u/Fun-Morning-5516

I would love to hear from you all:

• When your weekly dose is starting to wear off, what changes do you notice?
• Do you notice any mood changes?
• If you've ever taken your shot a day or two late, what was that like?
• Also, how did your first shot feel? Besides the typical GI side effects and lower appetite, did you notice any other effects?

I ask because I think I may have a rare genetic issue that causes hunger associated panic episodes, partly because I'm getting the sense that my response to tirzepatide has been unusual. I wanted help confirming that my response actually is unusual before my next endocrinologist appointment in a couple weeks. It would really help if you all could describe your experiences so that I could compare! I want to know how common or uncommon my response was, so it would be wonderful to hear from people with different experiences.

Here is my experience:

A couple hours after I took my first dose of tirzepatide I felt an overpowering sense of happiness and calm, like finally for the first time in my life my body truely believed that I was safe. I had been going through a stressful period, but once the shot kicked in I just felt completely secure, content, and satisfied. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced. This wonderful feeling of euphoric peace lasted for about four or five days and returned after each shot day for the first couple months I was on the medication. Now that I've been on tirz for a bit, the first sign of the medication wearing off for me isn't hunger or returning food noise. It's depression and anxiety. I find it impossible to focus on anything and everything in life feels so unfair and overwhelming. But then a few hours after my injection everything is suddenly fine again.

Did you have more energy on reta?

Did they give you different health or weightloss results?

Which one did you prefer and why?

If you're planning to stay on glp1s long term, which one did you end up sticking with?

I'm on tirz right now, but I keep seeing rave reviews about reta so I'm wondering if I'm missing out. Woman in my mid twenties, prescribed tirz for polygenic obesity and genetic insulin timing issues.

Before I discovered niche, Daisy Wild was my signature summer scent. But, it always felt too synthetic and abstract to me. It was the best thing I could find at Ulta, but I was always hoping for something with a more naturalistic texture, something more realistic.

Now I'm wearing La Tulip by Byredo everyday and it has the perfect texture and realism level. But its too stem-focused for me. You can barely smell the flowers at all over the freshly cut green stem smell.

Does anyone know of a perfume with a texture similar to La Tulip but that puts more emphasis on the flowers?

What should I try next?

I recently discovered how easy it is to affordably sample niche fragrances through decant websites and discovery sets. I've recently tried Byredo, Miller Harris, Fischersund, Initio, JPG, and L'Artisian Parfumier. I'm generally delighted with these as they are so different from what I had smelled at Ulta. Now, I want to try more niche brands and am wondering where to go next. Can y'all help me pick some stuff out for my next sample cart?

Here are my impressions of what I've tried so far:

Byredo: I love the Byredo DNA. These scents felt textual in a way that designer fragrances never did. My favorites were Blanche, Biblioteque and Animalique. La Tulipe was fun to wear as well. I think these spoke to me so much because there was a natural undertone, but they still felt polished and conceptual. I love smells that sneak a realisitic flower note into the drydown and the base notes.

Miller Harris: These were generally too bitter and austere for me. They came off as a bit stand-offish. I did like Reve du Begamont and Celadon though.

Initio: The Initio DNA was another huge hit for me. I love warm and radiant perfumes. My favorites were Rehab, Atomic Rose, and Blessed Baraka. They felt comforting and confident and I can't wait to wear these when the weather gets a bit cooler. Musk Therapy unfortunately didn't agree with my skin chemistry and started smelling like putrid, rotten fruit after a few hours. The opening was beautiful though.

L'Artisian Parfumier: My all time favorite perfume, Ode a L'Oud is by L'Artisian Parfumier. They also have several perfumes that I hate. I love this house because of that creative risk taking, because they fully commit to weird and interesting concepts. This time around, Venenum and Passage d'Enfer Extrême were the ones that did it for me. A Fleur de Peche was beautiful on my friend, but alas it had the white musk/floral note that goes sour on me. I can't wait to order more from them.

JPG: I ordered a set of four for women and loved every single one. They were radiant, addictive, feminine, self-possessed, and just really fun to wear. I struggle with a lot of basic fruity/floral feminine scents, so I was really excited to find a set that worked this well for me.

Fischersund: No 54 by Fischersund is probably now my favorite freshie. It smelled like you were sitting on a wooden park bench in front of a bush of rosehip having tea with friends. I'm excited to try more perfumes that would make me smell like a garden.

What do you think I would like based on these reviews? And, is there a direction I haven't gone in that you would recommend I explore next?

I have a close friend who really loves strawberries and is looking for a strawberry perfume to be her signature scent. She bought Love by Coach a year ago and has now almost finished the bottle. She told me recently that she wants to try more strawberry-themed perfumes, but can't find anything that she likes at Ulta or Sephora.

She has a major celebration coming up, so I was hoping to get her a set of 5 or so niche perfume samples, then buy her a full bottle of her favorite once she had spent some time with each.

Would you guys mind sharing some recommendations for strawberry perfumes I could get her?

She likes realistic, fresh, cheerful, and romantic strawberry. I think she likes Coach Love because its balanced with warmer, more grounded notes. She won't like anything too sweet (she dislikes Nest strawberry for example) or candy-like.

I'm new to niche perfumes and recently ordered my first discovery set, the Nomade set from Byredo. To my surprise, Blanche actually ended up being my favorite! I'm considering buying a decant or possibly even full bottle, but I'd like to test out some other clean scents first so I have a basis for comparison. I want to know if I love Blanche specifically, or if I just love smelling clean.

What other clean scents should I try? Which are your favorites and why?

My plan is to go to luckyscents and 3-5 samples. Can y'all help me put together a list?

Online I mostly see people discussing perfumes that cost $150+ per bottle, but when I ask people irl what they're actually wearing they usually show me a $20 Amazon listing.

I was wondering, what is your process for finding budget perfumes? I assume budget brands are less likely to sell discovery sets and samples, so are you stuck blind buying? Go for dupes of more designer fragrances you know you love?

Have any of you found affordable hidden gems that rival or even outperform the more expensive bottles in your collections? How often can cheaper perfumes genuinely compete with designer or niche options?

Are there certain vibes/smells that its safer to skimp on? I assume that a basic clean smell might be easier for a cheaper brand to pull off than a complex blend of realistic flowers. When has the $200 bottle felt most worthwhile, vs when have you felt that the dupe was just as good?

I'm excited to try out finer and more expensive brands as well, but it might be financially painful for me to build a collection entirely out of Diptyque and Chanel.

I keep hearing that BEWL is the best telehealth if you want more medical support, so I'm considering switching to them. For those of you with them:

Do you get regular video chats with a doctor? How often?

Do they help with split dosing?

Are their providers equipped to handle more complex or atypical endocrine issues, or are they mostly set up for standard obesity/diabetes cases?

If your case is more complex, do they collaborate with other members of your care team?

I'm trying to figure out what y'all mean by "more medical support," and whether they’re set up to handle more than just straightforward cases.

Hi everyone!

I'm trying to learn to care for my fine hair but can't find a good introduction to the basics. What beginner guides do you all recommend? Is there a post or wiki I can check out for tips and product recommendations?

I have fine, medium-thick, slightly wavy, virgin, hip length hair. My biggest struggles are grease control and dry ends.