Can you believe that the month of May has already come and gone? It’s simply astonishing how quickly time passes us by, it really feels like it was just yesterday! Seriously, how is it already the end of May? It seems like time flew by in a blink of an eye and I didn’t even have a chance to take it all in.
This month has been incredibly busy – I worked on my anniversary day and Mother’s Day, so I decided to take the day off on my son’s birthday as a special treat. Yes, it was important for me to take that day off so that I could spend quality time with my family and enjoy the special occasion.
Feeling Burnout with Medium
As of late, I have been feeling increasingly frustrated with the Medium platform. My traffic and stats are at an all-time low and my follower count has stalled. Not only that, but I made a measly $0.78 USD this month which is maybe enough to buy a chocolate bar from Dollarama. Personally, I just don’t see how Medium makes any practical sense unless I want to devote 3-4 hours/day engaging with other writers, leaving comments, networking, etc. I don’t have time for these things when I could be doing something that takes me closer to my goals.
If you’re not already following me on Medium, I highly recommend it. I’m not planning on abandoning that platform, however at this time I will no longer be publishing original articles there. That being said, I’m considering transferring the previously written articles to this platform so that my followers here can have access to them as well.
👉 Follow me on Medium: @sereneluna
MAY GOALS 2023
Career Goals:
- Don’t call in sick this month I didn’t miss any days of work during the month of May! I didn’t get sick nor did I need to take a mental health day. Yay, me?
- Catch up on work emails + check MLL modules No need to catch up on the MLL modules; most work emails have been taken care of, but not all.
- Reorganize backpack + print notes I organize my backpack every week. I’ll remove it from next month’s list of goals.
Personal Goals:
- Publish 1-2 blog posts + monthly recap Yes, I am doing this right now. I have no plans to abandon my blog.
- Publish 1-2 articles on Medium + share articles on blog I am unsure if I should continue to pursue this goal. The outcome these past 2-3 months was not as expected and I don’t want to give up, but I am uncertain about whether to invest more energy into this hobby.
- Announce the winner of the giveaway in a blog post You can read that blog post here! ✨💫
- Keep tabs on doctor’s appointments/pending appointments Managing my family’s busy schedule is exhausting. Text message reminders are helping me stay on track with all of my appointments
- Daily Duolingo practice 🇩🇪 + finish diamond tournament 💎 I completed the diamond tournament and felt slightly disappointed afterwards, so I am no longer as enthusiastic about competing. Nevertheless, I still plan on learning German but will take my own time to do so. If by chance I drop out of that league, then it won’t be a problem for me anymore.
Health Goals:
- Continue to track steps + upload progress on Twitter After returning from Singapore, I failed to maintain a daily goal of 10,000 steps and became complacent. Feeling frustrated with the lack of progress, I gave up on reaching that goal. I want to get back into fitness next month.
- Track steps on Pikmin Bloom app → advance to Level 45 🌸 Unfortunately, no progress has been made on Level 44 even after numerous tries. I’m still stuck there!
- Track water intake on Water Llama app → 1 Gallon of water per day My experiment of drinking a gallon of water each day using a large jug lasted ONE DAY! My husband complained about my water jug taking up too much space, prompting me to ditch it and stop tracking my water intake. Next time, I will keep my 32-oz water bottles chilled in the fridge. I really want to do better next month.
- Simplify my diet and reduce my intake of processed food This month, I was unable to stick to any particular diet and I ended up feeling really terrible and bloated. Does anyone have any suggestions or tips on how to reduce bloating? Trying to find a healthier way of eating for the long-term would be greatly appreciated.
And there you have it! Despite the fact that I worked hard and there were many distractions this month of May, I still feel like my discipline wasn’t up to par. My health goals were completely neglected and this is something I regret and fully intend to correct in the future. With that being said, I know that I can always strive for more and do better in order to reach my goals. I know I won’t be ready for bikini season but it doesn’t mean I can’t wear sundresses! I just want to wear sundresses without feeling bloated and uncomfortable.
(っ◔◡◔)っ FYI: If you’re not already following me on Twitter (@serene_hilz), you can get real-time updates about my day-to-day life there. Exciting changes are coming soon, and I’ve been hinting about it on Twitter.
Thanks for stopping by! ♥
One tiny thing that usually helps me with bloating is to get my water quota in. Whenever I slack off and try to get on track, I’ll have annoyingly frequent bathroom trips but it mellows out by day 3 or 4 of consistent water intake. Also, I’ve been trying out fermented drinks lately- store bought kefir and kombucha. They work wonders for bloating (at least for me). Best wishes for June. I’ve done a lot of comfort eating this month because I’m stressed out with exams, but I plan to get back on track next month
Thanks for your advice, Rochelle. I don’t think I drink enough water unless I’m tracking my intake. It wouldn’t surprise me if I’m dehydrated. Hopefully I can get back into water tracking during the month of June.
I haven’t actually tried fermented drinks. A part of me is afraid to try them! Not sure why, but every time they offer a free sample of kombucha at Costco I always turn it down. My mom really likes Kefir and maybe I should start with that.
Good luck with your exams!! I understand the stress eating that comes along with exam season.
Your May sounds fun. May your goals for this month equally be accomplished.😊
May was eventful and busy – I didn’t accomplish nearly as much as I wanted to and I’m hoping to do better next month. Thank you for reading, Maya!
My pleasure. You’ve got a nice blog.
Thank you! 🙂
Main things that helps with bloating is
walking after a meal, some yoga asanas and overall eating food according to season.
Majorly bloating can happen due to certain food intolerance, low stomach acid, stress, irregular eating times, side effects of a medicines or something. Make sure this is not the case….
Mainly, re-publishing already written work is a the wise thing to do. I am thinking to upgrade to a buisness plan. Good luck with your diet, walking, blogging and everything else.
I am not sure how I missed your comment – so sorry about that! Ugh, I hate bloat. It’s such an uncomfortable feeling. I seem to tolerate small meals much better than larger meals, so I snack here and there. It seems to be better for digestion – not sure why.
I don’t take any medications other than acetaminophen (aka. Tylenol). I take zero prescription medications, I don’t smoke, and I don’t drink. I take the occasional magnesium supplement but I know that isn’t related to the bloating because I take magnesium infrequently.
How is blogging going with the business plan? Are you liking it so far or do the frustrations of WP outweigh the benefits of upgrading to the business plan? Good luck with your goals and plans with your blog. I am very excited to see what you have in store for your blog in the next 3 years! 🙂
I hope you get proper solution to the bloating.
Business plan is good so far, there are so many changes and need to see and learn them.
New features are overwhelming
New things are always overwhelming at first but I am sure it will get better with time and experience. And if you are ever unsure, there are always bloggers who can help with the technical stuff 🙏
I guess medium is like other platforms. The more you engage the better you do. But that’s sort of an issue for most since most of us don’t have time to be on there for hours daily.
Also, I went to a holistic doctor recently and he said okra can help with bloating. If that doesn’t work, try drinking half a spoon of soda bicarb mixed with one glass of water. It’ll instantly give you relief from bloating.
When I did better on Medium, I spent hours on that platform each day. I had to cut that out as soon as I realized I was spending too much time there. I also cut way back on blogging too. I used to visit blogs and spend several hours leaving comments each week. Now, I spend no more than 30mins/day replying to comments on WP.
Okra, eh? That’s interesting. I wonder what it tastes like. I have had the soda bicarb drink before and it’s terrible lol I ended up spitting it out.
That’s fair, at some point your real life has to come first because you can’t always be ok your computer.
Yeah, okra is pretty good when you add it to a stir fry and stuff but I grew up eating it so maybe I’m used to the taste lol 😅 Soda bicarb isn’t the best tasting but it’s so helpful with bloating you just have to shut off your taste buds and drink it lol.
I started eating small meals because I can’t handle large amounts of food without feeling super bloated. Also, carbs help even though I know they probably aren’t the most nutritious on their own. I eat a lot of bread, fruit and stuff like that because it doesn’t cause bloat like protein-rich foods do. I’m not sure why. One thing I do know is that I’m lactose intolerant but even when I don’t eat dairy I still feel bloated. For now, I mostly stick to the BRAT diet until I can figure out an alternative that doesn’t cause tummy pain.
Yes, foods that are high in protein can cause bloating as well as indigestion etc. I get acid reflux when I eat too much protein rich food. Stick with a high carb diet for now if it makes you feel better. Have you tried soaking proteins like lentils for a few days before using them? This helps you digest them better and stops bloating for many people.
Oh wow that’s long time to spend each day unless it’s your full time job.