Most girl's, if not all girl's will be able to relate to that annoyingly horrible thing that happens to our bodies at least one a month. Yes, you know what I'm on about. Periods. The dreaded time of the month where you literally feel like ripping out your uterus, stuffing your face with the closest unhealthy food in sight and crying over every little thing. And that's only just some of the things us girl's have to go through!

I was one of the first people in my high school friendship group to actually get there periods in the first year of high school and let's just put it simply, I was so not happy about it. My first one wasn't actually that bad. I remember actually thinking 'hey, this isn't so bad'. But how ever wrong was I? The next few that followed taught me just how horrible it really is. Today I thought I would share some of the things that I find useful when I'm on my period. I felt like doing something a little different, so let's just roll with it. Some you might already do since they're pretty obvious things, but others you might have not thought about before.

 1. Prepare:

I find being prepared for my period is essential. I roughly work out when it is. Apps are great for this or simply just jott it down on your calendar. This means I then have a clear idea of when I need particular things at the ready, e.g sanitary products, pain killers, comfy underwear or what I like to call 'my period pants', please tell me I'm not the only one who call's them that?

2. Minimize pain:

As soon as your period starts, I like to take pain killers. This way I think it helps to prevent the pain or allows it to help minimize the pain as much as possible. Also I like to take some before I sleep so then the pain doesn't stop me from sleeping. Although sometimes I opt for other options. For example I like to apply heat to my lower stomach. I have one of those heat pads you put in the microwave for just over a minute and then you can hold it against your tummy. Another great tip is for when you're on the go, you can purchase some of heat pad strips, that you heat up and then stick under your clothes for when you're out of the house like at work or school. This way you can still have some form of heat being applied to your pain.



3. Stay hydrated:

It is really important that when you're on your period that you stay hydrated. Drinking water can help not only prevent dehydration, but it also helps to prevent water retention which is that awful bloated/heavy feeling you can get in your tummy. Also water helps to keep your skin feeling hydrated and prevents any acne from forming caused by your period.

4. Skin care:

As mentioned, drinking water can be really great for helping your skin. When you're close to or on your period, you are more likely to have break outs. It is essential that you take care of your skin all of the time, but mainly around your period. Remember to wash your face twice a day, apply a moisturiser, cleanse your skin from any dirt and make-up you might have worn throughout the day and any other products you might decide to use, for example a face mask.

5. Chill out:

There's nothing better than when you're feeling rubbish than just simply chilling out. If you have just got in from work or school, why not go run yourself a bath or climb into bed, grab a book or some films and just have a relaxing end to the day. Of course, if you have the whole day off, then why not just spend the day taking care of yourself and doing the things you find relaxing. If you're lucky, you might also be able to have a massage from your loved one or treat yourself to one in your local beauty salon. Nothing beats a good back massage!

6. Allow yourself to feel 'crappy':

There's no shame in just allowing yourself to feel the way you do. You have the right to sulk, feel bad, sad, angry or whatever it is you're feeling. You deserve to because of what your body is going through. If you want to go eat that slice of chocolate cake, then go eat that slice of cake and enjoy it. If you want to lay in bed all day, then go lay in bed all day. If you want to sit and watch soppy rom-cmon's, then go watch them and cry about it. Just let yourself feel rubbish! 

Do you have any tips? 

I hope you enjoyed this slightly different, yet 100% relatable for all woman out there!

Towards the end of the year, I really wanted to up my skin care game and for Christmas I asked for a few skin care products. I've seen and read many good things about Lush face masks, so I thought why not add a couple to my Christmas list? It was a choice between Cupcake and Catastrophe. I was lucky enough to receive 'Cupcake' from my parents.

The main aims of this product are to draw out any dirt, impurities and give a deep cleanse to the skin. It contains a mixture of natural ingredients such as cocoa butter, fresh mint, rhassoul mud etc, which is one of the main reasons why you have to store this face mask in the fridge. Cupcake is mainly aimed at those with oily skin, as well those who have teenage skin. I don't particularly have very oily skin, I'm more prone to dry skin. However, I really wanted to try this one purely because it is supposed to help teenage skin. I wanted something that would help to get rid of any spots and prevent further ones from appearing.

Once I got the face mask out of the fridge and opened it up, I was firstly hit with the strong scent it has. It smells like a mixture of chocolate and mint. I was unsure of it at first, but a few uses it grew on me. The appearance of it resembles the name of the mask so well, it literally does look like the mixture to a cupcake and it is definitely something you would want to eat. However, I probably wouldn't recommend actually eating it haha!

This mask is so easy to apply onto the skin. I apply it over my forehead, down the sides of my face, on my cheeks, down the bridge of my nose, on either side of my nose and across my chin. It has a cool feel to it due to it being stored in the fridge, which is actually quite calming on the skin. I left this face mask on for around 10 minutes, though the recommendation is between 5/10 minutes. During the time it was on, I began to feel a tightness on my face and even during a couple of the times I tried out this mask, I felt a hotness on my cheeks. This signalled to me that the mask was definitely working it's magic on my skin.

When removing this mask, I found it came off with such ease. It says to wash off with warm soapy water. Therefore, I ran some hot water in the sink and applied some soap onto some cotton pads to remove the mask. It does get a little messy in the sink, so be careful.

Once the mask has been removed, I could already begin to see changes to my skin. It felt a lot smoother. It didn't dry out my skin, which I thought it might have since it was more suited to oily skin. The mask had brought a few spots that had been lingering under the skin, which was as expected because it brings out any impurities. But after a couple of hours they died down and when I woke up the next day, they were hardly noticeable. After a few uses of this mask, I have even noticed that my skin has been a lot clearer.

Also I even managed to persuade my boyfriend to try the mask with me a couple of times. He has spot prone skin, so this mask suited his skin particularly well. After a few uses of his own, we both could see a difference in his skin. His skin felt smoother, the redness of his spots calmed down and his skin felt less oily. This proves that this mask is great for those with teenage skin and can be beneficial when you're suffering with break outs.

The only downside I had to this mask was the shelf life. You only have a few weeks from when the mask was made to use it. I had used it a good 4 times and my boyfriend twice, yet we were still nowhere near half way through. However for the price, the amount you get in there and how well it performs on teenage skin, it is essential you try to use it as much as you can.

In terms of repurchasing, I think this product would be great for those times when I'm suffering with a bad break out or having bad skin. I'm really impressed with this face mask and I'm more willing to try some more from Lush's range. I think the next on my list will be Catastrophe. 

Have you tried any of Lush face masks?