u/Objective-Error1686

Ang hirap maghanap ng eczema friendly products na cruelty-free that's affordable omg 😭 sobrang mahal nila, I really hope they become more common soon. I've recently been switching to cruelty-free products and as someone with eczema, Aveeno has been my go-to lotion but I recently discovered that their brand is not cruelty-free where it is allowed. I love Aveeno but it makes me sad that I'm using a product where it potentially harmed a lot of animals! However, i've been using a lotion that my derma has specifically made for people with skin asthma that's cruelty-free but I don't know if I'll continue on buying it since it isn't a specialized clinical product 😅. But I wanna know if there're other options ya'll use before deciding if it's worth it to keep buying from her office 🤗

Other than that Dove has the best products that has ever layed on my skin and hair and they're PETA-Approved! I highly encourage people to use it more since a lot of people in my life just don't seem to get how GOOD their products are

I don't understand why you either have to eat only animal-free products or you're "immoral", or for meat-eaters "humans are meant to eat meat". I won't call myself vegan/vegetarian since i still eat some animal products like oyster sauce—but I avoid eating like actual cooked meat because I love plants and animals, I simply just don't crave for it, and I like veggies more. Because of that I can totally see myself going completely vegetarian but again, who knows—I just really like to eat food and I understand that both meat and veggies are both very healthy. I can't even call myself flexitarian because it's a very interesting term and many people think that it means nothing lol

I just wish these debates would end and hoped more meat-eaters understand why vegans are the way they are and for vegans to know that it is okay if someone with a very planty diet eats meat from time to time. No one has to be 100% vegan! Eating less animal products is way better than being ignorant about how the meat+dairy industry works. I wish vegetables had a better reputation for taste and I can just hope that there are more ways to produce meat ethically :)). Anyway I just ranted about this because idk what to call my diet at all and I wanna know what other people think lol. Kind responses plz!!

Possible TW: Mental Health, Unhealthy relationship with food

I'm just about to enter college and as someone with eczema who's had severe skin flare-ups and bad mental health throughout high school I underestimated just how important your own physical health and nutrition is. For the past few years I did not have a good relationship with food at all, I would starve myself during lunch day after day and I wouldn't even complete my daily water intake, most of the food I ate was just meat, sweets, or fast food in general (so bad ik). Apart from that I was sad all throughout my high school years and would basically cry every single day because I didn't have any meaningful friends to hang out with, plenty of people did not like my weird personality and I thought I was really ugly ! My confidence was basically non-existent. My mental health was also so bad to the point I would just sleep all day everyday, and not even study/work hard, I didn't even play video games or maintained my hobbies to keep me alive.

But this year, I graduated. I wanted to be better, I cut off all the negative people in my life, made new friends, and even started to eat healthier with more colorful foods on my plate. All of those were difficult ;( but they are choices I don't regret at all. I have friends now that I love and love me, and a boyfriend that supports me and is by my side through everything. One of the things that shocked me the most was eating healthier—and seeing food as something that represents my body and energy instead of just blindly binge eating whatever. I was so surprised on how much it helped me and my skin brighter, the "eat your skincare" videos on tiktok were not even kidding. It has also significantly made my skin recover faster from irritation (every skin is different!) and gave me a lot of energy to do something else other than bedrot and doomscroll. Anyway, today I looked at myself in the mirror and thought I looked really pretty and happy even though I have an ongoing flare-up :)) I'm excited to have vegetable soup tomorrow, make more drawings, and watch my favourite Pixar movies. I'm so excited to keep doing better. The only thing that makes me sad is the fact that if I had done this earlier, I would have had even better grades than I actually had and a confidence past me needed. But you know—it's better to start late than never!

I am not vegan nor vegetarian *yet* but a few months ago that was such a bizarre concept to me, I could never imagine having no meat in my diet and would always say that "humans are omnivores!" And I very rarely even ate vegetables since I didn't like them. However it's been weeks since I added more plants to my diet for my skin recovery, at first I couldn't get enough of leafy and potato salads, now I eat carrots like they're candy. Even though I still eat meat, I don't crave for it anymore which is shocking and I ate siiiignificantly less than I did before I started this diet. I did not even notice I was eating less and less meat. Even my cravings for added sugars have decreased and don't reach for chocolate in the fridge as much.

I think the reason why I didn't like veggies before is because I did not like how they're cooked but now since I have more control on how I eat my veggies they are so much more enjoyable now!! I really enjoy them in salad, pan fried, or soup form and can totally see myself having my diet consisting mostly of plants but idk if i could ever completely cut out meat, dairy, or eggs since I still don't complete my daily protein intake even until now 😅. But who knows! I'm 17, maybe in the future I'll find a way when I'm fully independent

Saw a tiktok live debate asking the question "Is Christian God the only true God?" I don't wanna post the video thumbnail/screenshots for privacy reasons but I just found it really interesting.

I personally find it dismissive of other religions and can have the possibility to harm their other cultures, is just a question to spark fights, itaas ang ibang religion, and I don't see how it is worth debating. But idk, I'd like to see other people's thoughts!! (That isn't just "kung naooffend ka just scroll", kasi sometimes things are worth getting offended for 🥴)

Recently had three dermatitis flare-ups after my skin seemed almost perfect and it's now back to it's dry flaky irritated state, two of my cats died from a dog attack, I ended a friendship after I learned that my old best friend were making lies about me, had to quit my summer art class scholarship because of my skin condition as my mom would literally scream at me if i even thought about continuing, and some family stuff idk if I should share. Other than that a ton of money was spent on my medication and I feel so guilty and wish I didn't apply for art class so I wouldn't flare up like this and saved hospital visits ☹️. I wish I wasn't so bedridden so I got to save my cats before the stray dogs got to them, it's haunting me so much that a bit of responsibility would have avoided their deaths. These problems at first seemed small to me until I realised how much it was affecting my mood and energy, to some it may be but it just makes me feel so sad and numb and I can't think of anything that will make me feel better. But I consider myself lucky that my problems are not as huge as a woman fighting for rights in afghanistan or starving children in poverty. Right now I just finished an online consultation with my derma and there goes a ton of money again. I wish I could talk about it with my boyfriend, he is my absolute best friend but he has also been down mentally and is busy with school while I'm still on my summer break so I don't really have any academic priorities to distract me. I hope I can open up to him next time and ask for a visit when he feels better and is not as busy. I could pick up a paper and colored pencils but I just feel so unmotivated to do any of my hobbies at this point. I have friends but I only ever get the chance to see them like once every two months and I don't even talk to them online aside from sending reels on Instagram. I hope some miracle would happen tomorrow and my skin becomes clear, my two cats didn't get hurt, we are okay financially, and I get to make art and talk to my friends in my art community without the environment having to harm my skin. 🥹 I don't know what to do other than to stay positive but it's really difficult sometimes

I had three flare ups just this June and it's just incredibly itchy, but before that my skin was at its best for maybe idk two weeks. It's just so upsetting to me how I spent so much time and effort—basically my whole life— trying make my skin look it's best, fading old scars, eating healthier, taking supplements, only for it to flare up once I entered a new environment :// not only once but three times. I'm just so sad because I thought I would finally live my dream of having clear smooth skin and wear a slightly revealing outfits without thinking about my skin until now. I just feel so sad and I wish some miracle would happen that my confidence and healthy skin is back tomorrow. What sucks even more to me is that I'm just 17 and I can't dress up like my peers because of my skin condition, I hate it so much. I'm the only one in my family that has skin THIS sensitive. I really hope I heal sooner

I wish it was talked about more how eczema/dermatitis can affect mental health and confidence even worse than how I'm feeling right now. Sighhhh i just made this post to look for support and it's not completely hopeless for many people like me 🫂🫂

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Hello! I need help :')) Not sure if this fits under Chronic Illness or Self worth so I will just put 'Others' To start, my mom encouraged me to join art class for the summer so I would have something to do, I decided to go with pottery because it's new and something I haven't tried yet and I have already tried sculpting before. I honestly thought I would just be a regular degular student who makes things they like, go home, and that's it, but I became too important at that art community and I'm slowly regretting applying for it. My mentor noticed that I have been doing well in my ceramic works and decided to make me a scholar for a normal drawing class—I proudly accepted 'cause it was an honor, so I got to learn a ton of things about drawing and apparently I was doing so well she also made me the first one on that art community to work on a lacquer painting project, which I eventually had to quit because I have hypersensitive skin with atopic dermatitis that reacts to everything. Now since I quit she gave me new projects to work on, pottery again—I was happy, something I haven't touched in so long and was the reason why I joined in the first place, three projects for myself and one for her vision. And even after all that she wants me to TEACH drawing in that art community WHILE I'm in college and I already agreed as long as I have free time...... All of these makes me feel so overwhelmed and it's honestly making me confused what I actually want and whether I should continue or quit after this summer. She's already talking about me helping her in the future years on projects I'm not even passionate about. I'm only 17, don't get me wrong, I love art—I've been making art my whole life and I'm very confident in my skills, I also love the friends I made there. But I'm still so young, art was never something I wanted to be part of my responsibilities, I only saw it as something I do out of pure enjoyment in my free time but never as a job or a responsibility. What's the problem if I love art anyway? My biggest priority is academics and science, I dream about working on a space agency more than I dream of becoming a successful artist. My university program is Engineering which I also deeply love but considering the workload of it I'm scared I won't be able to give my mentor the help she'd like from me. And it is making me scared I will disappoint someone who has invested a lot of time and faith in me and I won't be able to give her anything back. Other than that, one of the reasons why I'm considering quitting for this summer and so on is because I wanna focus on my health because of my skin problems. I feel guilty because they've supported me, but at the same time, I don't want to stay here just because I feel obligated. I don't even know if i should fulfill her request of me teaching her future students because I'm just so scared of my skin flaring up again. It just has become worse and worse ever since I started art class and it makes me really sad because even my skin is stopping me from making art out of my home. So much money was also spent on my medication and creams just because I was exposed to a different environment. I have spent so much effort and time trying to make it clear and avoid flare-ups but now I'm really itchy again everywhere with tons of scars and rashes which I know will turn into PIH and it's gonna take an incredible amount of time for it to fade. It was also only recently where I felt confident with my skin and it's making me sosososo sad that it just disappeared like that. It's been three months since I started and I think so much about how much healthier my skin would be and how confident I would still be if I didn't sign up for this art community. But I would miss out on friends, events, and especially the knowledge my mentor gave me. Aughh

Kaka-leave ko lang ng isang live sa tiktok about a debate I won't say. On the other hand may isang nag-aargue nang maayos tapos yung isa ang ginagawa nang-aasar mostly?? Like apart from that, yung live chat napakabiased at ginagawang biro and entertainment yung debate tapos hindi pa nakikinig doon sa isang nag-aargue nang maayos. Akala ko ba ang mga live debates na to ay para maging open-minded at matuto ang lahat bakit baliktad ang epekto 🥴. I always thought na young people on social media are not as immature as how people make them out to be pero nung manood ako ng mga lives na ito, I thought otherwise. Ang hirap manood ng isang debate kung ang sole goal nila ay manalo lang at i-bring down ang opposite side without even being formal about it. I know na in debates you are trying to win and persuade your side but I think we forget that we should also learn from it.

Hi! I'm about an intermediate artist who has been making art my whole life and I'm just a teen if that matters, but I also have eczema/atopic dermatitis and hypersensitive skin.

Recently, I tried out a new interesting art form that my mentor wanted to teach me which is Vietnamese lacquer painting, she really trusted me with this medium and I tried to be so careful and conserving with this art form especially since it's intensely labor heavy and expensive, but a few weeks ago I stopped because I was developing swelling and rashes on my face and neck—I thought it was just an eczema flare-up or an allergy from a food I carelessly ate so I went to the doctor, took meds and stayed at home for a long time, the lacquer paint being a possibility was not on my mind at all since I didn't get rashes on my hands (the ones with the most exposure).

Until this week I came back when I *thought* I'm fully healed to continue lacquer painting but now being extra careful and wore cotton gloves and sleeves just in case I get rashes again and so I don't accidentally touch my face. And then a few days ago I developed rashes on my face and neck and now my eyelids just started swelling today, really bad, and it's stinging a lot than last time, turns out I'm not fully healed yet. So now I heavily suspect that it's the lacquer paint that caused a reaction like this since it contains a compound called laccol—closely related to urushiol, the compound that causes poison ivy allergic reactions. So laccol basically does the same thing.

I've been bedridden and thinking if I should quit lacquer painting altogether even though I really don't want to, I really enjoy the process and how unique it is, and I especially want to learn more about it and finish at least one piece. My mom also thinks I should quit art since it's affecting my skin badly because I work with sanding a lot. I already talked to my mentor about it and she said it's okay and she respects my health a lot. I'm literally considering wearing lab equipment (chemistry is my major) next time with the goggles and everything then switch my workplace outdoors since I've been doing it indoors and the fumes probably affected my face.

It's now 1:30 am, I can't sleep, or stop thinking about this and my eyes really hurt. I do not know what to do it's my brother's wedding in a few days and my face is swollen and scarred. This brings me so much pain mentally and physically hahaha :')) arts and sciences is my biggest passion ever

Edit: I think it's important to mention that I didn't have problems working with lacquer paint until i switched my workplace indoors, but I also read that contact dermatitis/allergic reactions like these can be delayed for up to 10 days so, yeah.

Update: I thought about it deeply even though it has only been one night, I'm heavily leaning into stopping it completely. I love this art form but the comments are right, it's not worth going to the emergency room for, I will stick to my love for sculpting and keep painting realism then hopefully find a way to incorporate what I learnt and love about lacquer painting on my next works. Thank you for everyone's thoughts 🙏❤️

Hello! Incoming freshman of Chem Eng po ako, do ya'll have any advice/tips for advance studying/reviewing? Like do you just recall past lessons from SHS, then look for resources on new subjects? Are the downloadable digital materials with problems, e-books, and calc techniques also worth buying? Thank you!

Problem/Goal: Not sure how to prepare for college when it comes to studiess

Context: Incoming ChE freshman po ako and gusto ko lang po maging prepared pag nasa college na ako, especially when it comes to brains (I think I'm good in academics naman pero nakalimot ko na lahat ng napag-aralan ko nung shs 😭) pero I just wanna ask, paano ba talaga ang mag advance study? Nahihirapan po kasi ako mag-aral if walang guide or pressure. Do I just recall on past lessons? Look up the curriculum and research? Take notes about it? I've never done advanced study before because lagi ko lang iniisip na ituturo din naman sa akin pero I wanna try it this time. Also, is it also worth buying those digital study materials that comes with problems, math formulas, and calc techniquess for a freshie like me?

That's all!! Thank you!!

Previous attempts: None

I'm 17F, all throughout high school my friends never last—they all come and go at some point and I eventually graduated without a friend group or friends to hang out with after. It's usually because I feel left out, I kept noticing things I did not like about them, or they were just involved in a lot of drama and I did not want that. But during the time, I keep seeing all these posts especially on tiktok where it says "when you experience why the girl with no friends had no friends" and I saw it because my old best friend reposted it right after he stopped being friends with me (I didn't even do anything he just stopped talking to me without giving reason). Ever since then I spent a lot of time trying to figure out why I never belonged to any friend group, like am I toxic myself? Am I annoying? And then it got worse when I got a message from a girl I didn't like and said straight to my face "Everyone finds you insufferable and they just don't have the guts to say it to your face" and something like that after lies about me got spread ://. I really didn't care about it because I did not like her and her friends and the accusations about me weren't true anyway so I didn't try defending myself. But I did reflect a lot on my personality, but I still don't understand why I never had big friend groups like them. I think it's good to point out that I do have people that I get along with—I have a boyfriend and friends outside of school that I like and I'm quite sure they also like me. But I'm not sure if it's because they just don't know what I'm like in school? But they definitely know me deeply more than anyone I've been friends with in highschool and I really love seeing them. Now I'm in this huge emotional debate whether it really is my fault for cutting everyone I knew in high school and I'm worried it will be the same when I go to university even though I know it to myself that I try my best to be a good person and I never had any malicious intentions.

Nagsisisi ako dahil nag-enroll ako nang maaga hahshahba, block 1 tuloy ako and my classes would start at 7am. It would be a lot easier kung magdodorm ako but my mom highly discourages it because of living expenses, laundry, and struggle for food, she insists na mas beneficial sakin ang sumakay ng jeep for 45-75 minutes everyday (wala pa dun yung paglalakad and paghihintay) back and forth para din matuto ako bumyahe—and personally, I don't mind it kasi gets ko naman ang point niya at kinaya ng aking dalawang kapatid. Nakakapraning lang talaga yung 7am na klase 🥲 especially since ChemEng pa yung course na kinuha ko feel ko mauubusan ako ng oras sa pag-aaral kakabyahe hahaha. Goal ko pa naman ang magstick with 6-8 hours of sleep. Any tips from seniors?

This is mostly a rant but advice is also appreciated!! I graduated two months ago and ever since then things have been becoming better and happier for me—which made me realise my high school environment was really toxic and heavily influenced the way I act :'). I cut off my toxic friends, improved my toxic mindset and everything that made highschool suck. Overall I just feel so much better about myself and now have new friends that encourage me to be the best and kindest version of myself even though I still face great insecurity and guilt about my past. Masaya lang ako kasi after years of being self-depricating and sad—cutting off the people that wasn't good for me really was the key for healing and becoming a better person. Ngayon natatakot lang ako because what if ganun rin pala sa college na maraming issues and toxicity rin 😞, madami kasi ako naririnig na advice like "don't worry you'll thrive in college!" or "you'll find your people in college". I have hope but I wanna hear experiences from others as well ^ ^. At least I learned and now know what to avoid and choose the right environment

Just recently got diagnosed with atopic dermatitis and hypersensitive skin—which is now I know why most makeup and certain lotions make my skin itch! I'm not sure what to do to make my skin look nice because I'm not allowed to use makeup, have long hair, or use whitening products to get rid of hyperpigmentation! Even sweat makes my skin itchy. My current routine is dove soap, moisturizing lotion, and ointment until my next check-up. I barely use sunscreen when I go outside because I sweat sooo easily that it just melts off after 5 minutes outside—which sucks because I'm pale and tan easily... My skin does look brighter and smoother now compared to before so I know it's working. I just wanna ask fellow girls who have the same conditions as me for tips, like what lightweight sunscreens to use, types of clothing, food/vitamins, sleep routines, and how you make your life easier :'))

Problem/Goal: I don't consider myself to be a good person, I always try my best to be kind pero nahihirapan ako i-let go ang mga past mistakes and sins ko

Context: I'm 17F if that matters. I recently remembered this one time where me and my friends were talking negatively about someone pero tinalikuran nila ako and sinumbong na I've said many hurtful things—although they were in on it too and expressed irritation towards that someone as well. And it just triggered something in me that makes me feel so sad. I don't even intend for them to be hurtful, nagccomplain lang ako tungkol sa ugali ng isa kong classmate. Now that I think about it, ako nga yung may mali, masama nga talaga ang mga sinabi ko—di ko lang namalayan. What made me lead to think that was because I have a high temper, lagi akong galit nung highschool like sobra which is probably the reason why not many people tried being long-term friends with me except my bf of two years na matagal akong tiniis... Because of that I graduated SHS pretty lonely and sad with only a few who were real friends

Previous attempts: I started engaging myself with a new group of people and being in a new environment, I would say na mas masaya ako ngayon—I started making new friends in church and volunteering in an art community. All seems to go well, I like them—they like me. Now I look forward to my first year in college and tried making friends with the seniors. I'm improving and becoming a better person! Alam ko sa sarili ko yun, I always try my best to not let anger and complaining get ahead of me now. But sometimes—like today—I feel like my past truly defines me. Like I just cannot let go of them, I want to forget it pero ang sakit sa puso na madami akong nasaktan na tao gawa ng ugali ko and di ko deserve magbago o maging masaya because of the damage I did to them. Nakakalungkot at nakakawalang energy lang