Makayla Richards
Bio
22 year old aspiring writer.
Stories (18/0)
Guided Meditation For Tension & Stress Relief
We are going to begin a guided meditation that will last for a few moments in hopes to relax your body and relieve yourself of some of your daily stressors. Feel free to play some soft and calming music, here are a few of my recommendations:
By Makayla Richards4 years ago in Longevity
I Work In Healthcare
I work in healthcare. I still have to go to work despite all that is going on in the world. Things are getting worse and worse every day, but the doctors, nurses, aides, and people within the hospital and healthcare system are here to fight for you. Social distancing seems like a simple concept to people, yet many are still not practicing it. Why? You see on the news all these doctors and medical professionals preaching the severity of COVID-19 and the benefits of staying home and then you see a segment about those in their 20’s who do not care and are out partying. Google what is happening in Europe and Asia; things are getting better slowly, but they are getting better because of the precautions the countries are taking. There are videos circulating on people in the intensive care units (ICU) that are attached to so many machines -- ventilators, oxygen support, and they are fighting for their lives. These people are someone’s grandparents, spouse, family member, or friend. Why do we still think this is not a big deal? It is a big deal. As a worker in healthcare, I care about every person that steps into my hospital no matter the scenario. I am sacrificing my own personal health to take care of your loved ones and I am okay with that, I chose that career and I would not change a thing. That being said, even though I am okay with my choice to do my part in saving lives, that does not mean that I am okay with otherwise healthy people only caring about themselves. It does not matter if you are prepared to fight the virus and you are healthy, it is not about you. Social distancing isn’t about you. It’s about the people who are going to suffer the hardest if they get hit with this. You might be prepared for this, I might be prepared for this, but the people who are immunocompromised, elderly or simply don’t have the access or means to handle a pandemic of this magnitude will not be. We need to come together as a nation and take the appropriate precautions no matter our health status. I know people who are scared to death of this virus and this pandemic. I see people on the news panic buying food and toilet paper followed by pictures of elderly people scouring for food to help them survive. Now is not the time to panic, it is the time to be responsible and think about what is not only best for you and your family, but for your neighbors and community. Get what you need and allow others who are not as quick to the stores the opportunity to get what they need too. I sympathize with people whose graduations are getting cancelled, whose senior years of school are getting cut short, those who cannot see their elderly family members due to this pandemic, and those who are suffering. We need to band together and fight this. Eventually we will see the light again. We will be able to go out with friends, food supplies will return to surplus, and things will go back to normal. This is just a break in the normal activities of day to day life; it's an extended pause that is allowing us to cherish time with our families and spend time self-reflecting. We need to stay inside, listen to healthcare professionals and scientists, and practice compassion for others. Follow what the Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends: practice appropriate hand hygiene, cover your coughs and sneezes into your arm, stay home if you are sick, and try your best to avoid exposure to the virus. ****
By Makayla Richards4 years ago in Longevity
Traveling to a Foreign Country on Your own: What I learned about myself
First let me preface this story by saying, this was not my first time out of the country. I had been to Europe and Costa Rica prior, but under supervision with structured timelines and rules. I was excited yet nervous to say the least. I decided to trek back to Europe again -- my dream destination! I bought my tickets and planned my trip and realized, with excitement and nerves that I would be doing this all by myself. Tips and tricks I can give to the person reading this who might want to be brave and try a trek like this by themselves too is, PLAN, PLAN, PLAN! Just because you are going on your own does not mean it is easier to just do whatever you want to do and go with the flow. Yes, you can have a little of that, but if you truly want to make the most out of your experience, plan out your goals. Where do you want to go while you’re there? How much time do you have for your trip? How much money do you have?, etc. It is important to ask yourself these questions so you can have the most optimal trip as possible. Personally, I really wanted to go to Paris and see the Eiffel Tower which I so recommend and I wanted to go into a country I had not been to before, which happened to be Luxembourg. I decided to spend two weeks in Germany, see some friends and family living there and immerse myself in the culture as best as I could. If I could recommend a packing list, here it would be:
By Makayla Richards4 years ago in Wander
Living Life with Chronic Anxiety
Living life with chronic anxiety feels like an uphill battle that you will never win. It feels so out of your control and like you will never win. Even when everything seems to be going as planned, your brain finds more to worry about and hones in on it. It is life filled with coping mechanisms, both good and poor, and pretending that life is good when in reality it feels like a water balloon with a leak that is slowly losing all of its contents. Anxiety comes in the form of needing to control people and things, setting high standards for yourself and becoming your worst critic, being scared to go out with people, being scared to go anywhere for that matter, having even the best things ruined by the little voice in your head, and constantly worrying.
By Makayla Richards5 years ago in Psyche
Who You Were Born as May Not Be the Person You Were Meant to Be
The definition of a person, let alone a gender, is fluid—who you love, what you were, what you stand for, and the life you choose to lead. Yet society seeks to oppress and silence the masses of women, young people, lesbians, gays, and transgender people. I read/watched three pieces that were all founded upon the central idea of gender and gender roles. The first piece is a spoken performance by Chimamanda Adichie, We Should All Be Feminists; the second piece is Bros Before Hos: The Guy Code by Michael Kimmel; and the last piece was A Powerful Poem About What It Feels Like to Be Transgender by Lee Mokobe. These three pieces all assemble into a puzzle that connect in order to highlight the gender and gender roles struggle in current day America.
By Makayla Richards5 years ago in Humans