She's got the six-carat Harry Winston on her bony, unpolished finger.

So I couldn't wear nail polish during my surgery.  Being intrigued with all the nail art going on though I've been buying a lot of polish the last couple of months.  I went through a ton of old polishes I had.  Many couldn't be salvaged so they were thrown out & many new polishes were bought.  And now that I no longer have a thyroid, the battle with hypothyroid had begun.

Within 2 days of the surgery the new complications started.  Now, I had been suffering from Hashimoto's thyroid before it turned into Graves' disease.  Technically, while suffering through Graves' I had both.  Yes, complicated, & I still don't fully understand all of it.  It's the wonderful world of suffering through autoimmune diseases.  I thought that it wasn't going to be that bad.  I thought that I was going to just go back to the way I had been before.  A bit of normalcy.   It has been more like hitting a brick wall because it's much more severe until I can get on the right track.  I'm positive it will.  I am constantly being told this is going to take a while, but when I get there I will know!  One thing I have learned through a lot of questions & research is that with this disease, numbers DO lie.  Every single person is different and will have a different range of hormones that they need to reach & maintain in order for them to go back to that normalcy.  I really have to be paying attention to myself & how I am feeling.

I'll start with some GOOD things:
I actually feel way more calm, like I have control over my anxiety now.  Haven't had a single panic attack.  My constant nausea is gone & I have not thrown up once!  No more hot flashes.  No more heart palpitations, getting dizzy, feeling out of control. 

But the BAD things:
Losing hair, joint and bone aching and pain, teeth aches, dry, thin, flaking, clammy and numbness in skin.  I get these disgusting cold sweats and it feels like I have someone pressing ice on my forearms, chest and forehead constantly.  When the AC comes on I can't stand the way the current feels on my skin.  It's like being sick with cold sweats but you don't get all the other awful cold symptoms with it.  It's just weird... different.  My depression is kicking in & I have been irritable, moody, awake, out of it & exhausted at the same time.  I already gained 5lbs but that's probably due to a nice combination of bed rest, the hypothyroid kicking in and the prednisone medication.  And last, (mostly because why I have been writing about nail polish) dry, soft & brittle nails.

Now it really pays to look through coupons online.  I usually go through Coupons.com, Save.com & Target coupons. 

I had 2, $1 coupons for Sally Hansen that I found through vaious sites. (Can't find them anymore.) On clearance at Target I found the Sugar Coat in Bubble Plum for $2.74.  Final price = $0.74.

$1 off Nicole by OPI coupon from Save.com & also from the Sunday paper.  I found a cool shimmery glitter one in the clearance bin at Rite Aid for $3.75. Final Price - $1.75.

$2.49 for both.

I really have no idea what I'm going to start using 1st.  We shall see in the next day or 2.

 

IF YOU ARE IN LAS VEGAS, NV

My good friend Andrea Lipomi, whom owns Feetish Spa Parlor, runs Confident Massage, also blogs under The Young Thumbs and is currently enrolled in beauty school at Destination Academy is looking to work her nail magic on YOU!  From Andrea herself...

PLEASE COME SEE ME IN CLINIC! Call (702) 360-3606 to book a mani or pedi with me at Destination Academy. I can hook you up with regular OPI polish or gel polish. I'll even rock some marginal nail art skills if you ask nicely! YOU ARE MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY, so mention this fact when you book so you'll save 50% off of regular prices. This means you'll pay $5 for a mani and $10 for a pedi. My school is located at 4280 S. Hualapai on the 2nd floor. You can enter through the Destination Spa & Salon on the 1st floor. DO IT!

Sephora stash!

So, I got a bunch more stuff today in the mail and this should keep me busy with my blog for the rest of the month.  I hope.  Out of all the things I got in my Sephora stash yesterday I wanted to write 1st about the Vanille Insensée Cologne Absolue by Atelier Cologne.

I love vanilla (with few exceptions) and was curious about its description with notes of Lime, Cedrat, Coriander, Jasmine, Vetiver, Oak Moss, Vanilla, Oak Wood, Amber.  So it was the 1st I opened to sample.  It came with a cool postcard.  The description makes it seem very earthy.  I'm not a huge fan of cedar though cedrat usually is much nicer, and amber, even as a base note, usually overpowers perfumes.

It is extremely earthy but an empowering and sophisticated earthy scent.  Not down-to-earth or hippy-ish.  A perfect night scent for a wine bar, business dinner, scotch with friends or a humidor gathering.  Very sexy and rich indeed!  The mix is well and I don't feel one note overwhelms another in any way.

Sample bottles are normally a pain so more got on my fingers if anything but I just wanted to keep taking deep, slow breaths in of its scent.

Of course, everyone's senses are different so I always recommend that if you are curious, go into Sephora, give yourself a small spritz & after shopping for about 10 minutes, you'll know if you'll want to have it all for your own!

Well, I was updating this post all through the day because of my eye troubles and now I'm tired.  More bath & beauty goodness later!