I Have The Right To Live


Hi there my lovelies! Hope you guys are doing well and staying safe. Today I want to elaborate on of my experience in I had that still brings fear and tears in my life.

Last year we all witnessed the horrific death of George Floyd and the months of protest for justice. After a year, we finally saw justice for Floyd. I am not saying anything against law enforcement. The overwhelming majority of them are brave heroes who risk their lives every day to protect the community. Think about all the NYPD and NYFD heroes who ran into the burning towers and never came back. I will always honor them in my heart.

As a brown person, I never saw the unjust side of law enforcement. Well, growing up my parents always told us never to do anything that makes the police stop us. Always respect them and never give them a chance to stop you. Years later I met two amazing DC Metropolitan Police Department cops, my dad’s friends. If I had an ounce of fear in my heart, they erased that with their kindness. Their kindness towards us during their community patrol made them good friends of my dad.

Yeah, I have to admit that I don’t know what a black person may feel about law enforcement because I was very fortunate growing up. However, over 5 years ago one encounter has made me feel less than a human due to the color of my skin. I know my experience is nothing compared to what a black person may go through but it has scared me. I still remember my dad and I were standing in line at Starbucks waiting to order. We didn’t there was a white, blonde female cop in front of my dad while I was behind him. He was facing me and we were just talking. All of a sudden the cop started accusing my dad of hovering over her gun. I tried to tell her that my dad was not. He was just talking to me. However, she was just started escalating the situation as if my dad committed a huge crime. I tried to talk with my phone in front of me but dad just gestured me to lower my phone and stop talking.

There were kids and other people. Everyone was watching and didn’t say a thing. That day my dad was the calm one. People say that before death your whole life flashes in front of you. That day, while the whole thing was unfolding my life with my dad flashed in front of me. Even though my dad did not do anything, it was he who apologized to the cop and left the scene with me. When I asked him why he didn’t say anything, he told me there were scared kids there and nothing good was going to come.

That day, I had whole new respect for my dad. It was him who was calm and deescalated the situation, not the cop. My friends, I am not saying that my experience was anywhere close to a black person, but it was the first time I was made to feel less than a person due to the color of our skin. If anything happened to my dad that day I don’t know what I would have done. My parents instilled a sense of right and wrong in me and what happened that day was not right. Perhaps if my dad was white, the situation would have been different. I still think that the overwhelming majority of cops are great but the one side that my dad and I experienced that day, we never ever want anyone to experience.

The constitution said, “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” and “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” (Declaration of Independence). We the people have the right to live without being forced to feel less than a human.

Please subscribe to this blog or follow me if you have a WordPress account.  Don’t forget to check out my Facebook Page and follow me on Instagram @forevernij. Are you on Bloglovin? Also please subscribe to my YouTube channel. Let’s support each other. Please follow me and comment below with your information so that I can follow you back.

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CAUSES CLOSE TO MY HEART

PLEASE DONATE DIRECTLY TO THE ORGANIZATIONS THROUGH MY FUNDRAISING LINKS:

I consider myself fortunate to have good health, a full-time job, and a roof over my head. However, there are still so many people who are struggling to put food on their tables. Please join me to help those who are struggling. If you have good health, full-time jobs, and a roof over your head, please join me to help those who are struggling. Whether you donate $5 or $500, you will make a huge difference in someone’s life.

No Kid Hungry:

America’s kids need us. The coronavirus is closing schools nationwide, and millions of vulnerable children are losing the school meals they depend on. For some, it’s the only food they’ll receive on a given day. We have a plan to feed kids, but we need your help today to continue our work to ensure every kid gets three meals a day. You can click above to donate to my gofundme page donation going directly to the organization, or you can click on the direct link to the site.

Food Bank of Maryland:

PLEASE DONATION ANY AMOUNT YOU CAN AND SHARE THE POST WITH EVERYONE YOU KNOW.

Manna Food Center, a nonprofit organization, strives to eliminate hunger in Montgomery County through food distribution, education, and advocacy. Millions of children go to bed hungry in America every year, sadly it’s worse now! Today, 14 million children regularly miss meals — three times more than during the Great Recession and five times more than before the pandemic.

Many parents have lost their job during the pandemic. Sadly, that shows no sign of stopping. Your donation can bring relief to the millions worried about where their next meal will come from. It’s even worse for Latino and Black families, whose rates of nutrition insecurity have spiked to 25% and 30%. In the world’s wealthiest country, this is unconscionable.

Even before the pandemic, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated 37 million people in America struggled with hunger and nutrition. The Centers for Disease Control reports 76% of people killed by COVID-19 had at least one underlying condition, most of which were diet-related. Diet-related diseases also fuel skyrocketing health care costs, which rose from 5% to 28% of the federal budget in the past 50 years.

Let’s make the world better, kinder, brighter. Every dollar you give will create real change. $1 will feed 5 hungry children here in the US, but $1,000 will feed 50,000 starving children overseas. Be the good in the lives of many by giving right now.

SUPPORT ME

Your generous support will help me continue to bring contents to you.

AFFILIATION LINKS & COUPON

Toms: Get $20 off your first order at TOMS!

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Lyft: Get your free ride.

Grubhub: Sign Up and Enjoy. Get $10 off your first order

Ipsy: Sign Up to Get Curated Products to Your Door Step

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Life With Alopecia


Hi there my beautiful lovelies! Hope you guys are doing well and staying safe! Today I want to update you about my continued every day with Androgenic Alopecia.

Androgenic Alopecia

What is Androgenic Alopecia? According to National Institute of Health, “Androgenetic alopecia is a common form of hair loss in both men and women. In men, this condition is also known as male-pattern baldness. Hair is lost in a well-defined pattern, beginning above both temples. Over time, the hairline recedes to form a characteristic “M” shape. Hair also thins at the crown (near the top of the head), often progressing to partial or complete baldness.”

In women, the hair becomes thinner all over the head, and the hairline does not recede. Androgenetic alopecia in women rarely leads to total baldness.

My Journey with Androgenic Alopecia or AGA:

I got diagnosed with Androgenic Alopecia five years ago. It came as a surprise to me. I loved my hair and then one day lumps of hair started falling out. I can’t describe it. It scared me and my family. I went to the dermatologist with a sense of panic.

She did a biopsy to confirm and told me that it’s more common in women than I thought. According to NIH, this form of hair loss affects an estimated 50 million men and 30 million women in the United States. Androgenetic alopecia can start as early as a person’s teens and risk increases with age; more than 50 percent of men over age 50 have some degree of hair loss. In women, hair loss is most likely after menopause.

I was particularly vulnerable because I have Polycystic ovary syndrome, or PCOS. PCOS is a hormonal disorder causing enlarged ovaries with small cysts on the outer edges.The cause of polycystic ovary syndrome isn’t well understood, but may involve a combination of genetic and environmental factors.

I had large bald spots. My journey with AGA involved steroid shot on the largest bald spots, prescription Spironolactone, a diuretic originally used to treat high blood pressure. It can also treat fluid retention (edema) and high levels of the hormone aldosterone. I was only told to use minoxidil, only treatment shown in randomized control trial to treat hair loss effectively. How if stop using minoxidil, your hair loss will return.

Hair Oil

I couldn’t commit to use minoxidil. What I did is do my own evidence based scientific literature search and then decided to try hair oil, made with organic coconut oil, almond oil, avocado oil, castor oil, peppermint oil, and onion juice. I used it half hour to hour before shampooing.

Meditation

One thing I knew that I had to control my stress. There was no point stressing about hair loss if that meant more hair loss. I started meditating on a regular basis while continuing other hair loss treatment. Stress reduction not only helped me fight AGA but other conditions as well.

Led Light Therapy

Finally, I  also used led light helmet. Device-based treatments cleared by FDA to treat hair loss include low-level laser therapy (LLLT)  dual wavelength red LED light therapy. According to Dr. Mark Nestor, “Hair growth in patients who have AGA has been successfully achieved through a range of in-office energy-based devices including fractional lasers and at-home low-level laser therapy (LLLT) devices. In the last two years alone, the number of approved items on the FDA’s 510(k) premarket notification list classified as laser, comb, cap, or hair product intended for growth of scalp hair has nearly doubled to a total of 50.”

Since I was desperate and decided to buy irestore. Irestore is a FDA cleared red light therapy, 25 minutes every other day.

Red light therapy (RLT) is a treatment that helps your skin and muscle tissue heal by subjecting you to low levels of red light. It works by exposing your skin to a device with a red light resulting in your mitochondria penetrating your skin to create more energy.

The part of your cells that generate power (mitochondria) soak up the red light, which can lead to healthier cells and the restoration of skin and muscle tissue. The light creates heat below the skin’s surface, increasing the cells’ activity and leading to faster growth.

Now I have grown back more than half of the hair lost. I hope that my hair loss journey helps you get some clarity and more choices in hand.

Please subscribe to this blog or follow me if you have a WordPress account.  Don’t forget to check out my Facebook Page and follow me on Instagram @forevernij. Are you on Bloglovin? Also please subscribe to my YouTube channel. Let’s support each other. Please follow me and comment below with your information so that I can follow you back.

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Indoor Dining First Time Post Pandemic


Hi there my beautiful lovelies! Hope you guys are doing well and staying safe. Today I want to talk to you about dining indoor in post pandemic era.

The Pandemic

Just a little more than a year ago, the life that we know came to a complete halt. Restaurants, gyms, non-essential businesses were closed. After over 575,000 COVID-19 deaths, over 32.3 million COVID-19 infections, and over 250 million vaccines administered, things are finally starting to open up. However, as I have mentioned in my previous post more and more of us are anxious to socialize post-pandemic. I for one, dread every day going out.

Post Pandemic Era

As more and more Americans are getting vaccinated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has revised their guidelines for those who are vaccinated. Outdoor visits and activities are safer than indoor activities, and fully vaccinated people can participate in some indoor events safely, without much risk. According to the CDC, those who are fully vaccinated (2 weeks are the second dose of Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or the only dose of Johnson & Johnson vaccines) can gather indoors with fully vaccinated people without wearing a mask or staying 6 feet apart. They can also gather indoors with unvaccinated people of any age from one other household (for example, visiting with relatives who all live together) without masks or staying 6 feet apart unless any of those people or anyone they live with has an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19.

Indoor Dining:

Blackened Salmon Pasta

Keeping the guidance in mind I went to an indoor dining facility first time in more than a year. I am currently vaccinated and was actually tired of deliveries. Hence, I found a time when the restaurant would be least busy (worked on my dad’s restaurant for years so know the general times). I went to Bonefish Grill and asked to be seated at the quietest table. It was nice because that area had less foot traffic. We were the only people in that area. To be honest it was really relaxing after a long time of strict leaving.

dining indoor
Bang Bang Shrimp

Most of all the food was good and the ambiance was relaxing. To be honest, after a very long time, it was nice to dine indoors and our waiter was amazing and the food was great. Most of all it felt good to see the friendly faces. As you know, restaurants are one of the hardest-hit businesses during the pandemic. My heart goes out to those who lost so much.

My dear lovelies! If you are vaccinated and can, please go to a local restaurant and show your support to these small businesses. With the warmer weather, you can seat outdoor and still have a lot of fun and good food. I just want to have an unofficial count of how many people are read to dine out. Please complete the poll below.

Please subscribe to this blog or follow me if you have a WordPress account.  Don’t forget to check out my Facebook Page and follow me on Instagram @forevernij. Are you on Bloglovin? Also please subscribe to my YouTube channel. Let’s support each other. Please follow me and comment below with your information so that I can follow you back.

——————————–   Happy Reading ———————————-

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Follow my Instagram page on @forevernij

Follow my Facebook Page on @forevernij

Subscribe to my YouTube channel

Follow my Twitter account @allaboutme3181

Buy From My Closet

Shop from my closet at Poshmark

Shop from my closet at Ebay

CAUSES CLOSE TO MY HEART

PLEASE DONATE DIRECTLY TO THE ORGANIZATIONS THROUGH MY FUNDRAISING LINKS:

I consider myself fortunate to have good health, a full-time job, and a roof over my head. However, there are still so many people who are struggling to put food on their tables. Please join me to help those who are struggling. If you have good health, full-time jobs, and a roof over your head, please join me to help those who are struggling. Whether you donate $5 or $500, you will make a huge difference in someone’s life.

No Kid Hungry:

America’s kids need us. The coronavirus is closing schools nationwide, and millions of vulnerable children are losing the school meals they depend on. For some, it’s the only food they’ll receive on a given day. We have a plan to feed kids, but we need your help today to continue our work to ensure every kid gets three meals a day. You can click above to donate to my gofundme page donation going directly to the organization, or you can click on the direct link to the site.

Food Bank of Maryland:

PLEASE DONATION ANY AMOUNT YOU CAN AND SHARE THE POST WITH EVERYONE YOU KNOW.

Manna Food Center, a nonprofit organization, strives to eliminate hunger in Montgomery County through food distribution, education, and advocacy. Millions of children go to bed hungry in America every year, sadly it’s worse now! Today, 14 million children regularly miss meals — three times more than during the Great Recession and five times more than before the pandemic.

Many parents have lost their job during the pandemic. Sadly, that shows no sign of stopping. Your donation can bring relief to the millions worried about where their next meal will come from. It’s even worse for Latino and Black families, whose rates of nutrition insecurity have spiked to 25% and 30%. In the world’s wealthiest country, this is unconscionable.

Even before the pandemic, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated 37 million people in America struggled with hunger and nutrition. The Centers for Disease Control reports 76% of people killed by COVID-19 had at least one underlying condition, most of which were diet-related. Diet-related diseases also fuel skyrocketing health care costs, which rose from 5% to 28% of the federal budget in the past 50 years.

Let’s make the world better, kinder, brighter. Every dollar you give will create real change. $1 will feed 5 hungry children here in the US, but $1,000 will feed 50,000 starving children overseas. Be the good in the lives of many by giving right now.

SUPPORT ME

Your generous support will help me continue to bring contents to you.

AFFILIATION LINKS & COUPON

Toms: Get $20 off your first order at TOMS!

Door Dash: Get $30 off ($10 off each of your first 3 orders)

Uber: Sign Up to Ride. Use promo code
ic0b9 and get a free ride.

Lyft: Get your free ride.

Grubhub: Sign Up and Enjoy. Get $10 off your first order

Ipsy: Sign Up to Get Curated Products to Your Door Step

Boxy Charm: Use referral code Munziba-VDPRPCII

Cause Box: Get $10 Off Your First Subscription Box

Singles Swag: Receive $15 Off Your First Subscription Box

Amazon Store: Check Out My Amazon Store Front with My Favorite Products

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Facetory: promo code forevernij15

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Social Anxiety In The Time of COVID-19


social anxiety in the year of covid-19
Open Source Image from Pixabay

Hi there my beautiful lovelies! Hope you guys are doing well and staying safe. Today I want to talk to you about something I have been thinking about a lot, the past few weeks, Social Anxiety. I know we all have experienced it at some point in life. However, I think that social anxiety was more visible the past year during the pandemic.

So What Is Social Anxiety?

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, “Social anxiety disorder (also called social phobia) is a mental health condition. It is an intense, persistent fear of being watched and judged by others. This fear can affect work, school, and your other day-to-day activities. It can even make it hard to make and keep friends. But social anxiety disorder doesn’t have to stop you from reaching your potential. Treatment can help you overcome your symptoms.”

I know that may seem extreme or not normal to you but think about it. The past year has been nothing but not normal. During the past year every time we left home, we had to think about our own and our loved one’s safety. We avoided social interaction as much as possible. We worked from home, and Zoom, Team, WebEx, and/or Google Meet become our source of social interaction. If you have a vulnerable family member, then forget about it. We worked hard to make sure that they are protected. Social distancing, mask-wearing became the new normal.

How Common is Social Anxiety?

According to Kessler and colleagues (2005), the lifetime prevalence of social anxiety is 8-13%. Now, that may be a small number. However, if you think about it, we all have experienced social anxiety one time or another: whether afraid of raising hand in school in fear of looking stupid, or just afraid of being embarrassed. Nevertheless, these feelings have increased exponentially (My sole opinion). As reported by the World Economic Forum, lockdown associated with COVID-19 is the “world’s largest psychological experiment.”

Social Anxiety and the Pandemic

As more and more people are getting vaccinated, life is slowly getting back to some sort of normalcy. This in turn is increasing our social anxiety. I for one am dealing with this every day. While everyone was working in their PJs at home, my dad and I were driving to work, a normal routine of being essential workers. However, anxiety did not ease. I have anxiety and PTSD, but social anxiety was not much of a problem for me. However, with the beginning of the pandemic, my dad and I dreaded leaving home. This was especially stressful for us because my mom is severely immunocompromised and was hospitalized twice in less than six months. My sister, who used to go to work every day, became a full-time teleworker.

Hence, every time my mom had an injection, we started blaming ourselves for bringing home infections and making mom sick. I have a UV sanitizer at home and wipes in every room. Every time, we went out, before going inside, we put our stuff in the UV box to sanitize, wipe our shoes, and then change and wash our hands and faces before going to any common areas. Even after doing all that, going to work every day was a traumatic event for me every day. Before the pandemic, I had a generalized anxiety disorder, but after the pandemic, I was diagnosed with a post-traumatic disorder or PTSD. It is a nightmare for me to go to work every day, going to the grocery store, or any other close interaction. I am still taking every precaution to continue in my daily life, but it will take time. I bet that I am not an isolated case. I would love to see evidence-based research in this area. What does the number tell us? What is the prevalence of social anxiety is compared to pre-pandemic?

Conclusion

My dear lovelies! Have you faced anxiety dealing with social situations? I would love to hear your feedback. What are you doing to ease anxiety?

Please subscribe to this blog or follow me if you have a WordPress account.  Don’t forget to check out my Facebook Page and follow me on Instagram @forevernij. Are you on Bloglovin? Also please subscribe to my YouTube channel. Let’s support each other. Please follow me and comment below with your information so that I can follow you back.

——————————–   Happy Reading ———————————-

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is thank-you.png
Thank you2

Follow my Instagram page on @forevernij

Follow my Facebook Page on @forevernij

Subscribe to my YouTube channel

Follow my Twitter account @allaboutme3181

Buy From My Closet

Shop from my closet at Poshmark

Shop from my closet at Ebay

CAUSES CLOSE TO MY HEART

PLEASE DONATE DIRECTLY TO THE ORGANIZATIONS THROUGH MY FUNDRAISING LINKS:

I consider myself fortunate to have good health, a full-time job, and a roof over my head. However, there are still so many people who are struggling to put food on their tables. Please join me to help those who are struggling. If you have good health, full-time jobs, and a roof over your head, please join me to help those who are struggling. Whether you donate $5 or $500, you will make a huge difference in someone’s life.

No Kid Hungry:

America’s kids need us. The coronavirus is closing schools nationwide, and millions of vulnerable children are losing the school meals they depend on. For some, it’s the only food they’ll receive on a given day. We have a plan to feed kids, but we need your help today to continue our work to ensure every kid gets three meals a day. You can click above to donate to my gofundme page donation going directly to the organization, or you can click on the direct link to the site.

Food Bank of Maryland:

PLEASE DONATION ANY AMOUNT YOU CAN AND SHARE THE POST WITH EVERYONE YOU KNOW.

Manna Food Center, a nonprofit organization, strives to eliminate hunger in Montgomery County through food distribution, education, and advocacy. Millions of children go to bed hungry in America every year, sadly it’s worse now! Today, 14 million children regularly miss meals — three times more than during the Great Recession and five times more than before the pandemic..

Many parents have lost their job during the pandemic. Sadly, that shows no sign of stopping. Your donation can bring relief to the millions worried about where their next meal will come from. It’s even worse for Latino and Black families, whose rates of nutrition insecurity have spiked to 25% and 30%. In the world’s wealthiest country, this is unconscionable.

Even before the pandemic, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated 37 million people in America struggled with hunger and nutrition. The Centers for Disease Control reports 76% of people killed by COVID-19 had at least one underlying condition, most of which were diet-related. Diet-related diseases also fuel skyrocketing health care costs, which rose from 5% to 28% of the federal budget in the past 50 years.

Let’s make the world better, kinder, brighter. Every dollar you give will create real change. $1 will feed 5 hungry children here in the US, but $1,000 will feed 50,000 starving children overseas. Be the good in the lives of many by giving right now.

SUPPORT ME

Your generous support will help me continue to bring contents to you.

AFFILIATION LINKS & COUPON

Toms: Get $20 off your first order at TOMS!

Door Dash: Get $30 off ($10 off each of your first 3 orders)

Uber: Sign Up to Ride. Use promo code
ic0b9 and get a free ride.

Lyft: Get your free ride.

Grubhub: Sign Up and Enjoy. Get $10 off your first order

Ipsy: Sign Up to Get Curated Products to Your Door Step

Boxy Charm: Use referral code Munziba-VDPRPCII

Cause Box: Get $10 Off Your First Subscription Box

Singles Swag: Receive $15 Off Your First Subscription Box

Amazon Store: Check Out My Amazon Store Front with My Favorite Products

Prime Video: Sign Up for Prime Video

Facetory: promo code forevernij15

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