossible is just an opinion.
—Paulo Coelho
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Treat your body like it belongs to someone you love. 
—Hannah Marie Corbin
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Fix your ponytail and try again.
—Unknown
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👇🏻 What quotes and mantras keep you focused and present when you’re overwhelmed or anxious?
‘ALL GREAT CHANGES ARE PRECEDED BY CHAOS.’ — ‘ALL GREAT CHANGES ARE PRECEDED BY CHAOS.’ —Unknown
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f you’ve been following me on stories, you know we moved to a new house a couple of weeks ago. I was going to document the whole thing, but moving during a global pandemic in a city that is completely locked down with a child in virtual school is… 🤪
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This was the biggest move I’ve ever undertaken, and my Type A personality really struggled with how little control I had over everything. Lists and schedules are my jam, but it seemed the harder I tried to keep things on track, the quicker they fell apart.
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I eventually decided to just embrace the chaos. I allowed myself to let go and just enjoy the excitement of it all and it ended up being the smoothest, most enjoyable move I’ve ever experienced. We’re still waiting on furniture deliveries and have lots of painting to do, but since no one will be visiting us for months (years?!) on end given the state of the world right now, there is absolutely no pressure.
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And that feels great.
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If you’re struggling, here are 4 things that helped me find order in the chaos that has been our lives for the last several weeks:
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✔️ EXERCISE. I start every single day with a hard workout to get those feel-good endorphins flowing. It makes me feel accomplished, helps me work through whatever is on my mind, and sets the tone for the rest of my day.
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✔️ ENERGY MANAGEMENT. I do all of my most pressing tasks when my energy is high and my mind is clear, and save all of the monotonous, mindless stuff (think: responding to emails, meal prep, folding laundry) for the evening.
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✔️ NEVER TOUCH SOMETHING TWICE. Once I ‘touch’ a task, I deal with it then and there so it’s taken off of my plate, rather than ’touching’ it multiple times and allowing it to take up extra energy and mental space. This is one of the best productivity tips I’ve ever read and it’s been a life-saver for me lately! 
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✔️ DONE IS BETTER THAN PERFECT. I struggle the most with this, but the last few weeks have been a great exercise in challenging a lot of my Type A tendencies.
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👇🏻 How do YOU stay on track when you feel overwhelmed?
‘SELF-CARE ISN’T SELFISH.’ . If you met me I ‘SELF-CARE ISN’T SELFISH.’
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If you met me IRL, you’d probably [hopefully?] never know I suffer from anxiety, and would likely assume I’m just a high maintenance, high strung, Type A personality. All of those things are in fact true, LOL, but what you may not realize is that each of those traits of mine are the result of years of feeling anxious and worried and stressed.
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I grew up at a time when we were taught to keep our struggles to ourselves, and when I think back to grades 3 and 4 when my anxiety was at it’s absolute worst, it pains me to remember how much I suffered in silence. I feel proud that I was able to overcome some pretty tough stuff on my own, but I refuse to let history repeat itself.
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I will not raise my daughter in a world that stigmatizes mental illness.
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According to the Canadian Mental Health Association, 38% of Canadians say their mental health has declined since the start of the pandemic, and people already struggling with their mental health were 2 times more likely to say their mental health has declined further. 
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One of the biggest hurdles for anyone suffering from mental illness is overcoming the stigma. It is the number one reason why people living with mental illness do not seek help.
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Today is #BellLetsTalk day and Bell will donate 5 cents to Canadian mental health programs for every applicable text, local or long distance call, tweet or TikTok video using #BellLetsTalk - all at no cost to participants beyond what they would normally pay their service provider for online or phone access. 
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MENTAL HEALTH MATTERS.
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Let’s end the stigma.
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