Thursday’s Workwear Report: Tie-Waist Midi Dress
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Our daily workwear reports suggest one piece of work-appropriate attire in a range of prices.
If you’re looking for a dress to get you through graduation parties, baby showers, and hot summer days in the office, this one from Nordstrom is it. The short sleeves will keep you cool, and the tie waist gives a great shape, plus it’s machine washable.
I love this rust spice color, but it also comes in black.
The dress is $54.97 and comes in sizes 1X-4X and XXS-XL.
Sales of note for 5/14/25:
- Nordstrom Rack – Looking for a deal on a Dyson hairdryer? The Rack has several refurbished ones for $199-$240 (instead of $400+) — but they're final sale only.
- Ann Taylor – Suit Yourself! 30% off suiting (ends 5/16) + 25% off your full price purchase (ends 5/18) + extra 60% off sale (ends 5/14)
- Talbots – 40% off all markdowns (ends 5/18) + 30% off dresses, skirts, accessories, and shoes
- Nordstrom – Beauty Deals up to 25% off (ends 5/17)
- Banana Republic Factory – Up to 50% off everything + extra 25% off
- Boden – 10% off new women's styles with code + sale up to 50% off
- Eloquii – Up to 60% off everything + extra 60% off sale + $1 shipping on all orders
- J.Crew – Up to 50% off long-weekend styles + 50% off select swim and coverups
- J.Crew Factory – Extra 50% off clearance + extra 15% off $100+ + extra 20% off $125+
- M.M.LaFleur – Lots of twill suiting on sale! Try code CORPORETTE15 for 15% off.
- Rothy's – Up to 50% off last-chance styles
- Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
I need some fresh music. Anyone have a favorite Spotify playlist to suggest?
I’m all about the spectacle that is Eurovision.
Does anyone have recommendations for an Atlanta family law attorney? I have a toddler and need guidance on UCC JEA. Yeah, I got served the Friday of Mother’s Day weekend after years of fertility treatments.
Love this dress visually; however, I find tie waist dresses to be all day long fiddley.
I love this pick, so pretty.
Well, I found something I agree with RFK Jr on. He made some videos about how “obesity rates being high isn’t because everyone got lazy and gluttonous all of a sudden.” Unfortunately
I don’t think my parents and in-laws will listen to him or anyone else on that; they prefer to stick with the old chestnut that people just need to “make an effort.” I guess they think that every country in the world experienced a sudden spike in sloth and gluttony around the 1980s, never to be undone.
Personally I think it’s car culture and processed foods. People in cities where there is good transit and lots of biking/walking are much slimmer. When I was in the Netherlands last year I went to a rural town where there is car culture and my brain just about malfunctioned seeing fat Dutch people.
Even a broken clock is right twice a day.
This.
I work in Big Pharma, and to say that the last few months since the new administration took office have been an absolute crap show is an understatement.
Between tariffs (my company is foreign-owned, but has several ten thousand employees in the U.S.), and now the announced drug price cuts , it is so much chaos and uncertainty. No one has any idea what the impacts will be. On the other hand, my industry sees many announcements of increased investment in the U.S. – but how will all this work when sales are dramatically impacted by yet to be defined policies?
I am personally the biggest proponent of sensible medical pricing and think that the U.S. healthcare and payment system needs a major overhaul.
But again right now is just disruption, where the administration is throwing around a bunch of EOs and who knows what will stick and who will benefit in the end.
This also may be the rare thing I agree with him about.
i also agree with him that i should not take medical advice from him.
I think that “lazy” is a harsh way of saying that we are nowhere near as active as we used to be or as we need to be. There is a neutral way of saying that.
And “gluttonous” is also unhelpfully harsh. Better to acknowledge that many convenience foods and prepared/restaurant foods are made in unhealthy ways and portion sizes have ballooned.
And add in what I think is a metabolic circularity loop, that once you get larger, everything in your body, hormones, ancient DNA, whatever, is designed to keep you at that new setpoint, so outside of actually starving yourself (with is just a different sort of unhealthy relationship with food), you can get sicker but likely can’t sustainably get smaller.
New meds seem to be the only thing that moves the needle and I think it’s significant how “quieting the food noise” seems to be the key to its success.
But I don’t think that people’s tendency to experience food noise has increased since 1980; it’s more likely that our food changed and that changed food noise.
Would people need the new meds less if modern foods weren’t blocking endogenous GLP1 production with additives and agricultural pesticides?
I feel like the way our palate works now really favors our caveman preference for rich fatty delicious foods. In a way that is killing us, because it is so abundant. It’s not just in the US — Mexico is more obese than the US, and Saudi Arabia isn’t problem free. These places are all very different.
If you took a North Korean and put them in Ohio with a credit card, a house, and a car, and took them to a Waffle House or Olive Garden or Cheesecake Factory or an Arby’s, in 20 years, they’d have likely made up for lost time.
We weren’t supposed to starve centuries and eons ago and our genes haven’t caught up to a world with Costcos.
I hope they campaign for active lifestyle choices and get roasted for copying Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign.
That’s funny because I thought a bunch of his rhetoric was about how Americans are lazy and gluttonous and have no self-control and need to be sent away to work camps.
I was surprised that the concept of shirt dresses in the office was so polarizing. Personally, shirt dresses like yesterday AM’s pick seem far more professional and office-appropriate than this t-shirt style jersey dress, which is something I would only consider for a casual weekend brunch with the fam, or maybe as a beach coverup.
I don’t think either of these dresses is *great* for the office. I found the voluminous shirtdress to be a little bit Betty Draper Goes To The City. As for this one, I do wear similar dresses to the office, but they are in a dressier fabric (heavy jersey like a DVF wrap dress). I also think the midi length is not a natural fit for this style as the straight skirt is fighting the drapey tie, and prefer it to hit just below the knee.
If you are doing things at work like christening a ship, yesterday’s shirtdress is a great look. I sit at a chair in a casual office, so it’s a bit too fancy / costumey, but that is how I actually like to dress on a day where it’s not horribly rainy for when I’m outside.
Long skirts, especially full ones, just don’t work for me in a rolling office chair.
I don’t know that I’d call this a t-shirt dress. This at least has some styling and a heavier jersey fabric. I’d wear it to the office.
You’re correct, shirt dresses are more formal than t-shirt dresses. But they’re not the equivalent level of formality of a pencil skirt and blouse, or nowadays wide leg pants and a blouse.
I’d call it smart casual. A shirt dresses is my go-to outfit for work functions after hours in the summer. It’s a good conference staple.
“The office” is not a monolith
I think region has a lot to do with what is considered appropriate in an office too. For instance, being the the south in a hot and humid place, we are much more tolerant of sandals and sleevelessness, as well as light fabrics. The shirt dress would be very appropriate in many, if not most, environments.
Yesterday’s shirt dress, especially with the fullness of the skirt, reminds me of something my stay-at-home mom would have worn to a weekend gathering in the ‘80s. Today’s pick, while not business formal, is a bit sleeker and something I would feel comfortable wearing to the office in black.
Hi! does anyone have a recommendation for a career coach who works with in-house attorneys? I’m currently a VP in-house attorney. my boss’ role (SVP) is opening up. VP is a mix of a doer and a leader whereas SVP is 100% leading. I would like to work with someone to ensure my resume and interviewing skills are where they need to be for SVP level. I’m very excited about this opportunity and want to secure this promotion. thank you in advance!
As an EVP in that role, I’d suggest networking over coaches. That level isn’t about getting an interview answer right, it’s about having internal support. I’d spend my time amping up my internal connections and talking with people who may influence the decision. Good luck!
+1, you want your would-be peers and their EVP managers to have your current grand-boss’s ear about how great you would be.
Coaches help with that stuff, too. It’s not all job searching and resume reviews. Having a coherent goal and identifying strategic actions that can move the needle for your goals, strategies, preferences, situational details, etc., is what a coach will facilitate.
Mentorship or guidance–advice–can do that too, but it’s done to the limit of someone else’s experiences, preferences, lenses, situational details, etc.
(to be clear: I heartily agree with 9:48 that the likely avenue up in this situation is through relationships, not applications. My point was simply that a coach can help with that stuff, too)
My hair dryer is dying. I haven’t bought a new one in almost 10 years. What are your recommendations? I have medium length hair that I blow dry every day/every other day.
The shark is amazing. I can’t believe it took me so long to get one.
Hands down the shark wins. I have a dyson, and like it, but my hairstylist uses the shark now and if my dyson dies, I’m switching.
Which one, specifically? I’m seeing a bunch when I search.
another vote for the shark!
I have the Babyliss Pro Nano Titanium dryer and like it very much.
I like the Drybar Mini Buttercup! I’ve used it like 3x a week for 6 years. The handle is foldable so that has started to wear over the last year (the 2 halves of plastic snap apart when you unfold it, just firmly hold the handle so they can’t come apart). If you don’t fold it after every use then it’ll last longer (maybe I should do that…).
Its also light weight and travels easily, dries my long but fine hair in ~10 minutes. If weight and storability aren’t concerns, the normal sized Buttercup would work too.
Shark, hands down. If you might want to travel with it get the foldable version.
Which shark dryer though? There are choices to be made (not the OP, but my dryer has made a grinding noise lately and since I bought it pre-covid, I’m pretty sure the end may be near).
SpeedStyle Pro Flex, and for my fine, thick, wavy hair, the diffuser attachment.
I bought the whole bundle because I thought I would use several of the other attachments and don’t, other than one initial session playing with them. It wasn’t that much more than just picking three attachments, though.
I am a fan of this Babyliss. My first one lasted 10+ years.
https://www.amazon.com/BaBylissPRO-BX2000-Ceramix-Xtreme-Dryer/dp/B08FP1D431?ref_=pb_hm_dp&th=1&psc=1
What do you think makes a weekend actually feel restorative, fulfilling, refreshing, etc.? I feel like my weekends lately haven’t felt like enough of a break so I’m trying to be more intentional about how I spend them. I’m sure this is a common problem so I’m curious about how other people think about this.
I need a mix of overall types of weekends, but in general, I need some outside time and time away from screens since I am on my laptop all day at work! I rotate through about 4 “types”- too many of one kind in a row and it’s either boring or Jesus Take the Wheel if we travel too many in a row and then are having to do more life maintenance stuff squeezed into mornings and evenings during the week.
– homebody weekend; catch up on little house projects, tend garden, go for a long walk or bike ride, but no big plans
– ‘plans’ weekend where one day we spend time with family or friends (ours are scattered around the area at this point, so it usually takes up a full half-day to see people for a meal) and the other we chill and do our usual weekend errands
– productive weekend – further flung errands, larger projects, etc
– travel weekend – like shore weekends in summer, or a quick dash down to FL for some sun in winter
A mix of doing things and relaxing. No errands.
Waking up early Saturday morning and going for a long walk in a pretty garden always starts my weekend off right. I try and spend some time reading a paper book. I always change my sheets on Sunday. And I get my groceries delivered every Sunday morning.
I try to fit in a balance of time with friends, time in nature, and time being productive (lately, that productivity time has been gardening). I also love cooking a more elaborate dinner and enjoying it with my family.
Spending time in nature and taking risks. You’ll be a million times more refreshed after taking a surf lesson followed by lunch with your friends compared to yet another weekend of errands and “puttering.”
But if the errands and cleaning don’t get done, you will be scattered and stressed out all week. Weekends filled with leisure activities are for rich people with house cleaners.
Yes, being rich and having house cleaners can make weekends feel restorative, fulfilling, refreshing.
You’re responding to my comment and we don’t have a house cleaner. We live in a small 2-bed apartment that hasn’t been updated since 1963. It’s all about attitude.
We do the majority of our errands/cleaning during the week – no house cleaner. I’d say errands/cleaning on the weekend are limited to a max of 1 hour total. I’m excluding walking the dog from this because we usually combine it with a family outdoor outing (e.g., hiking) or I enjoy walking the dog and listening to a podcast.
This is probably easier because I live in a small apartment in a major city – so minimal cleaning and I can walk 5 minutes to the grocery store, dry cleaners, pharmacy, hardware store, etc.
I also just don’t do a lot of things that other people do that seem to take a lot of time (meal prep is one that jumps to mind).
+1 to no meal prep. No better way to kill a Sunday and be annoyed by Monday morning.
I’m not a risks person but for me a museum or a day trip to a historic home is more fulfilling than puttering.
Doing something out of the ordinary or spending time in nature. I find my weekends to be much more restorative during the warmer months for this reason.
Skiing in winter is the way to keep that going year round. Nothing is better for restoring the spirit; I like who I am and how I act the weekends we ski.
Unfortunately, I live in the middle of the country with nary a ski hill to be found. And lately, our snowfall has been so inconsistent that even things like cross country skiing or ice skating are very hit or miss.
Similar boat here. When there isn’t enough snow for snowshoeing, we go winter hiking on the snowshoe trails. I still use my snowshoe poles and wear trail runners with cleats for grip.
I’m also Team Winter, though not a skier. I love being outside in the cold and snow, and despise the sun, heat, humidity, and bug bites. Summer is just an ordeal to survive until I can really be outside again, but luckily it’s short where I live.
Same. Most of my summer vacations are as close to the arctic circle as I can get.
I love skiing but alas our winters are cold and gross but not cold enough for snow
For me, it’s not setting an alarm for at least one of the days off. I may not sleep in, but getting up on my own really helps
+1
I like to feel like I accomplished something. It’s easier to achieve a sense of accomplishment if I set goals for myself. For example, if I spend all weekend lounging and reading a book then at the end of the weekend I feel a bit like I wasted my time. But if I tell myself ahead of time that my goal for the weekend is to finally make some progress on the book that’s been collecting dust on my bedside table for weeks, I’ll feel like I did a good job of managing my time. Sometimes it just takes a mindset shift.
Do as many chores and errands during the week as possible.
My hack for a good weekend is to have plans Friday night. I think it’s because it makes my weekend feel longer? If I go out Friday night, even if the rest of the weekend is housework, errands, and lounging, I start the new week feeling refreshed.
I’ve noticed this too. Friday is usually my worst day at work so I’m completely exhausted by the time I get home. But last Friday, surprisingly no one thought the sky was falling and I was able to beg off work around 3:30. I went to an outdoor market and spontaneously caught up with friends. It felt like a three day weekend. It’s amazing how “big” a little bit of found time can feel.
Some combination of:
– having plans for Friday, even if it’s just takeout and a movie at home
– waking up early on Saturday and getting out of the house
– spending time outdoors
– reading for fun instead of for work
Not being on my phone or watching tv. I actually do like to spend some time on weekends doing chores that make me feel like my house is clean and my life is in order to start the following week. Getting outside. Doing a hobby I don’t have much time for during the week.
Doing something active outside, seeing friends or family (voluntarily, not being summoned), having a mix of activities and time to relax at home, eating good food, getting enough sleep, minimal driving in traffic, making sure my apartment is clean and I have groceries for the upcoming week.
I’m looking for a softer racerback bra to wear with tanks this summer. Any favorites? I’m a 38D.
at that size i think almost anything would work like Champion or Athleta. I’m a 38F and my problem with those is always my boobs being cut in half.
Anyone want to help me fix my life?
The good: Close friends and family nearby. Lots of strong relationships and involved in my community. Great job I love with awesome coworkers, good pay, flexibility, and 100% remote (yes, I know this is a unicorn job and I am so, so grateful). I feel like I have the foundation for a good life, but…
The bad: The last few years were terrible personally (and that’s not even considering the pandemic) and I feel like I’m just coming up for air. Several terrible work situations in rapid succession. Serious health issues that are thankfully resolved now, but when I was dealing with them I had to really retreat from my life. I gained a lot of weight from sad nighttime snacking because chips and ice cream offered a quick hit of pleasure when I couldn’t find any in my day. Now I don’t recognize myself when I look in the mirror. I haven’t dated in years. I look old and tired.
I don’t know where to start. I feel so ashamed about the solo evening eating. I’ll stop for a few weeks, but then after a hard day I’ll fall right back into it. My life is so much better than it was during the harder times, but it’s like I don’t trust it anymore because I’ve seen how quickly everything can fall apart. So then it’s back to Netflix and my hand in a bag of chips.
I feel like people understand drinking, drugs, overspending, but this is so embarrassing as a vice. It’s also always readily available to me when nothing else works. And I live alone so I do it alone, late at night.
I hate getting dressed in the morning because my closet is full of clothes from the last few years when my size fluctuated. Shopping for clothes is a nightmare. I don’t want to face being the size and shape that I am. I gained weight very unevenly so it’s almost all in my stomach, which means buying pants or jeans is almost impossible, and I just want to hide in big flowy tentlike dresses.
I’ve seen my regular doctor and I’m healthy except for being overweight. I already see a therapist. I don’t know what else to do. Can anyone help? I feel so alone and embarrassed. I want to start actually living my life, not sitting at home sadly numbing myself from it.
I don’t know that I have any great advice, but I want you to know that you’re not alone in struggling with emotional eating. I also feel dumb for having it as a vice when life goes sideways, though I recognize that shame doesn’t do us any good!
Can you go into an office? I really think being around people helps so much. It’s so easy to just be home and never leave the house or interact with people when you’re working remotely. I’d start there. Also, don’t punish yourself, buy some clothes you like. Set up some friend dates. It sounds like you’re missing human connection.
I belong to a coworking space and I try to go three days a week, but everyone is just silent on their laptops and there is zero interaction. I get there and I wonder, why am I even here?
It’s a bit odd because they have a cafe with an espresso bar but no actual just… coffee station where people can fill up coffee and chat like they would at an office, so I think that’s partly what’s missing. I had hoped they would do more events to foster community.
On the clothes front, buy clothes that fit. Solidarity because I also gained weight and tried to squeeze myself into old clothes but at some point I accepted that I need to go up a size or more realistically two, and sure maybe I’ll get super in shape soon but in the meantime I look so much better in stuff my size, and as an added bonus I can breethe normally.
+1
Buy clothes that fit. You’ll feel so much better.
Echoing buying clothes that fit. When I had to return to the office after five years at home, wearing pants that were even just a little too tight made my day ten times worse. I now only wear work pants with elastic in the back and it’s made a huge difference.
i also struggle with using food for that endorphin fix. for me it started shortly after my wedding while i was studying for the bar exam in coffee shops, eating pastries in lieu of meals and eating pints of ice cream or jars of nutella in a day. while im safer if it’s not in the house, i’ve also gone out of my way to buy things. have you tried medication? have you talked to your therapist about this? do you exercise at all? have somethign else you can do with your hands at night?
I’ve been there. Re looking old, drink more water and add an electrolyte packet once a day. It’s amazing how much more refreshed we look when we’re not dehydrated.
Don’t buy easy to grab snacks. Do have snacks on hand that take a little effort to assemble. It helps me to figure out when I’m truly hungry vs bored. My favorite snack is plain Greek yogurt with berries and a little homemade granola (kept in the freezer). It takes under 10 minutes to put together, and none of the components is something that I’d really want to mindlessly snack on.
Buy stretchy pants. At one point I was in maternity jeans to accommodate my belly. No one can tell, just focus on wearing something comfortable.
Start exercising at home, even if it’s just a 10 minute walk outside or stretching or hand weights. Using your body will make you like it more, especially as you see progress over time.
Are you exercising? I’m always much happier with my life if I’m exercising regularly, preferably outside. You might be more into something social, like a class. It doesn’t really matter what you do, just that you enjoy it, and for me it also really helps if it’s part of a routine, at the same time every day or some other regular schedule so I don’t have to think about it too much. It doesn’t have to be hard, just go for a walk or dance or stretch if you’re not up for more than that, just get in the habit of moving your body so that it no longer feels so alien from you and you get physical satisfaction from something besides eating. And definitely buy some clothes that fit, it’s miserable to wear too small pants!
Just take wegovy. You don’t need to torment yourself when there’s great medical help available. And pick up some sort of evening activity that gets you out of the house once or twice a week
I wouldn’t recommend a drug that can have serious side effects and requires the person to be on it for the rest of their life in order for them to feel better in their skin.
+1 I hate to go straight to GLP1s, but OP seems like the perfect candidate for it. Life changing.
I am not heavy enough to qualify. I am overweight but not obese. Already discussed it with my doctor, alas.
You can get the prescription from a doctor online. I understand if it’s not something you are comfortable with, but your post sounded exactly where I was 2 years ago. My life has done a 180 for the better.
Same. It truly changed my life
Background: My weight has fluctuated my entire adult life. The only time I was successful in losing weight and being around a size 10/12 was when I was eating below 900 calories per day and suffering from anorexia. I’m now a 16/18 and trying to feel at home in my body.
Your body, in whatever shape it is, is a wonder. It has gotten you to this stage in life and allows you to do many things.
Here’s what I do to feel better in my skin:
1) Move regularly. I take an adult ballet class 2x a week and walk daily (either in the city or with my dog).
2) Aim for balance in your meals/snacks. We do better when our meals and snacks are balanced. Adding some fiber (like fruit or veggies) to your evening snack will fill you up more and do great things for your blood sugar.
3) Find things you love. My therapist recommended the adult ballet class when I said I was feeling unfulfilled outside of work. She asked what I loved to do as a child and it was ballet. What did you love to do when you were little?
4) Get clothes that fit! You can buy them secondhand if you don’t want to blow your budget. Get a nice haircut, do your makeup if you like to (even on an at home day), put on perfume, etc. Having clothes that fit and feeling like you look nice (regardless of your size) is a huge pick me up.
Whenever I don’t feel great in my skin, I make sure my outfit is amazing and my hair/makeup look nice. My ballet class reminds me that, even though my body isn’t where I thought it would be, it can still move and dance with the best of them. And I try to remember that, when I was anorexic, my hair was falling out, my skin was terrible, and I was so focused on food it overshadowed the rest of my life. I don’t want to live my life like that.
Buy a nice, flattering capsule wardrobe for now. (When I was pregnant, I hated my shape – please don’t judge – and buying really lovely clothes helped me far more than I expected.)
If you can afford it, personal trainer a gym. Join workout classes. Take Pilates. Join a run/walk club. Having that stuff on your schedule helps a lot, and the endorphins are a game changer.
As for food? No advice except… Talenti gelato. It’s made with less crap than other sweets and a small amount is satisfying. I’m convinced that weight gain isn’t just calories in; it’s what type of calories.
Easy, here’s your plan: get a dog, get some clothes that fit and you love, and a cut and color. The last two are immediate feel better items, the dog will get you out of the house, exercising, meeting people and will love you. They also judge for midnight snacks so you will stop having them.
I actually really like this plan. OP, you need a buddy/wingman.
Also, your dog maybe your snacks.
My cat judges me for late night snacks when I don’t also give her treats.
This is a great plan. If you can’t get a dog (I couldn’t in this situation), I’d sign up for an evening exercise class to change the pattern of your days and also get some exercise and let you meet people. It doesn’t have to be super intense at all – for me, a low impact class clearly geared towards women older than me was magical when I was at a low place.
Been there! You are not alone!!! A few things that helped me:
1. I highly, highly recommend working with a therapist or dietitian who has experience working with people with binge eating disorder. The shame spiral is hard to explain to someone who hasn’t experienced it and finding someone who understood was life-changing.
2. Find some influencers with similar body types and use them for inspiration for buying a few things that make you feel good. From your description, it sounds like the My Sister Made Me Buy It account might be good for you?
3. If you can find a way to move your body that you don’t hate, that would be wonderful. Ideally, something that gets you out of the house and maybe even interacting with other people. I recruited a few friends of mine to try out free classes at a bunch of local gyms and we were all surprised when we found something we actually enjoyed doing. But, if you feel like you’re at a point where trying to incorporate exercise is just going to make you feel worse, give yourself permission to put a pause on that for a few months. You don’t need extra shame weighing on you.
4. Find a way to be of service to someone who needs it on regular basis. Maybe you can walk dogs at a shelter once week or make a standing appointment to visit an elderly family member. I know it’s hard to pour from an empty cup, but nothing gets me out of my own head more than helping others, especially if it can be done in small doses!
It sounds like you’ve overcome a lot. You’re still healing and deserve to be as gentle with yourself during this period of time as you were during the period when you were sick.
Therapy!
put on some fun dance music and go for a walk, especially if it’s sunny
make an appointment with yourself on the weekend or during your lunch hour to sit outside somewhere and people watch
for nighttime snacking – i try to go to bed early on nights when i’ve got racoon-mode activated. i also like sweet teas like those from Red Rose (they do have sweetener added though so fyi).
if you can, also, forgive yourself. what would you tell a friend in this situation? would you accept/keep a friend who constantly said negative things to you? try to be your own friend here.
This was/is me, in every way. The things that helped were:
-going on a GLP1. I did not qualify under my health insurance so I got it elsewhere. It’s not cheap but I consider it an investment in my health. I have lost the weight over 1.5 years, come off my statin and pre-diabetic drugs, and all my health numbers have improved. I am okay staying on it at a lower (and therefore cheaper) dose if necessary, especially because I now do not need to take two other meds long term.
-exercising every day if possible. I have noticed as I age that my mental health is improved far more by exercise then it ever was in the past. Sometimes this is just a 20 minute walk outside (weather permitting) or on the treadmill.
-I made a goal of getting out of the house just 1x week during the week to a yoga class. This can be anything you enjoy, it does not have to be exercise. Just something to get out of the house 1x week. This often led to me getting out and doing something more than 1x week, but I was fine with 1x week. I found working from home, I really needed this.
-Make plans for the weekends, ideally with friends or family. But not too many plans. I need downtime to just lay around and read or watch TV. Sometimes the plans were just a bigger chore I had to get done in my home.
I hope this helps you, as it did help me to get out of the long term rut I was in.
Good for you for surviving this difficult period! You are very much not alone in seeking comfort in food. In the past, I found a 12 step group, Overeaters Anonymous, helpful in dealing with compulsive eating. It isn’t perfect, and you’ll find a range of people there–some dealing with binge eating or bulimia or other eating disorders, others more borderline disordered eating–but it might be helpful for you in dealing with the shame you are experiencing.
Taking up some form of exercise that you enjoy would also likely be helpful for your mental and physical health.
Beyond that – what could you add to your life to bring you more joy? Is there a class you would like to take, a hobby you want to try? Could you use more friends? It is great that you recognize that your eating habits are a symptom, not the problem. Fat people can have wonderful lives too. So what would a happy life look like for you, regardless of your weight? What can you do to cultivate that?
If it were me, I’d try and find a different outlet for whatever emotions the eating is filling. If probably sign up for an evening yoga class or something, or get a dog as someone else suggested. You change your buying habits so that you have to go out of the house for your bag of chips or point of ice cream. And if you do want to go get some, no Shane progress isn’t linear and snacking isn’t immoral. It’s just a habit you’re trying to replace.
And really, the most important thing is to be kind to yourself through this process. This isn’t a punishment for your bad behavior, this is a recognition that you were getting through some hard times and now you’re trying to grow into habits that you’ll enjoy more and will make you feel better. If it isn’t making you feel better, you’re not going to do it.
I also can’t avoid the evening snacking so I move the decision point to the store. If I really want something I just pop out and buy an individual size but I don’t keep chips, ice cream etc on hand. Air popped popcorn is a great alternative to have around.
Try and new activity and meet new people. New art class or sport or music instrument? Something to be excited about and focus on.
Rather than getting a dog, maybe think about pet sitting. Then you have more freedom. It’s hard to find pet sitters who only take one pet at a time and don’t already have pets.
Is there a word for fit and flare dresses where the flare starts not immediately below the bust, but a little lower? I’d like a dress where the waist matches my waist, which i guess is lower than most people.
Drop waist
drop waists are usually straight to the hip so they definitely won’t match her waist
a fit and flare look DOES start at the waist — empire wais, a-line, and trapeze dresses start higher.
https://www.moodfabrics.com/blog/all-about-dress-silhouettes/
A line vs fit and flare could be the issue. So what I want is fit and flare then
I think that there are some Big4 and other accounting types here. My sister just got into a big state school from a waitlist, but as a pre-business major. Our understanding is that this means that she isn’t guaranteed a spot in the accounting program, so she is likely not to be an accounting major or to be able to take the CPA or get various summer internships that seem key to getting your foot in the door. She could, however, be a marketing major or something like that.
She also got into a small college an hour outside of our city at close to a full ride. She could be an accounting major there, and be eligible to take the CPA exam, but it’s so small that maybe it is much harder to get a job. She was initially happy to get this, but now is questioning it in light of the waitlist situation.
WWYD? I’m not sure that State U takes transfers into these hard-to-get majors (or that accounting is like nursing where if you pass the licensing exam, you can get a job where you apply and just start working b/c there is a scarcity). I am going to law school now b/c (haha) I am not a numbers person, nor are any of my friends.
She’s best off talking to someone at the school about the major.
Thanks — she’s in school during the day and in some exams, so she’s not readily available when people may hopefully call her back. She’s worried (rightly so) that someone in admissions may tell her an answer based on what they think and it’s not a binding commitment or how it really works or there are some nuances to “there are limited spots and it’s based on grades” works in reality or lacks candor or helpful data (like we have 80 spots and 500 pre-business majors). I was a history major, so it’s not like there were limits or anything but declaring that this is your major and then taking/passing the classes (which were abundant). Going a 5th year or not finishing a degree with an employable major weren’t on the menu.
CPA and ex big 4 auditor.
You need credits not degrees to get your CPA. A lot of the accounting credits can be done at community college, which is what I did. Becker is great and will get her through the exams when the time comes, which I recommend her doing, because it always gives you options.
My advice is to focus on data analytics and behavioral psychology. After graduation go work on the advisory side and after 1 year start preparing for the GMAT with the focus to get into a top tier MBA (Wharton, Yale, Harvard, Columbia, Stanford with 2nd tier being NYU and Cornell) program or Masters. Management consulting has much more fun stuff going on and will help build a better, stronger career.
Since the topic of vaccines came up here a few times in the last days:
Any primary care provider should be able to order measles titers.
I did the blood test recently, since my vaccinations were from the 80s in a Eastern European country. While I do still have my original vaccination booklets and it always makes for an interesting conversation with doctors, it is very hard to judge whether the vaccine administered would be comparable to today’s Western standards etc.
My test showed I have significant antibody levels, so I was glad to know that – especially since we have a new baby in our extended family which I’m intending to visit in the summer.
Many insurances pay for this lab test if it’s ordered by a physician with a relevant code. I paid maybe 5 USD after insurance with my plan.
Also, I got a Tdap shot after 9 years (one year before the next one was formally due), because who knows what vaccination coverage and availability will look like under the new administration.
Anecdotally, my family doctor told me that after the administration change, so many people are checking their vaccination status and getting shots, at least where I live. The nurse administering my shot said they had a line of nurses in front of the vaccination fridge already when she looked to get my injection.
my GYN said everyone is getting new IUDs now!
Your post reminds me of all the funny looks when my US doctors have to sort through my vaccine booklet (all in french) and when my middle aged self still makes them write down the non-annual vaccines on the back pages. Also, among my many confusions about the US is the lack of the vaccine booklets.
I had a booklet, but it was stolen when I lived outside of the US. My recreated ones are all in my mom’s handwriting and all stamped / noted by the doctor’s office with the same date. Since I’ve been >18 though, I think I’ve just had COVID and Tetanus and whatever has whooping cough vaccine in it (and annual flu shots). Is there anything else out there I should get?
Depends on your age and other conditions. I got Pneumococcus on the recommendation of my physician since I have asthma, and will get the shingles vaccine once I turn 50.
You can check the recommended adult vaccine schedule here:
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/imz-schedules/adult-easyread.html
I will also get travel vaccines as needed – got typhoid fever and Japanese encephalitis vaccines due to travel in endemic areas. If I lived in an area with lots of tick-borne disease, I might consider adding the TBE/FSME vaccine.
Measles titers are not necessary or recommended for most adults who were vaccinated in the USA. Doing what evidence-based medicine suggests is appropriate is still the right thing, even when there is noise creating non-evidence-based-based fear.
MMR vaccine recommendations are actually more nuanced, depending on the age you were vaccinated, and the vaccine administered. For people outside the U.S. or immigrants, it may look again different.
https://www.cdc.gov/measles/vaccines/index.html
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/imz-schedules/adult-easyread.html
From the first source:
“People vaccinated prior to 1968 with either inactivated (killed) measles vaccine or measles vaccine of unknown type should be revaccinated. They should get at least 1 dose of live attenuated measles vaccine. This recommendation is intended to protect those who may have received killed measles vaccine. This vaccine was available in 1963–1967 and was not effective.”
“If you’re unsure whether you’ve been vaccinated, you should first try to find your vaccination records. If you don’t have written documentation of MMR vaccine, you should get vaccinated, especially if you’re traveling internationally.
The MMR vaccine is safe. There’s no harm in getting another dose if you may already be immune to measles, mumps, or rubella.”
Hello – thanks for all the lovely comments last time I posted. I began chemo this week, and have already secured two wigs for work. But I’ve heard that eyelashes and eyebrows also significantly thin, too.
So, I am in the DMV: any recommendation for excellent microblading???
Also, any recommendation for excellent (and easy to use!) false eyelashes that I can order and start wearing soon to hide the thinning? (can’t to extensions – that doesn’t work with the chemo)
TIA
No direct advice, but If you have Look Good Feel Better classes near you it’s worth signing up. I think they should cover eyelashes and brows and probably still give you free makeup.
I am in my first trimester and super nauseous the whole time. Looking for good recipes that are on the blander side.
I ate a lot of frozen mac and cheese and pasta like this: https://www.splendidtable.org/story/2017/03/14/fusilli-roasted-cauliflower-with-capers
Soup was my friend – a classic chicken noodle sits easy.
It sucks, but if I could choke down a protein shake in the morning, that seemed to really help with the nausea all day. The only one I could tolerate was a very cold (like, put in the freezer for a few minutes) Premier Protein vanilla. YMMV.
I ate a lot of Eggo waffles. I wouldn’t worry too much about nutrition. It’s a blip in your lifespan and you’ll be back to normal eating soon enough – just eat what sounds good.
bagels, grilled cheese, pizza. it’s common. you’ll feel better, just eat what goes down.
Honey Nut Cheerios — starchy and bland, but IMO more delicious
I sucked on goldfish and threw up a lot for all my pregnancies. Find what works for you. Watermelon was a good one as easier to throw up. Take the drugs from your obn if it’s really bad.
anyone familiar with long island? need a good restaurant between the city line and five towns.
Any recs for private schools in NoVA that are K-12 and likely to offer generous financial aid? (Googling “private school” turns up a lot of daycares. There are four kids going into 10th, 8th, 6th, 3rd.) The family is located in Alexandria near Landmark. I know it’s late for the 25-26 school year. Thank you!