Make up Cheats

Today I thought I’d write down a few make up tips and cheats which will hopefully make applying makeup even with weak/shaky hands quick and easy to do. All these tips are for subtle everyday looks so I thought I’d start with makeup bag essentials which will allow you to do LOADS of subtle looks and use all the cheats in this week’s post =)

Makeup Bag Essentials

Mousse foundation

Translucent powder

Shadow for brows

Vaseline/lip balm

Bronzer

Mascara

Nude eye shadow pallet

Pale lipstick

Eyelash curlers

Wipes/cotton buds

Powder brush

Brow brush

SKIN

Just use Translucent Powder and bronzer instead of a full face of foundation for light daytime looks. This is brilliant because it uses only one brush and it’s so easy to touch up throughout the day. Mineral foundations can be used this way too but doesn’t work very well if your skin is really oily.

If you’re like me, you’ll find it difficult to open lots of small pots. A great idea is to use a pale lipstick as blush as well as lippy and that’s only one lid to deal with and one less thing to pay for! Mulberry Lip Paint by BarryM works really well for this. (Click to see)

LIPS

I sometimes find Lipstick difficult to use because my MS can affect the strength of my grip so here’s a great cheat alternative to lippy. Use your fingers to apply Vaseline or Lip balm to your lips, then brush your bronzer/blusher over your lips when you apply them to your cheeks and you have a brilliant long lasting subtle lip colour! Bronzer with a slight shimmer works really well for this.

Don’t worry about getting into the corners of lips with lipstick. If you put most of the colour on the middle of your lips its gives a great pouty look. You can also get this effect without any lipstick or gloss but putting a small amount of highlighter on the bow of the lips, this can be applied with fingers too so it’s even easier to do.

EYES

The secret to always looking like your makeup is ‘finished’ is to define your eyebrows.  Just lightly go over your brows with an eye shadow that’s one or 2 shade darker, it will fill in any gaps and make you look awake and really well groomed. Eye shadow looks a lot more natural than pencil and is easier to control if you have shaky hands so give it a go it really makes so much difference. (Click to see)

Tinting eyelashes and eyebrows is a great time saving tip because it means you don’t need to wear mascara or do your eyebrows!  It’s quite cheap only £8 each and it lasts for 2/3 weeks. It’s great if you either don’t wear makeup, aren’t confident with it or you have shaky arms and hands and find you keep poking your eyes out with the mascara wand (I do this every day haha!)

If you are with me in the ‘I Poke Myself in the Eye with Mascara’ club here’s a tips that might help you. Rest your elbow on your dressing table/windowsill/partner/ whatever you get ready on so it’s nice and steady, then blink onto the mascara wand and you’re a lot less likely to poke yourself in the peeper.

Another brilliant cheat is to curl your lashes, instant longer thicker lashes for 5 seconds work.

Winged eyeliner is a winning look but you have to be an expert to get the liquid eyeliner perfect and it’s almost impossible to do if your hands and arms are weak. This pen from BarryM (Click to see) is amazing but if you find when you do this look you make a mistake or get a bit of a wobbly line then as easy way to correct it is to use a damp cotton bud. Simple but it works.

AND THE REST…

If you drop eye shadow or lipstick on your clothes, roll a piece of white bread into a ball and use it to blot up the stain. This doesn’t really work on old stains but is really effective on fresh ones.

If you find it’s really difficult to open lids because you can’t get a good grip on them then wrap a few elastic bands around the lid. This gives you a lot more grip and make removing lids so much easier!

Well that’s it for this week I hope this tips help. Let me know if they have done. I’ll be posting as usual next week but I’m planning to do a cheats list for evening looks so if you have any then please let me know on twitter @clairedellow, on here or by email indieclaire@hotmail.co.uk.

Take care guys! x

Guilty Pleasures

Today I thought I’d write about some of my guilty pleasures. My MS can really get me down sometimes and these are a few things (that I wouldn’t ordinarily let people know) that really cheer me up!  I’ll share mine if you lot write your list down too. So here we go….

Eating strange meals

A real pleasure of mine is eating meals which are in no way nutritious and to a lot of people would just seem a bit strange. My favourite is to eat a plate of cold roast potatoes. I know its unhealthy and a bit odd but I’m sure if Jimi Hendrix hadn’t found drugs he would have found roast potatoes instead. Just as addictive but all within the law.

Whole bottle of red wine to your self

This is one I don’t recommend you do very often but I love staying up late, watching bad TV and having a glass or 4 of wine on my own. This often leads to talking/arguing with the TV and often regrettable drunk phones calls and texting. A word of advice, hide your mobile.

TOWIE

The Only Way is Essex is my latest guilty pleasure. I’m an Essex girl myself but I love watching people having the same conversations that my friends and I have. It also is easily the most quotable programme on tv.Have a look here

Duvet days

The BEST way to spend a Sunday is with a ‘Duvet Day’. Theres nothing quite like having a bath, getting back into pyjamas, duvet on the sofa and settling down to a Come Dine with Me Marathon…The only thing that would make it better is if Roger Federer would share it with me lol  

Horrible histories

Yes, it’s a kids programme and yes, I love it. Its one of the few things on TV that gives me proper belly laughs every time I watch it. I know its aimed at kids but there are a few laughs for adults too (either that or I’m very easily amused!)  Have a look here

YouTube karaoke

This is the guilty pleasure that I’m least proud of. I LOVE YouTube Karaoke. I’d be surprised if I could win you guys over on that one, but next time you’ve had a few drinks just go on it and I promise a good time J

Right well that’s just about all of them but as I’ve told you mine you lot have to tell me yours!!

Next week I’m going to write about some cheats and tips that will make putting on make-up and doing hair easier if you have weak or shaky hands and arms. If any of you have any cheats please e-mail (indieclaire@hotmail.co.uk) them to me or on Twitter @clairedellow even if they seem obvious because you will be helping a lot of women J

Take care guys!

Top 10 things I couldn't live without

I thought I’d let you guys get to  know me a bit better by writing the top 10 thing I couldn’t live without (hense the title) so here goes.

Music

 I know it’s a bit of a cliché but I music is so important to me. It’s a real escape for me to listen to music and even more when I can play it myself. I play piano and the feeling when you ‘ve learnt a new piece or just playing with friends is amazing. I have my iPod on constantly even when I sleep! It helps me switch off and relax and for music to be that powerful I think is pretty amazing!

Slanket

For those of you who don’t know, a Slanket is a double size blanket with sleeves, so you can stay cosy and still use your arms and I wouldn’t be without mine now. And for you lovers out there, there are Slankets with two set of sleeves!!  Have a look here

Mash

Yep that’s right, Mashed potatoes. Nothing like a bit of comfort food if you ask me J

Tea

Ok, so sometime I have to drink it out of a beaker in case I spill it, but I can’t function unless I have 4/5 cuppa’s a day! TickRock Redbush is my tea of choice, naturally sweet so no need for sugar and caffeine free so you can have it before you go to bed. WIN!

Family

A corny one but I think its true. I’m so lucky that I have a really understanding and supportive family who try their best to help how and when they can.  My twin brother actually did a dissertation on MS before I was diagnosed while he was at University so I can always go to him if I’ve read something I don’t understand and he can explain in a way a thickie like me will get. My baby brother (18) can always make me laugh which is so important to me. They’re always there for me and I couldn’t love my parents or my brothers more.

Friends

I also have a great group of friends and it always amazes me how relaxed they are about changing plans if I’m having a relapse to make it so that I can still go out with them. They can always make me belly laugh and always get in the first round of drinks…what more could a girl want?!

BarryM Dazzle dust

I’m a bit of a magpie when it comes to small shiney objects so when I found these eye shadows in every colour you can imagine I nearly exploded with excitement! They can be a bit awkward to open if you have problem with your hands but they last for ages and are easy to use with fingers instead of brushes which make it and a lot easier to apply. Have a look here

Comedy

I love going to live comedy shows as well as comedy films and tv shows. I’ve always been brought up to not take myself too seriously and I think that’s helped me get through the last three years. My particular favourites are ‘Look around you’, ‘Spaced’, ‘Family Guy’ and ‘Peep show’ if you haven’t seen them then do check them out, guaranteed laughs.

Laptop

I have an admission to make…I’m a geek. I love my laptop I’m on it far too much but it allows me to research, play and keep in touch with friends. I’ve also found a website called Shift.ms which allows me to talk to other young people in the same situation as me. Plus it's pink!!

Art

Art is my passion. I love drawing and seem to have become resident tattoo designer for my friends which is so much fun. I have 15 tattoos myself and love the history and meanings behind traditional Japanese and Navy tattoos. My favourite artist is Paul Cezanne, his use of colour and brushstrokes are beautiful but do look at James Hance too. He does a lot of Star Wars themed pictures which are brilliant and funny.

So what are your top ten things? Be interested to know if I’m the only one who couldn’t live without these things J

Keep in touch

Claire

Drugs

This week I thought I’d write about my experiences with medication and my MS.

When I was first diagnosed in 2008, I had no idea there was any type of medication that could help manage my symptoms so I was quite surprised when my MS Nurse told me there were a few that might be able to help me because of my type of MS. I went with ‘Beta Interferon’ which is sometimes called ‘Rebif’  because of the brand name.

Beta Interferon is a disease modifying drug which although it isn’t a cure for Multiple Sclerosis, slows down the rate and severity of relapses. Interferon can have about a 20-40% reduction in the rate of replaces so I was naturally very excited about the sound of this drug!

It’s taken as a ‘Subcutaneous’ (under the skin) injection usually on the stomach, leg or arm three times a week. The starting dose is 8.8mg and in the end I was taking 44mg three times a week. It comes in syringes which can be loaded into a'pen' makes injecting yourself A LOT easier to do and reduces the likelihood of not getting the full dose and site bad site reactions.

I had many bad side effects whilst I was taking Rebif mainly site reactions and Flu like symptoms, which might not sounds too bad but they got worse and worse. The site reactions became 5cmx5cm raised and inflamed bruises over my whole stomach and thighs meaning that to find a spot to inject that weren’t bruised and inflamed got more and more difficult the longer I took the medication. The flu like symptoms were manageable with Paracetamol to start with, but as the dose increased they turned from mild headaches to fever, hot and cold sweats, migraines and it became increasingly difficult to stay awake for 24-48 hours after the injection. The worst part of it was that once the flu like symptoms started to ease up, It was time for the next injection and this really started to frustrate me.

This was when I decided to talk to my MS Nurse about coming off Beta Interferon and to try and manage my MS without drugs.

I weighed up the pros and cons and for me, the benefits of taking the medication were not enough for me personally to put up with feeling ill every other day. I saw it as a 60% chance of no change to my illness rather than the 30% chance it will slow the rate and severity of my relapses down. I would ALWAYS recommend talking to your Doctor  or Nurse before making a decision about medication, and I know from talking to other people with MS that they found Rebif to work brilliantly so do plenty of research and talk to your specialist about all the options around.

Speak to you all again soon and don’t forget to send me comments and questions!

Claire

Left out...

I was wondering what to write about this week when a friend asked me a question that I thought would have an interesting answer…

‘Do you feel left behind with our friends since you’ve been diagnosed because you can’t always go out or just don’t feel up to it?’

Well the short answer is yes. I would say that this is probably one of the hardest things to come to term with after diagnosis. Before I was diagnosed I was out a couple of times a week dancing all night with my friends, running up and down the stairs of clubs the listen to different music and still be fine the next day to get to work for 8am! The past three years have really changed the way I have to socialise because of the physical hurdles but also because of the amount of planning I have to do before I can even leave the house. (see previous blog)

It’s really difficult to have to say no when you’re invited out, even when you feel fine, because you have something to do the next day. For example, I was recently at a friends party but couldn’t go out to a club afterwards because I knew if I did I wouldn’t be able to go food shopping the next day. The main problems MS has left me with are balance and the strength of my legs, so if I’ve been on my feet the night before even for only a few hours, the next 2-4 days it feels like I’ve run a marathon! The best way to describe the feeling of Muscle Fatigue is that it feels like the worst flu you can imagine, where all your limbs feel like they weigh 10x their normal weight and it takes real effort to do the simplest things like sitting up straight, getting in and out of chairs/bed or even lifting a glass.

Because of all these symptoms that get worse after a night out I often have to stay in when my friends go out because even though I’m sure they wouldn’t mind, I don’t want them to feel like the night has to revolve around what I can and can’t do. I do feel like I’m missing out especially when you see comments or pictures on Facebook and it can make me feel angry at myself for not being able to ‘not care’ about the next few days after the night out but if I want to leave the house the for the rest of the weekend I have to. I’ve spoken to other young people in the same situation as me this anger and sadness seems to be a very common feeling.

I’m lucky that I have a great group of friends who all try their best to make me feel better by sitting out a few dances or organise nights in every now and then, but there's still the feeling that this shouldn’t be the way it is at 24.

As usuall, Let me know if you want to hear more or if you have any questions you want answered ;)
Claire

There ain't no party like a MS party...

Well I'm going to a friends birthday party tomorrow so I thought it would be interesting if I wrote this blog about the challenges that MS can throw up which make getting ready and going out more difficult.

So I guess I should start at the beginning of the night and  getting ready....

Bathing

I have muscle weakness and fatigue and it makes getting in and out of baths difficult and potentially dangerous because I often have slips and falls. 'Drop Foot' is another common symptom of MS, which also makes slips and falls more likely because you have to concentrate on lifting your feet up properly with every step. If you loose concentration even for a few steps on a slippery surface its very easy to seriously injure yourself. Some MS sufferers can't feel hot and cold, and so making sure that bath or shower water is the correct temperature is another thing that people without MS don't have to give a second thought to but a sufferer has to worry about. MS has also given me 'Restless Legs' so sitting in the same position for more that 10/15mins means I have muscle spasms in my calfs which make anything more than a quick dip almost impossible.

I can't tell you how much I miss being able to just have a soak in the bath and not have to think about if I'm well enough to get in and out of the tub on my own.

Hair

As I said earlier I have muscle weakness in my legs,arms and right hand. Holding a hairdryer for the 15mins it takes to dry my hair becomes very uncomfortable as my arms start to feel heavy and my hands loose grip (after about 2-5 mins) and I drop a hairdryer on the top of my head! You can get bonnets which attach to your hair dryer at home which can help if you find holding a hair dryer difficult. Here's a link showing where you can buy one, but it does get very hot so be careful guys!

It can also be difficult for a person with Multiple Sclerosis to grip tightly enough to make using curling tongs or straighteners safe for the entire length of time it takes to do your hair.

Make-up

Grip and dexterity is another common complaint and one that I suffer with often. This can make holding onto small brushes, eyeliner pencils, mascara wands or bottles of nail varnish difficult and if your anything like me means you've dropped make up on a cream carpet and poked yourself in the eye at some points. Small pots (foundation, moisturiser, eyeshadow) are sometimes impossible for me to undo when my hands are bad. 

I personally find it embarrassing and tedious to have to keep asking for help opening and closing bottles, screw tops and tube lids, so I tend to not use something if I can't do it myself which is really upsetting when friends don't have to worry about it and it seems such a struggle to me.

 Clothes

When I was first diagnosed I remember crying and crying to my Mum that what annoyed me most of all about MS was that I couldn't wear heels on a night out. I know it sounds about vain but as a friend pointed out to me that "young girls should worry about shoes and I was still a young girl". I personally still cant wear heels and be comfortable, but I know alot of people who have changed to a heel of 4" or less and wore a thicker heel to make it easier to walk in without too much pain. Just take baby steps as if you've never worn heels before, start low and get higher when you feel comfortable and confident.

Alot of people with MS also need to go to the toilet urgently without much or any warning, and after a few drinks, get even less of a warning. Because of this, the clothes you choose have to be practical too. Tights can be tricky especially if like me you get hardly any warning you need to use the toilet at all. Long trousers or dresses can also be a tripping hazards especially with Drop Foot and weak leg muscles.

The next day...

When I go out dancing, I can feel fine all night, but the morning after the night before I have to use a walking frame as my legs feel bruised, heavy and very weak. I'm so jealous of my friends who can go out on a whim and have a brilliant night, I however have to make sure I have nothing to do for at least two days after the night out so my body can recover. Fatigue is such a real problem with MS and after a night out it can make the smallest task become a huge job. For me, fatigue feels like the worst flu ever where every tiny movement takes all of your energy.

This amount of fore thought needed just to go to the pub for a few drinks can have a real 'downer' effect on and evening out for an independent person with MS. It has made me feel worthless and like a burden on more than one occasion and from going onto different MS forums, worthlessness and not wanting to turn friends into carers seems to be a universal worry.

Well I suppose I'd better get back to to planning my outfit for tomorrow and I'll let you know how it went next time.

In the mean time don't forget you can ask me questions to do with research or my own personal experience with MS just drop me a line.

Claire xx

Here we go...

Hi guys,

Well where to start...My names Claire and I'm 23. I've been advised that keeping a blog or diary might help me (and hopefully some others) work through some of the feelings of sadness, anger but mostly confusion that being a young person with Multiple Sclerosis leave you with. I'll also be writting about any symptoms I experience and any other MS related news items or 'miracle cures' I hear about.

But lets start at the begining..

Before I was diagnosed I always associated MS with women of a certain age, mainly because the few people I knew with it were exactly that. I, like most 20 year olds, assumed that I was indestructable but that changed in the summer of 2008.

My first symptoms happened when I was 20. I'd been enjoying the few days of summer we get in England by spending it sitting in the sun with my friends. Then one afternoon I experienced a throbbing headache above my right eyebrow and blurred vision which I put down to being out in the sun for too long, and as a red head the heat often left me with those symptoms anway! I knew somthing wasn't right when my headache worsened and painkillers weren't working. My vision got to the point where I couldn't see a thing unless I closed one eye and the double vision was effecting my dexterity and balnance. Within the space of 4 hours from the orginial symptoms of headache the entire right side of my face had 'dropped' and become paralysed (Palsy) and my left eye had turned round so my iris wasn't visable at all and all you could see was the white of the eye.

My parents are both Nurses and took me to A&E worried that I'd had a stroke. If I'm honest even hearing the word Stroke didn't scare me at that point because I even though my face clearly showed there was something wrong, I didn't feel ill so I assumed everything would be fine. Teenagers eh?!

The doctors in A&E gave me an eyepatch for my left wandering eye which really helped with my balance, and did a number of different neurological examinations testing strength, dexterity, balance and speech. I thought I'd passed with flying colours untill my Dad and I were called into a private room so the Emergency Consultant could tell us what she thought was wrong. She told us that she thought it was MS but needed to do a 'Lumbar Puncture' (also called a 'Spinal Tap') which would involve using a syringe to remove fluid from around my spinal cord which could give a definate diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis.

I still didn't feel worried or sad about MS at this point, and looking back I can see that was because of my ignorance about the disease. My aunt has MS and she never showed any visable symptoms so I just thought it might make me tired more easily but not for years! I was most worried about not being able to smile for me 21st birthday and to this day its little things like that which upset me most.

I was given steroids for 4 days then sent home. I got some small movements back in my face but I was back in hospital 2 weeks later with even worse facial palsy which now made it difficult to swallow. I was again given steroids and started to improve again. Its been 3 years since I was first diagnosed and my face still isn't back to normal. When I'm ill, hungover or tired the drop on the right side of my face becomes more obvious and I've got used to that now even though it still upsets me every now and then.

I've had a few severe relapses since then including loosing most of the strength in my legs meaning I had to use a frame or wheelchair all the time but thats for another time.


These are the symptoms I experience daily:

Drop Foot: I trip over my own feet 3 or 4 times a day
Loss of strength and dexterity in my hands: I'm always dropping things and am unable to hold very small or very big objects regardless of their weight
Bladder Problems: Needing the toilet often without any warning
Weak Legs: I am unable to walk more than 10m on a bad day, 50/100m on a good day.
Painful  muscle cramps: In my upper arms, lower back and calfs.
Right sided weakness in my face:
Shooting/stabbing pains: Usually in my hips and back after or during walking.
Fatigue: Not being able to stay awake and feels like I have heavy limbs.


Well that's it for tonight But I'll try and post every week so If you want to ask anything, or want to to find something out for you about anything to do with Multiple Sclerosis just ask :)

See you soon
Claire