Refresh!

Well, people of the internet...it's been a long and hard first half of the year. For a lot of people out there, not just Erika and I. I would like to bring up a fact that Erika mentioned in one of her earlier posts: We're not just some babbling-think-we-know-it-alls. We've been in similar, if not exact, situations as all of you have. Her and I together have pretty much been through everything, you name it. We've got the experiences, we're giving the advice from the heart and the mind, because maybe you need to hear it from someone just like yourselves.

I think what I would like to talk about in this post is the reinventions of a person. We've all made changes, about ourselves, and with certain things we do, but this is different. I don't technically mean changing yourself as YOU, but changing what's around you, the *people* in your life that only cause you more harm and extreme, unecessary stress, rather than good, for the better of you moving on in life. No, I have not tried it. I'm going to begin starting now. It's an idea that popped into my head while overthinking my stressful past events, and agonizing the one's to come. Is it possible to renew a person? Can someone flush all of the bad influences away, and replace them with people much better? The answer, I believe, is yes. Starting with the simpler people is the beginning, and yes, it's going to be hard. But you have to think about yourself for once, and if not for once, again, because at the end of the day, what matters is You. Now is the time to take the steps towards caring more for yourself, which means getting rid of the one's that are keeping you locked in the same position. Tell those people how you feel, that you think it would be better for yourself if they just stayed away. You can let them know you love them, if you do, but that your heart and your head can't take any more stress without faltering. And if they understand, maybe they'll listen. But if they don't, perhaps it's time to take it up a notch. No Contact Orders, which, let me tell you, are way easier than restraining orders (I would know, I have one. :\) But this is only if necessary, I wouldn't want any of you having to go through such situations, as I know they may already be far worse.

Like me, I'm gonna start with the simpler ones, that ones I can remove now. But, unlike a lot of the people, there are one's I must wait for time to erase. Like my mother. I'm still living at home, and yet she's the biggest bad influence in my life, and I'll have to wait years before I can move out, and click my refresh button.

Just hold on to hope, all of you. Because with time, things might just get better. And you are capable of clicking that refresh button, it's always there as an option.

And remember...You're always beautiful <3

--Kylie

First August Post

Normally I wouldn't be on here with 2 posts so soon, but I don't see why I shouldn't plus I have good reason to. One of which being that I want to have the first post of August before Kylie stealz it. But there are a couple other reasons too.

First and foremost: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nReOeW1UckI
This above is a video from one of my favorite youtubers. Some of you may have already heard of Shane Dawson and his reputation for being a maker of hilarious videos, but recently he's making more meaningful videos, still with some humor, but the underlying meaning is clear. Two of his newest videos are about highschool drama, the first of which is about growing up fatherless and Shane wanting to be the dad he never had. The second one is the link I posted above. It's about eating disorders and being comfortable in your own body.

The second thing I want to talk about is sixbillionsecrets.com and givesmehope.com. The first one isn't necessarily a happy site, but it allows you to post your secrets anonymously. The secrets posted range from overly depressing to innocent, but the community is very supportive. Once when someone said they were going to kill themselves, tons of posts showed up begging them to live. The second site is a much happier site, with posts about the small things that give people hope. This all leads into my third topic.

Last night while on sixbillionsecrets, I was voting on upcoming secrets when I came across one from a girl named Katie. She had started cutting when she was 12 and was now 14. She said she couldn't stop and begged for help, leaving her email address. The first thing I did was email her, and I hope I made her day. She did reply, thanking me, but really I should be the one thanking her. Helping her, even with just a single email, knowing I may have made her feel good for a while, has made me feel better about myself than I've felt in a long time.

So I'll leave you all on this note: When you get the chance to help someone, take it, because that might have been/may be you. And Katie, if you ever read this, thank you.

You're all great and beautiful and just amazing.
<3Erika<3