How to feel confident on your first dated

We all want to make the right impression on our first dates - after all, aren’t we all aspiring for date number 2 - so feeling confident in your body and your appearance is important.

However for many of you, once you have secured this first date, fear and doubt begins to set in. You begin to question yourself, your appearance and why they like you, and ultimately arrive at your date feeling insecure about the future.


To help you experience the confidence you deserve, below we have listed our top 5 tips to feeling great, so you can approach your date rest assured that you will experience success.

1. Be relaxed

It is only natural to feel nervous on a date. It is your first real chance to get to know one another, and of course you want them to like you.

To help control your nerves just take a few deep breaths, and try to pretend that you are with your friends. By doing so you will begin to feel calm and relaxed, and conversation will come more easily.

If you are often prone to nerves though, try thinking of different topics you can talk about prior to going on your date. By practising your answers before you meet, you can feel confident that you won’t make any mistakes in your answers, and will instantly put your date at ease.

Simply pick subjects which you can both easily talk about and have fun!

2. Be confident

Confidence is simply a state of mind; of believing that everything is going to be okay and putting your thoughts into action.

So take a deep breath and say to yourself ‘this date is going to be a success; this date is going to be a success; this date is going to be a success’. With this mantra always on hand to guide you, all this positive thinking will eventually leak into your actions and leave you feeling confident about your date.

3. Act interested

It is easy to let our nerves get the better of us on a date. But by making sure that you keep the conversation moving; the questions flowing and avoid periods of silence; this banter will eventually begin to feel natural and you will both find yourselves feeling at ease with one another.

Remember, they are probably just as nervous as you, so act interested and the rest will naturally follow.

4. Be who you want to be

We have all felt self-conscious about our bodies at some point on our dates. From feeling overly aware of the excess lbs around our stomachs and thighs, to feeling uncomfortable in the way our clothes fit; our lack of confidence can often translate into the way we present ourselves on our dates.

To help you slip into your favourite sexy dress with ease and feel great about your body, try taking a natural appetite suppressant such as Proactol™.

Clinically proven to:

• suppress your appetite
• decrease your food cravings
• reduce your dietary fat intake by 28%

With Proactol™’s support you can lose a steady 1-2lbs a week and go on your date feeling rest assured that you look and feel fantastic.

For more information about Proactol™, and how it can help you to become the person you have always wanted to be, visit www.proactol.com.

5. Be Yourself

Last of all, just be yourself. There is no point trying to be someone you’re not. This will only go on to work against you later, and will cause you to make mistakes

Simply be yourself and remember that your date said yes to the idea of dating the real you, not a fictional character.

So give these tips a try and begin feeling the difference of a happier, more confident you.

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Caffeine and Pregnancy: How much is too much

One of the first things most of us women prepare to say goodbye to once we see those two pink lines on our pregnancy tests is caffeine. Many women will stop their caffeine habit cold turkey out of the sheer fear of doing some sort of damage to the new life growing inside of them. These women will swear off anything that has caffeine in it from coffee, and soda to even chocolate.  Then there are some of us who will still drink caffeine but cut back.  Instead of drinking five cups of coffee a day, we might cut back to at least one cup of coffee to get us through the day.

Our mothers and grandmothers will probably tell us that they drank the same amount of caffeine pregnant as they did when they were not pregnant and their children turned out fine.  However a lot more research has been done since their time and studies are showing that too much caffeine can cause some complications such as preterm labor and/or low birth weight. 

So how much caffeine is too much caffeine? Doctors are telling their patients that a moderate amount of caffeine will not harm their babies.  Even though caffeine does cross the placenta, anything less than 300 milligrams a day (an 8 ounce cup of strong coffee) will not do any harm.  Anything over 300 milligrams puts your baby at risk and studies have also shown that women who drink more than 300 milligrams of caffeine a day during their first trimester have a slightly higher risk of a miscarriage.

Studies have also shown that women who had over 500 milligrams of caffeine a day had babies who had faster heart rates and faster breathing rates.  These babies also spent more time awake in their first few days of life rather than peacefully sleeping after their long journey. 

There are a number of other reasons why we women might want to cut back on the amount of caffeine we drink during pregnancy.  For starters, it has no nutritional value.  If there is ever a time for us to be aware of our nutritional needs it is when we are pregnant.  Second, caffeine is a stimulant which will increase your heart rate and can cause insomnia and headaches which can put some stress on your growing little one.  Third,  caffeine can cause heartburn.  If you have been pregnant before you know that heartburn can be a burden to begin with,  and caffeine just makes it worse.  Lastly it is a diuretic which means it can cause you to lose fluids which can put you at a risk of becoming dehydrated. 

While it is not necessary for you to give up all caffeine through out the duration of your pregnancy, you should learn how to drink it in moderation or don't drink it at all.  If you can not handle having only one cup of coffee a day,  then you might be better off drinking no coffee at all.  Stick with caffeine free sodas and even decaf coffee.  Remember though that decaf  coffee still contains small traces of caffeine so make sure you take that into consideration.  

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Accepting the Diagnosis of Autism

Receiving a diagnosis of Autism can seem overwhelming. You may be left with a lot of unanswered questions about the diagnosis. You might be thinking the diagnosis is wrong. This cannot be happening to your child. There are different feelings and emotions you will experience when dealing with a diagnosis of Autism. Here are some of the ways you might be feeling, and ways to come to terms with the diagnosis.

Denial

Denial is a  common feeling when dealing with any medical problem. Sometimes it is  easier to deny that there is even a problem. Some parents do not want to consider that there could be something wrong with their child. So they pretend like there is nothing wrong. The doctor was wrong, their child is perfectly normal. Being in denial about the diagnosis will not help anything. The sooner that you accept that your child is Autistic the better both of you will be. The condition will not go away if you ignore it. Accepting the diagnosis and moving on will be a huge step for you as a parent to take. The quicker this is done the sooner you can start looking into treatment options.

Anger

Anger is one of the emotions you might feel when you get a diagnosis of Autism. You might be angry with yourself, or angry with God. Why is your child Autistic. You might be angry with other parents that have healthy children. This is a normal feeling to experience. Remember while you are feeling angry to think of all the great things about your child. Share your feelings with others. Keeping anger bottled up can be a bad thing.

Grief

Sometimes when a parent gets a diagnosis of Autism they go though a grieving period. They are sad that their child has something wrong with them. They may be feeling sad that the dreams  they had for their child may have to change. They might be sad over the way the world will treat their child, and the hardships they will face. Grief is a normal emotion to go through. The key is to get through the grief, and on to the acceptance. Try not to look at the things that are wrong. There will have to be some adjustments made to your plans for your child's future. That is what life is all about , change. If you find yourself unable to move past the grieving stage you might need to talk to someone. It might help having a few therapy sessions to deal with the feelings you are experiencing.

Acceptance

Finally coming to terms with the diagnosis of Autism can take awhile. Some people are just glad to have an answer to what is wrong with their child. Others have a hard time accepting their child is different from other kids. Eventually you will accept that your child is different, and that is okay. Once you have accepted the diagnosis of Autism you can start to help your child. Do all the research you can on Autism. Think about how hard it is for your child. They need you to be behind them in their treatments one hundred percent. The first step to doing this is acceptance.

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Advantages And Disadvantages Of Alternative Herbal Medicines

Alternative herbal medicines are considered to be the best solution to address the growing number of health-related concerns today. Rather than making use of synthetic medications commonly prescribed by their doctors, smart consumers today are looking for an alternative solution to address their health problems without having to dish out hundreds of dollars for treatment, as well as potential allergic reactions to the chemicals used on synthetic products.

Before starting out on your journey towards alternative healing, it would be best to know the advantages and disadvantages of herbal medicines to ensure that you are getting your money's worth in addressing your health-related concerns.

Advantage 1 - Natural Ingredients

Medical and pharmaceutical companies that bring you herbal medicines only make use of natural ingredients for their products. Extracting the natural compounds found in plants is carefully formulated to ensure that every pill or tablet is filled with the essential nutrients to address your health concerns improve your body's natural recovery process.

If you check out the labels of herbal products, you will see that they are mostly from the extracts of plants. No synthetic chemicals and formulas are needed to complete the medicine. There might be a few others that are integrated into the mix to improve its effects, but government health agencies ensure that it will not get in the way of your treatment.

Advantage 2 - Cost-Effective Solution

One of the advantages of herbal products is their price. They are a lot cheaper compared to synthetic medicines commonly prescribed by doctors today. In fact, low-budget consumers are opting for this solution to their health problems in order to get as much savings they can get to address their health-related concerns.

The reason why alternative herbal medicines are cheaper is because of the ingredients used in it. No expensive chemicals are used in the formulation of the medicine and the ingredients can be grown almost anywhere under the right conditions.

Advantage 3 - No Allergic Reactions

You don’t have to worry about what you eat when you take in herbal products for your health problems. Since the ingredients are 100% natural, you don’t have to be careful about your meals causing allergic reactions that will compromise your health.

But it would be best to have a doctor look at the herbal medicine you plan to use and undergo a serious of laboratory exams to determine that your system is compatible with it. Even if the product worked for some, there are no guarantees that it will have the same effect when you take it in yourself.

The Disadvantage Of Using Herbal Medicines

With all the advantages stated above in the use of herbal medicines as a treatment method, many would think that there are no complications when using it whenever they feel like it. This is a common misconception that often leads to more health-related problems.

We can never deny the fact that herbal products are classified as medicines and should be treated as such. Proper formulation and dosage is necessary for a safe use. Consumers are urged to follow the dosage indicated on the label of the herbal medicine or to consult a health expert or your family doctor to safely determine the proper usage of the product. It is also advisable to undergo a consultation and physical or laboratory examination to ensure that your body will not react with alternative herbal medicine for your health problems.

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Home Gym vs Public Gym

Why train at home rather than going the grind with a bunch
of like-minded people at the public gym?

Here are a few reasons:
- Cost- A gym membership for a year can seem costly against
buying equipment that will last longer.

- Privacy- If currently unfit it can seem more attractive
to train with privacy.

- Time restraints- Busy lifestyles may mean odd hours to
train, which may not fit into opening hours.

- No pressure- watching others train at a higher level can
sometimes put undue pressure on us to perform before
physically ready.

- Less complex- often, walking into a public gym can seem
overwhelming trying to work out which machine does what and
where to start.

- No waiting- At home you never need to wait for equipment
to be free.

- Convenience- no travelling, no packing gear, no shared
amenities, no forgotten water bottles.

Take care to eat well, and get good advice on safety.
Starting out can be on a small scale, and gradually build
up the equipment.

Never start out blind, without a sensible training plan and
correct technique. If you cause yourself an injury, or
don’t get the desired results, any effort will be wasted
and that can be disheartening. If overweight, or haven’t
trained in a while, a quick checkup at the doctor is
recommended.

Home gym offers many positive points, provided you get
proper advice beforehand. Buy good equipment, or be
prepared for cheaper to last a shorter distance

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