14 Little Things We Learned This Month That Are Definitely Going To Make Our Lives Better
Hi there internet friend, and welcome back to the little corner of BuzzFeed where we share some of the most useful, interesting, and practical tips the lifestyle and trending news team has learned in the past month.
We're a group of about a dozen people living all over the US who spend our days scouring the internet for tips, trends, and viral stories about health and wellness, cooking and food, finances and parenting, and so much more.
February was a short month, but we still learned a whole heck of a lot, from important health PSAs to an anxiety-reducing phone habit we can all learn from Gen Z. Here are 14 things that we learned this month that we can actually use in our daily lives:
1.Just in time for Valentine's Day, Hannah Loewentheil brought us a sweet roundup of dishes begging to be made on a date night in. I hate washing dishes, but I love spinach and salmon, so this one-pan beauty created by Half Baked Harvest basically jumped off the screen singing my name.
Other standouts on my to-eat list include crispy chipotle sweet potato tacos, creamy lemon ricotta gnocchi with pistachio pesto, and roasted honeynut squash risotto. Is anyone else getting hungry??
Even better, Hannah says, "These extra-special recipes call for fairly simple and accessible ingredients, and they're manageable regardless of your cooking skills." I love when keeping it simple looks this good!
Read more: 26 Date Night Dinner Ideas For Anyone Whose Love Language Is Cooking
2.Our feet work hard for us, but we don't always give them the love they deserve in return (or at least I don't). Fabiana Buontempo talked to podiatrists to find out how we can all take better care of our tootsies, and I just want my toes to know that I'm sorry. I can change!
I was shocked to learn that our feet can keep sloooowly growing even in adulthood. "Feet slowly change over time, including shoe size, especially in women after childbirth. Change shoe size accordingly if shoes are too snug or if friction causes skin lesions or redness," explained podiatrist Dr. Elizabeth Daughtry, DPM, FACFAS.
I also learned from this piece that there aren't any oil glands in the soles of our feet, which is why the skin down there can get so dry. I'm never not moisturizing my poor feet after a shower again. And there's even more to discover, so do your feet a favor and check it out.
3.This month, the entire world was captivated by the incredible storytelling of one Reesa Teesa, a TikToker who narrated a 50-part story detailing the too-good-to-be-true highs and the-bar-is-in-hell lows of her marriage to someone she describes as "a pathological liar." Alexa Lisitza broke down the entire 8-hour saga, aptly titled "Who TF Did I Marry?" And our colleague Brittany Wong over at HuffPost talked with therapists for their insights on how to sniff out a pathological liar before your story becomes the next social media sensation.
Signs you're dealing with a big ol' liar include love bombing, defensiveness when questioned, and stories that are difficult to verify. "In their stories, they may also change details when bringing them back up again – their narrative is inconsistent,” said Kathryn Smerling, a psychotherapist in Manhattan.
4.Our colleague at HuffPost Jillian Wilson shared a really important health reminder that every woman needs to hear, and it's about your heart. When you think about the signs of a heart attack, you probably picture a middle aged man grabbing his chest in pain. But heart attacks are also very common in women, yet they can present with different symptoms that you might not expect.
In particular, women are more likely to report feeling nauseated during a heart attack. Not to say that you should freak if your tummy's not feeling right — in a heart attack, nausea is often accompanied by other symptoms like chest pain, sweating, heart palpitations or dizziness.
Jillian also interviewed a doctor to learn more about how we can all take better care of our hearts. Knowing the signs that something could be wrong is so important, and this is a really worthwhile read.
5.Raven Ishak often writes about mental health, and I loved this supportive idea she found on TikTok. Raven interviewed Becca Havian, who is getting her master’s in mental health counseling, about the "90-Day Dinner" tradition in her friend group. In a viral video, Becca explained, "Basically, what happens is if one of us is feeling in a funk, if something really shitty happened, if we find ourselves in a breakup or lost our job, or it doesn't even have to be that; it could be general anxiety or a feeling of stuckness, we can call a '90-Day Dinner.'" When this happens, Becca and her friends will schedule a dinner together 90 days out.
Becca explained that it's meant as a reminder that the negative feelings you're carrying now won't always feel as heavy as they currently do. "I think the idea of emotional permanence is something that is really productive to shed, and this tradition is so good at helping us understand that the feelings we are having — discomfort, sadness, anger, frustration, whatever it is — they're fleeting; they will change."
Raven also reached out to Rachael Benjamin, LCSW, from Tribeca Therapy who said, "It’s ideal, when someone is struggling, to have a way of reaching out, like calling a meeting for and about themselves." Rachael also gave even more helpful suggestions about how you might try creating a tradition like this in your friend group.
It's so lovely to see a friend group like Becca's and how they support each other, and this post is a surprisingly heartwarming read.
6.I'm always rounding up frugal tips and money-saving ideas, and I loved this person's method for understanding their grocery bill and finding places where they can cut back. They wrote, "Whenever I grocery shop, I ask for a receipt, and I evaluate the five highest-priced items. I ask myself whether it was necessary and worth it."
This tip really stood out to me because it's easy to get stuck on looking at the grand total on our receipts and not think as critically about which items got us there. Looking at the top five spendy items on every grocery receipt is a quick and dirty way of identifying where we might be overspending and seeing our personal spending habits more clearly.
If those items were necessary and/or you feel like they're worth what you spent, that's a great signal that you're right on track.
7.Speaking of the dreaded grocery bill, Claudia Santos interviewed Maria Spends — a 24-year-old who creates content around budgeting in New York City — about the tips, tricks, and sorcery she relies to keep her monthly grocery budget at a mere $125. I'm pretty sure it costs, like, $40 just to go outside in NYC, so this is seriously impressive.
In a viral video, Maria checked out at Trader Joe's with a full cart and a grand total of just $40.57. She told Claudia that her shopping strategy involves avoiding prepackaged snack foods and instead focusing on ingredients that can be mixed and matched into a variety of meals.
"I think that it's really important to find multiple ways to create as many meals as possible with the same items." Rather than aimlessly wandering the grocery store, she has a recipe box full of meals she often reaches for to take the guesswork out of cooking.
8.Whether you rent or own, taking care of your home can feel like a neverending chore. This month, Ross Yoder interviewed a creator who makes it all look easy — Kyshawn, founder of Weekly Home Check. His viral 52-week plan for keeping your home in tip top shape is so practical and helpful, and I've learned a ton from him already. Who knew you had to clean your dishwasher? I thought it cleaned itself along with the dishes??
Every week, Kyshawn shares a video on TikTok and Instagram where he talks viewers through a home maintenance task. The comment sections on his videos are also one of the most wholesome I've seen on the internet lately. It really feels like a strong community of people just trying to take better care of the places where they live, and I love that.
9.But homeowners beware, some things are really much better left to the pros. Dannica Ramirez rounded up some horror stories of DIY projects gone terribly wrong, and I learned a whole lot about what NOT to try at home.
HGTV / Via giphy.com
One person shared, "I tried to fix a clogged faucet. I spent three days trying to fix it before finally getting a plumber. I would never have managed to fix it because it was clogged farther down the line and needed a replacement line or longer snake or whatever. Never mess with plumbing."
Dannica rounded up some really interesting real-life stories, and it gives you a sense for the kinds of projects that you really do need help with.
Read more: 17 Times Homeowners Attempted A DIY Project And Wound Up With A Big, Expensive Mess
10.Recently, a woman went mega-viral on TikTok (we're talking over 25 million views) for sharing that her doctor fiancé told her to get up and stretch every two hours when she's on a flight to reduce her risk of blood clots from birth control pills. So Alana Valko reached out to Dr. Nicole Calloway Rankins, an OB/GYN from Richmond, Virginia, and the creator and host of the All About Pregnancy & Birth Podcast, to find out if this is really something people taking birth control should be concerned about.
Dr. Nicole told BuzzFeed that the advice for people on birth control to stretch every two hours on a flight isn't a standard recommendation, but it can't hurt. She explained, "There is an increased risk of developing blood clots while on birth control pills, but it's very low, and it's lower than the risks of developing blood clots while pregnant or postpartum."
She said that the risk of blood clots is higher for those who are older than 35 and smoke more than 15 cigarettes a day; have multiple risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and diabetes; have a history of stroke, heart attack, or deep vein thrombosis; or have a history of migraine headaches with aura.
It's a really informative post, and it made a lot of us feel better now that we have a better understanding of our risks.
11.My bed is my favorite place on this earth, so of course bed rotting speaks to me on a deep level. But allegedly, it's possible to get too much of a good thing. Thankfully, Alexa Lisitza spotted people online making "bed rotting agendas" to help. Alexa interviewed Raven McCoy, who shared her suggested schedule for getting up in the afternoon "if you've already rotted half the day away and you kind of regret it."
TikTok: @lifeasraven / Via tiktok.com
Raven suggests easing out of bed with some gentle and restorative activities, like a minute of stretching, changing into clean comfy clothes, getting something to eat, and going for a short walk. Honestly just reading about it has me feeling more relaxed and peaceful.
12.If you're a parent, you know that traveling with your kids can be kind of a challenge. Looking back, I don't know how my folks did it with me and my brothers! This month, Hannah Loewentheil rounded up some tried and true tips from parents for taking the little ones on a trip, and she found so many great ideas.
One person suggested, "Teach your kids the game Red Light, Green Light. Have your small child walk in front of you and make a game of saying 'Red light!' and they stop, and then 'Green light!' and they start walking or running again. I know it sounds simple, but this saved me countless times when my kids were toddlers and would run off in a public place. Screaming 'Red light' and letting them think it was a game made them stop in their tracks long enough to give me half a chance of grabbing them. It's a good trick!"
Honestly, I'm not even a parent, but I might have to try this next time my friends get a little too rowdy walking home from the bar...
13.Recently, people online have been warning about the unfortunate dangers of eating leftover rice (aka fried rice syndrome). Welp, Krista Torres interviewed someone who experienced this firsthand, and she shared a truly harrowing story. Dr. Lauren DeDecker is a resident physician in internal medicine who got so ill from rice she had to be transported to a hospital via helicopter (!!!) and now a new fear has been unlocked.
To stay on the safe side, Dr. DeDecker recommends putting cooked rice away within an hour or two of preparing it. Also, never reheat rice more than once.
Dr. DeDecker said that reheating rice multiple times can contribute to the growth of B. Cereus, the bacteria that's often found in rice that can make you sick. The more time food spends outside of refrigeration, the more time B. Cereus has to grow. "Bacteria is ubiquitous in the environment, it's not rare, but it's not going to be in all rice and green products. You're not going to know if it is in the rice or not because it's microscopic. And this goes for white, fried rice, any rice," she explained.
14.Last but not least, Dannica Ramirez dug into the reason why many Gen Z'ers leave their phones on Do Not Disturb 24/7, and it's one habit I've since picked up from the youths. It all started with a viral tweet that read, "TIL that some Gen Z kids keep their cell phones on Do Not Disturb 24/7, so they never have to face the anxiety of answering the phone."
The tweet stirred up a ton of conversation, and some people shared that keeping their phone notifications off helps relieve the anxiety of being constantly plugged into the internet. I totally agree — staying on DND is kinda like microdosing life before smartphones, and I miss that world sometimes.
Dannica did a poll, and 43% of people selected, "I'm a millennial, and I only turn on 'DND' when I have to," while 20% chose, "I'm a millennial, and having my phone on 'Do Not Disturb' gives me peace."
It might not seem so significant, but I think it's always worthwhile to have discussions about what place technology should really hold in our lives and whether it's worth it to be always on.
And don't forget to check out what we learned last month for even more good stuff. See you next time!
