Lifestyle

Summer 2025 Update

Wow, I can’t believe it’s been almost a year since my last update. A lot has happened! And I don’t even feel like I have much to contribute to this blog anymore.

My hysterectomy has completely changed my life (for the better!) and I’m not longer stuck on the couch or in bed with the heating pad all the time anymore. That’s probably why my interest in blogging has significantly decreased. I ended up turning all the Adenomyosis blog post energy into my personal podcasting project, That’s Hysterical! Now, Get Out! all about my Adenomyosis and Hysterectomy journey.

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ADHD Podcast Editor Approved!: Honest Review about Loop Switch Earplugs

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Remember when I reviewed the Engage Plus and Experience Plus earplugs from Loop earlier this year? Well, I’m excited to review the new Switch earplugs from Loop today! 

And no, I’m not just buying earplugs to test them from time to time (although is that a real job? Because I might be interested). Once I got the Engage and Experience actually got the Loop Switch earplugs after losing one of my beloved Engage earplugs after wearing them out for Halloween trick-or-treating — these are a holiday lifesaver for the sugar-induced screaming and squealing that comes from all that candy consumption!

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6 Things Helping Me Find Comfort and Relief with Adenomyosis Right Now

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I originally started this blog with the idea it would be more focused on Adenomyosis. But as my condition has progressed over the years, I found I don't enjoy my writing when I'm in the throes of dealing with it all. Not only is the pain distracting and makes it difficult to concentrate, but I just come across sounding like a grumpy, self-deprecating, angry little gnome and/or my self-esteem is so in the toilet that everything I make or do never seems good enough or worthy of posting.

But this last period, I started drafting this list of things I was grateful for instead. And upon re-reading it now when my period is on her way out and the feel-good chemicals are hitting my brain again, I was even able to edit out some of that grumpy gnome who takes over my writing voice.

6 things getting me through this terrible period:

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Summer 2023 Playlist

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Something that surprises most people about me is I don't listen to podcasts much when I'm not working on them. A few years ago when I was going through podcasting burnout, I gave my ears a break and got back into music after years of drowning myself in everything-podcasts-and-podcasting.

Music has been one of the easiest ways for me to boost my dopamine while also giving my ears a break during weeks of heavy editing now.

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Battling Writer's Block with ADHD

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First 2 graphs here …I had a few weeks of what can only be described as writer's block/overwhelming anxiety. But if you’ve been following me over on Threads, you may have seen I’ve started challenging myself to weekly writing goals for the book I’m currently writing. (I talked more about it in my most recent newsletter for Creative Independent Podcasters.)

My writer’s block wasn’t necessarily anxiety over writing my book. I was confident enough in my idea to know it was possible. And I like what the book is becoming.

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Binge-watching Jury Duty, Traveling Virtually with EarthCam, and Uncovering the Delights of Korean BBQ & Hot Pot

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My husband and I are currently on a child-free vacation. But the twist is we’re actually at home!

Our kids are both on separate summer vacations — the youngest is visiting Niagara Falls with my in-laws and the oldest is with her dad. Mark and I have been living it up like we did when we first dated back in college and it’s been so awesome!

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Advice and Updates to My Teenage Self From My 31- and 40-Year-Old Self

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I was digging through some old notes a few weeks ago and came across two lists I wrote back in 2014. I labeled the first as “some of the things I would love to tell teenagers today,” but if I’m being honest with myself, it’s a list of things I wish I could have gone back in time to tell myself when I was younger. The second is simply labeled “I don’t have all the answers,” and I think it’s a list I made thinking about my present and possible future.

I was 31 at the time I wrote these lists and wanted to share them, along with some thoughts in bold.

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ADHD Podcast Editor-Approved!: Honest Review about Loop Experience Plus Earplugs

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I recently reviewed the Loop Engage Plus Earplugs and love them as my everyday, go-to earplugs.

I wasn’t sure if I really needed the Loop Experience Plus (Loop official website / Amazon) since the earplugs I had before trying Loop were already great for concerts. But I decided to try them anyway and I’m glad I did!

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ADHD Podcast Editor-Approved!: Honest Review about Loop Engage Plus Earplugs

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For the last few weeks, I’ve been trying out Loop earplugs. After seeing repeated ads for them and some of my favorite ADHD influencers raving about them, I decided to give them a try.

I had been using earplugs for years to protect my hearing at concerts and I found they worked great to help me focus, as well as keep from getting to overwhelmed with excess sounds. Sometimes I find with my ADHD that noises that might not bother some people bother me a lot — like mouth smacks or tongue clucks. Actually, a lot of the mouth noises I take out as a podcast editor are based on my own personal preferences for what distracts me the most — mouth clicks, loud plosives (popping P’s and B’s), humming and whirring in the background, to name a few.

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Reflections on Self-Discovery Through Daily Journaling and Morning Pages

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This past Sunday, I was asked to participate in a collage service at my Unitarian Universalist church all about daily habits and practices. A collage service is when a few people are asked to provide a reflection on a single topic.

Even though I've only been going to this church for about 9 months, I found my ideas about religion and spirituality fit in quite nicely with the principles of UU, especially the 4th Principle — the free and responsible search for truth and meaning.

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Defining Rest for Increased Creativity and Productivity

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Recently I edited a podcast where the guest was talking about his creativity cycle and how he learned to lean into the different stages. He used the acronym CPR as a way to remember that after Creation comes Promotion, and after that should come Rest.

When I heard this, it dawned on me that this was why I had been suffering from so much burnout back in 2020 — I had continuously put aside rest in order to do what I loved. I felt energized by it and I figured if I needed to rest, I would surely just know to do it, right? Wrong.

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Handling Opinions (Good and Bad) Without Letting It Affect Your Self-Worth

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One night after a recent choir practice, I went out my way to compliment one of the younger members on their solo they had rehearsed that night. They quickly turned away and let out a quick “oh, thanks, shut-up.”

Their mother, who was also in the choir, had overheard said, “that’s not how to respond to a compliment!” Watching “The Princess Diaries” as much as I did growing up, I’ve learned not to take offence if a teenager says, “shut-up” candidly.

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Rolling into Year 3: Reflections on Two Years of Roller Skating

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Happy Skate-aversary to me! 2 years ago today I was in a funk I've come to know over the years as March Sucks.

This is the point of the winter when I am just done with blah weather and general busyness with seemingly no end in sight. My Seasonal Affective Disorder is usually at its annual high, and I'm craving any drop of serotonin and/or dopamine I can get, it seems.

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Cleaning With ADHD — Finding Step 1

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Why is starting a project so hard for people with ADHD? We know what we need to do, we know how it needs to get done, maybe we can even picture the finished product or goal so clearly.

But taking that first step is the part that our brains get stuck on.

For me, getting the energy to start something feels like that long ascension a roller coaster takes to get up to the first big drop. I know once I’m in motion, I’ll be fine, but getting up the motivation to start is just … UGGGGGHHHHHH!

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Sorry I’ve Been Busy, I Joined a Choir!

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Over the summer, I started going to church (I actually found it by googling “chuch for agnostics” and learning about Unitarian Universalism) and I ended up joining the choir. We’ve had weekly rehearsals and I’ve noticed my mood is always noticeably improved afterwards. I’ve been meaning to write about it for some time, but I found myself enjoying being swept up in another creative expression hobby and letting my (published) writing go more by the wayside the last few weeks. On top of that, our holiday concert is coming up and we’ve been ramping up rehearsal time.

We’ve been working on holiday songs for the December choir concert since September so I’ve joked that I’ve been microdosing on the holidays for a while now. Since my church has members of a number of different faiths, we have a selection of Christmas, Hanukkah, and Yule songs. It’s very similar to the holiday concerts I did in public school choir, though Yule songs are a first for me, I think!

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Trying Out a TENS Machine to Relieve Pain and Menstrual Cramps: First Impressions

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Despite being diagnosed with Adenomyosis two years ago and living with it for even longer, sometimes my cramps still take me by surprise. I know to expect them during my period so as soon as PMS sets in, I’m usually ready with my heating pad and CBD. But because Adeno affects the uterus all month long, I tend to feel pain and cramps starting around ovulation and lasting through the rest of my cycle until my period ends.

For those who may be unfamiliar with the female menstrual cycle, that’s about 3 weeks out of the month when my uterus is painful and uncomfortable.

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What Do YOU Need to Hear Right Now? - EOL004

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Ever wake up wanting to talk to someone and have them tell you everything is going to be alright? If words of affirmation are your love language, you may know exactly what I'm talking about.

Since losing a friend earlier this year, I've been finding a lot of comfort thinking about what she might say if she were still with us. She was so supportive of everyone in our friend circle, and she could be counted on to hype anyone up if they needed it. I picture her enthusiastic smile and how she would probably say something like, "Emily, stop spending so much time being sad and go live your life happily! Enjoy your kids, make more podcasts, and write another book already!"

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Seasonal Ailments, Back-to-School Overwhelm, and Introvert Adventures: A Quick Fall Update

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Is it possible to be both incredibly overwhelmed, but also enoying the season? I think it is in the fall in the Northeast.

Originally this week, I was supposed to be at She Podcasts Live, but the conference was postponed until June of 2023. But my husband still took the week off so I have a bit more breathing room than I’ve had in a while to hopefully catch up (as I say every week).

August and Everything Everywhere All At Once

Greetings from burnout! Well, hopefully not burnout yet, but I’m in a particularly stressful chapter and I wanted to give a quick update within this tiny pocket of time I have.

I’m knee-deep in week 3 of no camp, school, or babysitting. It’s summer with some heat waves and it’s really draining day to day right now. I put up an out-of-office post on Instagram, though I’m still doing my client work and answering emails. But that’s the bare minimum I can do.

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An Invitation to Pause in Nature - EOL002

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It’s been about 3 weeks since writing my post about some recent weight gain and my feelings about it and here’s an update.

I got on the scale for the 2nd time since that post and found I was down 4 pounds! After coming off a particularly uncomfortable period that included a lot of water retention, it was a relief to wake up today feeling better and well enough to get on the scale.