Hellooooooooo! How are you doing? I know its been a moment since i’ve been here. Yes i know and i’m sorry.

I’ve been away in Nigeria F.C.T. for a month for my brothers wedding, yes, and eating lots of Nigerian food. Not just that, i got to meet my god-daughter as well and we bonded.

I visited the crazy Lagos, lots of traffic i must say. It wasn’t fun at all and it was frustrating. But i had fun with friends and we got to see live band as well.

Then back in England i experienced the heat wave. I said oh my God! Someone’s busy pissing the planet off because i almost ran away from myself. I drank a lot of water and had migraine but nothing worked. But Hallelujah, it’s normal now.

How’s your summer treating you so far?

I’m taking mine easy and going to work. I’m off to Italy tomorrow and expect some stories from me.

Please share how your summer is going, i will like to know.

i’m glad to be back and see you here soon.

x

Bose

I feel like i’m a better person now that the weather is not so cold and not so mean to me. Trust me, i’m miserable and when it’s very cold.

Spring is a time of rebirth and growth. It’s a season of reawakening of all the flowers from its long winter’s slumber. I’ve imagined spring and it’s what i’ve dreamt of

As i drive down my street, i have this feeling of awakening seeing series of flowers and lots of different colours. I’m yet to take a walk because i know taking a walk will be a whole different feeling and i can’t wait to experience it.

Spring is nature’s way of saying let’s party – Robin Williams

I’ve spent time rearranging my wardrobe as well moving all the heavy coats and the thickest knitwear backwards and moving the cardigans, blazers including the colourful cloths forward.

It’s also amusing how everything seems to be adjusting with the weather as well. The restaurants now some salad on their menus and funky colourful drinks

Some restaurants now have seatings outside and some high streets have had street food a few times in my neighbourhood

Let’s not forget colourful fashion from all the high street shops, mini’s and crop tops.. lol

There’s also Easter with an unbelievable amount of of bunny chocolates, easter eggs.

There are birds in my back garden that i’ve not seen in a while coming to eat bird seeds.

The nights are not so cold and the day light are longer

I hope you’re enjoying spring as i am. I plan on perfecting my bike riding and swimming.

I will do some travelling as well but not so sure where at the moment. I will be blogging about my trips and share some pictures with you.

Well, have a lovely day and enjoy the coolness

With love,

Bose.

Part 1

Living with an OCD can be very interesting and challenging. It is important to know that while living with an OCD and making sure you don’t encroach their space, you should also take care of your mental health because it’s very important. And remember, being an OCD it’s not deliberate, it a mental condition.

I’m not an expert but i have my own share of living with an OCD and i’m learning everyday on how to navigate this area.

So what is OCD?

According to the Nhs, OCD is a mental health condition where a person has obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviour. OCD can be distressing and interfere with your life.

Now, what are the ways to strengthen or manage relationship between people with OCD?

1 – Recognise warning signals – it is important not to dismiss OCD behaviour or change in behaviour because it’s who they are. There are days they are up and there are days they are down. Sometimes i wonder if they get exhausted from being an OCD.

One of the most frustrating thing for me is irritability and indecisiveness. I can’t find the right words to explain this but gosh! because this kills me. In such situation, try to and be a little understanding and remember it’s not you, it’s them and my advice is for you to step aside and don’t get caught in their back and forth. You can step aside or go grab a drink till when they come around because you can’t help.

2 – Try to be organised – lol! i’m laughing at myself because i’m organised in a messy way and that’s just me. But it’s a shame you can’t be you are sometimes because of a loved one and because they’re being themselves and they cant help it.

Well, being organised helps them to relax and it helps you too because you have a less tensed environment. It helps them have a clear mind and prevents you from being in one of their restlessness too. Just do your best and be organised

3 – Manage your day to day expectation – Managing your expectation is another way that’ll prevent you from loosing your mind. Don’t expect them to be X or Y in certain situation because if they don’t then you’re disappointed in them. All you have to do is to be open and let them come to you and then you listen.

You can ask them if there’s anything you can do at that moment. This also makes them feel calmer and relaxed

4 – Keep the communication simple – A non clear communication can confuse the hell out of an OCD. It just frustrates them. Go straight to the point and keep it simple

I hope this few tips has helped and i will be back next week for the other part of it as i try not to make my blog long.

Thank you for reading, see you next week and please subscribe.

Love,

Bose

When i hear living in the moment before, i dint really know what it means. I felt like it’s another sort of trendy statement from the kids. But with time, when i started having personal struggles and looking for a way to solve them i then/now understand what living in the moment means and it’s importance.

I have been struggling mentally lately, it’s been there, but i dint really pay attention to it because i’m too cool or too fun to feel like this.. i thought. Then it started hitting me harder and harder that i break down and cry often. I cry myself to sleep and continue when i wake up.. then i realised, i’ve been depressed.

On this post, i’m going to share how i’ve been dealing with it and managing it.

1 – LIVE IN THE MOMENT

I know it’s difficult to live in the moment when you’ve spend your whole life planning for the future and dreaming. And now i have to live in the moment? what in the hell is that? We worry about bills, health, party, holiday, the world e.t.c. trust me, i understand. So i stopped worrying about a lot of stuff and started living 1 hour at a time because 1 day at a time has even been too much for me to handle and i stopped dealing with What i have no business with because i’ve been too fragile for so long

2 – CONTROL YOUR MIND

I have taken control of my wandering mind and started call out my own BS. For example, i do get dark thoughts, and when my mind goes there i say to myself loudly, nope! we ain’t doing that today, not today satan. I try to handle this by listening to happy music , get busy or exercise

3 – EXERCISE

I have been experiencing a pounding heart, strange way of breathing and a racing mind. It never stops. It’s like a marathon inside. So i do brisk walks everyday, at least 10 mins. We’re now in an era where most of us now work from home, a little bit of walking is like a refresher or a breath of fresh air. This can help renew the mind. Dancing is happiness and brings smile to my face. Yoga and meditation is another fantastic way. Don’t take to down dog for granted, it works like magic and at the end of it, meditate. Anytime i meditate i’m a new person and i have a better day. Going to the gym too is another way. Use the machines, lift those irons, box.. yea, punch the hell out of those bags.. and you will feel good and sweat

4 – TALK TO SOMEONE

Talking is a great way to deal with such situation. Thank God for my friends and i will never stop praying for them. They checked on me everyday, they brought me food, they plan a group call and remind me of how much of a good person i am and how i’ve helped them in so many way and how they need me. And sometimes, they crack joke and i laugh as i’m crying… lol and it’s helped me.

5 – EAT HEALTHY

Paying attention and being intentional with my belle has been another way for taking care of myself. I has been like an adventure and i take it seriously. What you eat can affect your mood sometimes. I go the the shops and i get vegetables, fish, grains which i’m not really a fan of but hey, this is good for my soul. I reduced my carbs because i’m a rice addict and eat more beans. Eating well and drinking lots of water makes me happy and improves my mood

6 – GET ENOUGH REST

This has been tough because i take what ever rubbish i have in my mind to But i’ve vowed that i deserve my sleep because ‘i read that sleep reduces your stress, it makes you more alert, it improves your memory‘ , and i want to be a better better person. On top of that, my friends said i’m amazing and they need me lol…. and the best of all, I’m God’s favourite. Yea i know.. lol.

What happens is, i wake up 3:33am all the time. It’s like a curse and the naughty thing is i pick my phone which will help me not go back to sleep so i live it downstairs. When i wake up and no phone, i stare into emptiness and avoid thinking of any plans and sort of meditate. It helps relaxes my mind and boom a girl is gone. I do this over and over and my body now knows it has to sleep. So all those forgetfulness, sluggish mind and not being alert is improve. So do this and thank me later

7 – STAY OFF SOCIAL MEDIA

When feeling like crap the last thing you want to do is being on social media. Because sometimes, there’s no good news there which even makes your mood worse. It can trigger more sadness or remind you of your problem.

All i’m saying is when the mind is fragile the last thing you should do is stay off social media. Live in the moment come to reality, reconnect with friends, laugh, hug and eat.

This has helped me and i’ve been in a better place lately. I hope this helps you if you ever find yourself in such situation.

thank you for reading and till next time..

Bose

I have been super stressed lately and tensed. Not just that, i’ve also been forgetful and not finishing stuff which worsens it as well. In addition to this, tiredness is another thing and can’t i stop eating. Mind you, i know i’ve been feeling this way and need to do something about it but i wont just do it. Not deliberately, i wasn’t just doing anything about it.

So, this morning while i was doing some cleaning in the bathroom, i got a notification on my phone that a friend had just uploaded a video, then i decided to listen with my ear pods. In a nutshell, the video reminded me of what need to be done…, pause.

Sometimes, we just need to pause, take a minute to look back at what we’ve done and appreciate it or take inventory of what we’re doing or we’ve done

I realised i’ve been cluttered to the point that i dint even know what needed to be done to help me feel better. I’ve been emotionally/physically cluttered. I’ve not stopped to look after my mental health neither have i stopped to celebrate me. So i decided to declutter.

So what did i do? I decided to take some steps and i kid you not, its helped a great deal and i decided to share.

1 – I Decluttered physically – This first step was so liberating. I decluttered my wardrobe and got rid of all the rubbish that have been sitting there occupying space and not even giving room for new useful stuff. I realised that this has been stressing my brain that it needed to be done but i was too clouded to listen

2 – DELETE APPS YOU CONSUME SO MUCH – This is huge. I mean as soon as i deleted my instagram app, i smiled literally. I really really smiled. Felt like i paid off a debt i’ve been owing which has been stressing me. I’ve clogged up my mental space with social media. I mean, it’s a way i’m on top of what is going on back home (Nigeria), and maybe sometimes jokes e.t.c. but you can only take in so much

3 – CONTROL WHAT YOU TAKE IN – Too much of everything is bad they say. Too much of information can occupy space in your head just like my wardrobe with things not needed and taking up space. Delete apps you don’t need, unsubscribe from newsletters and blogs when becoming overwhelmed. Set a limit on the time you spend on apps and choose what is important and what is not.

4 – WRITE IT DOWN – After this, i decided to write down all the things i’ve been meaning to do and want to do to give a sense of organisation and orderliness. This helps to control messiness in the brain. I also wrote down how i’ve been feeling which also helped how i felt

5 – I DECIDED TO STOP MULTITASKING – This sometimes is the king of all mess, stress and confusion. I’ve decided not to do more than one thing at a time because its sane. Doing something one after the other is efficient, you do a quality job. Like my dad would say, step by step, one after the other

6 – BE INTENTIONAL – Being intentional means everything you do is done with a clear purpose. When you become intentional you’re clear about what you want to do and what you’re after. You set goals and target and do things that brings you joy

EXERCISE – This is my favourite. Yoga brings me peace and clarity. It gives me assurance and prepares me for the day. Exercise helps to improve mood, it boosts energy and promotes better sleep. It can also be fun as well. We’ve only got one body and its only fair we look after our mind and body. I do hope tips will help you look after yourself better and choose you first.

Till next time…

Bose

As we’ve rounded up 2021, i’m taking into account what i’ve done in 2021 and honestly i’m not so sure apart from eating a lot.. lol, just kidding. I was able to be consistent with my youtube channel even if i’ve not hit 1k subscribers yet. It’s one thing i’ve almost being consistent with in my life and i’m super super proud of my self. Also i’ve rather disciplined in2021 and all i can say is, it only goes up from here.

In addition, i’ve achieved some personal growth in my life that has made me ask myself why haven’t i being able to achieve this all these while.

So i’ve taken time to look back and take account of what i’ve been up to in 2021 and what i intend doing in 2022. And these are the things i did

1 – I’VE BEEN ABLE TO SAY NO! – Oh yes. I’m a people pleaser and i want to make everyone happy. But i’ve realised i’m not ice cream (even ice cream don’t make everyone happy as some people are not lactose friendly). I’ve come to like me more and choose me first because even when you go so far for people, sometimes they don’t appreciate it. So my NO IS NO if i don’t want to

2 – I FELL IN LOVE – ahhh! i fell in love with myself. i never knew about myself neglect until i started envying (in a good way) others on how they glow. Then i realised it’s self love. I haven’t been paying so much attention to myself like i pay others. So i took time and got to know me, took myself out, dated myself and started spoiling the hell out of myself. I did facials which i’ve never done, got myself a good camera that i deserved, yoga and started eating more veggies and lots of water. Boy do i feel good..

3 – I’VE COME TO ENJOY RELAXING MORE – I was on holiday twice this year, i went to Faro and Lanzerote and i was really surprised i enjoyed it. I’m not the type that go on holiday and spent half of the time lying down. But this time i did and I was asking myself, where is the real me, who broke me? HELP! I’M RELAXING! But i acknowledged the growth and appreciated it because it felt good. I spent the whole time, reading, lying and meditating . I felt renewed

4 – I DID SOME RECORDING IN STUDIO – In case you don’t know, i sing too. And in 2021 i did some studio recording which i’m really excited about and cant wait to release single after single and then release videos. Which i’m excited about because it’s a plus. Here’s a link to check out my site bosejohnson.com and please subscribe

5 – I SIGNED UP FOR SWIMMING CLASS – This is a huge drum roll for me. I’ve always been putting swimming on the side or never took it serious. The fact that i’ve struggled with it also in the winter shows i’m serious. Trust me its a struggle for me sometimes but when i find it hard i chant value over emotion over and over.. lol. trust me it works. You should try it when you’re finding it hard to do something that is very important to you.

6 – I WROTE PLANS/GOALS DOWN – this really helped me. To me, writing things down works. It’s like making a covenant with yourself and the universe and almost everything i write down i achieve. In addition, you never forget and it sometimes pressures you to be on your toes. I hope these few words has inspired you to love yourself, go easy on yourself and choose you first.

I will do my best to blog often and i thank you for reading and subscribing.

Till next time,

Bose

This question came after i asked my friend to help me sort my blogspot out.

I’ve been setting up my blog for a while and not sure what was wrong. Also i dint realise that i’ve actually done all the work. I wouldn’t even ask my husband for help because i was bent on doing it myself. So i left it for a while but it was on my mind. Then i asked my friend, Angel and with 5 minutes it was sorted. All i had to do was to make it public and delete a few things and i was so grateful.

So why is it hard to ask for help sometimes?

One of the reason is embarrassment. Fear of been seen as not so smart after all, (which is stupid), fear of being turned down or laughed at.

Can i just say we reject ourselves before someone else rejects us? Because it seems we feel asking for help belittles or makes us smaller. Also in these time of the ‘i did it alone crase, self made, instant gratification, it seems asking for help makes us feel small.

Have we forgotten we’re better together? We’re social animals and we’re a pride of lion, we need each other. Asking for help is one of the biggest yet most simple thing to do

SO HOW DO WE ASK FOR HELP?

1. Don’t say no to yourself before someone say’s yes to you – we all deserve support, yes. But what is the worse that can happen? No? so what!!! Be positive before you ask for help and if no is the answer, tomorrow is another day. We move!

2. Be straight forward – don’t cook up story like i would do when i was younger. I will try to paint to scene, oh dear lord! A scene that by the time i’ve finished the story the most simple thing will become the most complicated thing on earth. Make is simple, make it clear, just go for it or like Nike, Just do it.

3. Don’t apologise – When i was younger, asking for help felt like rocket science. In the middle of my request, i’ll bombard the person with a lot of sorry’s. Like, hello Angel, i’m sorry to ask for this. I wouldn’t have asked but sorry to bother you.. lol. Now looking back, it felt like i wasn’t worthy of help.

All i’m trying to say is go for it, shoot your shot.

4 . Don’t make it transactional – When genuinely asking for help don’t make it transactional i.e. reciprocity. This has happened to me. A friend of mine was stuck in a funny situation and wanted my help of which i was going to help. But in the middle of the help, he started throwing in that he owes me, he was going to return the favour. I was put off because he’s a genuinely good guy and always came through for me and there was no need trying to expect me to help him because i expected him to reciprocate in future.. if so, then the help wasn’t genuine.

5. Give feedback – People loooove feedback. I do. It’s another way of saying i appreciate the help you gave me or see what your help did. It’s also a gratitude thing as well, as people love to hear thank you

I hope i have inspired you to accept that it’s ok to ask for help and some people wont mind to give a lending hand. And if No is the answer, tomorrow is another day.

I hope these tips will reassure you that there are good people out there that will help you when they can and don’t be shy to ask for help as we all need each other.

Till next time,

Bose

I remember as a kid (at some point) living with my gran -ma, i was always excited about Christmas. I think it was also because our neighbours/friends were always excited about it. We could feel the tension as parents talk and panic about Christmas presents for the kids and they talk about how the price of things rise in Nigeria during the festive period which is different here in England.

In England things sometimes are discounted and its a perfect time for shops to get rid of some stock.

Well, back home, kids would whisper to each other, talking about the presents they got from their parents (even if they’ve been warned to keep it a secret till Xmas day) which is usually cloths and i kid you not, it’s what we always look forward to.

But as i grew older something changed about Christmas. It gradually started becoming less exciting and I always cant wait for it to be over.

One of the reason is, i lost my grandma. She was our everything who made everything magical and beautiful, and i became a working child (story for another day).

Well, i grew up and moved, my younger ones moved to other part of the world and Christmas has never been the same. Although i’ve made Christmas my own way and i appreciate it but i always cant wait for the madness, tension and rush to be over.

Also one thing i must tell you about Christmas in England is, its so beautiful. Its crazy how people go all out for decoration

The dedication, time and effort being put into decoration is crazy. Sometimes we drive round to see crazy decoration. Also as Nigerian i would say ‘the Nepa bill oh’, lol! meaning, electricity bill.

I’ve learnt one thing lately, to always cherish the past but make my future beautiful. I am learning to love and celebrate my own way in the simplest way, also give love.. i.e. send cards, text messages, gift, make calls e.t.c. I’ve felt the love given back to me as i received messages saying thanks for the card. it felt good and felt like a bear hug.

Remember this, Memories sometimes make us who we are. Enjoy the little things because one day you’ll realise those little things were big things.

Thank you for reading and this is my first blog post..

Bose