Writing exercises can be a great way for the fierce, creative woman that needs to get her emotions out on paper.  As featured on the “Your Period Questions and Pains Solved…Naturally” section of our website, Writing in Red is an all-natural way to relieve ourselves of the stress and frustration associated with our periods.  You can write out your anger, and you can write personal anecdotes about your period past, but these are all very personal and can sometimes be difficult to write.

I’ve always been the kind of girl that keeps a diary, updates it constantly, and works out most of my problems on those personal pieces of paper.  Yet, in times of intense emotional struggle and personal obstacles, I sometimes dabble in writing fictional stories to help me cope.  It really helps me when I can release my emotions in a way that boosts my mood and allows my imagination to fully mesh with my mood in a freer and more fun way.  It really is the best outlet for me, as a fierce woman, to find my center.

Here are a few exercises I learned as outlets:

1)      Stream of Consciousness Sprint:  Sit down at your desk in front of two pieces of paper.  Stare at your clock until the second hand reaches the 12.  In that time (less than a minute) think of a beginning to the first sentence of your fictional story.  Then  write nonstop, as fast as you can, until you fill up both pages.  It should take about 20 minutes, and it shouldn’t make sense.  Just pour your imagination onto the two pages.   You can increase the amount of pages you write every time you perform this exercise.

2)      From the Starter’s Block:  Sometimes, the hardest part of writing is the start.  It’s writer’s block before you even get out of the gate!  It’s awful.  The best way around this it provide yourself a starting block.  You can either pull sentences from your favorite book, or the first sentences of some of history’s most renowned tales, or you can just use some of these.  Try and work your way into a story starting with these sentences: A) When Amy came home, she found that things were a bit off… B) You can’t always see what’s coming next, but Meredith was special.  She could… C)  I can’t seem to find my way out; the doors were locked; there were no windows; I could only shout at the top of my lungs.  That’s when I found…

3)      Wordplay.  Sometimes, picking a subject to write about can be a bit impossible.  Why write about a sibling rivalry when you’ve always wanted to write a great romance?  Well, why not choose six words that you must use in the one story.  These will help guide you in finding a subject you must write about.  Allot yourself a certain amount of time, say an hour, and write a story that incorporates five words or sayings.   For example, use the five words, Crash, jumping-jacks, Mount Rushmore, Don’t have a cow, and crevasse.  Or, choose your own five words, and incorporate those into your story.  It’s a difficult method of writing, but it will guide you into a great story.

4)      Dialogue Theft.  This one is a bit tougher than the others, but it is actually the most fun.  Go out, and buy yourself a nice cup of coffee.  Sit there for a while.  Now, this is where it gets a bit weird.  Listen to the people having a conversation next to you.  Write down word for word, or as close as you can get, the dialogue that the adjacent party is having.  It will look funny in writing.  But, this is how real dialogue looks.  You can embellish, and you can exaggerate their story.   It’s actually a ton of fun trying to guess at what lives these anonymous people lead outside of the cafe, and it will get your creative juices flowing.

5)      The POV shift.   Here’s a test of true creativity.  Try writing from a point of view that is completely out of your element.  Try writing from the point of view of the person that has really been grinding your gears lately.  Write from the point of view of a guy, or a member of your family that you haven’t spoken with in ages, or of the girl with the ‘tude behind the counter at Anthropologie.  This activity really does give you a better perspective of the world you live in, and it will help you understand what other people are going through, which sometimes will ease or even erase your frustration with them.

So, write!  Write whatever you want, and have a blast doing it.  Getting it out on paper will help you not take it out on the people you love in your life.  Writing is a great creative and emotional outlet, and it’s really fun!  It’s good for the mind and spirit.  Enjoy these exercises, and let us know if you have some of your own that you’d like to share.

The American Public Health Association ran a test that attempted to prove the best strategy of warning people of the impacts of one soda.  These researchers compared responses of people to three signs cautioning against drinking soda.  One said that each soda has 250 calories.   Another said that each soda accounts for 11% of their daily caloric diet.  And, the last one said that each soda requires 50 minutes of running to burn it off.

Which one decreased sales the most?  Which one decreased soda sales by 50%?  The running one…  It’s obvious.  Why drink one sugary drink just to worry about running for 50 minutes later?  Why not drink something else?!  It’s the obvious solution!  So, if soda requires 50 minutes of running to burn off those calories, imagine burning off some of these top 20 worst drinks in America.

How about avoid soda altogether?  Now that you know how much work you’d have to do to burn off those calories, why don’t we try to find some alternatives to those sugary drinks…

Well, water is an obvious choice…  You stay hydrated; you stay awake; you feel good.  But, water doesn’t always satisfy the taste buds. Here are some great, tasty options for healthy drinks

1)      Green tea

2)      Cranberry Juice

3)      Even organic coffee is better than these sugary drinks

4)      Try making a homemade fruit smoothie!  Yum!

5)      Here are a few amazing drink recipes from DR. OZ!  They are supreme!

6)      Try Shape magazine’s recipes for some delicious healthy drinks.

Drink up, and enjoy!  Now, you can do your running and burn the calories of your daily life instead of having to burn off that extra can of soda.  Just avoid it!  Drink something else!

Does a bad mood prevent you from having a fun night out with your girls?  Does your period stop you from being the best person you can be?  Does bad weather stop you from your exercise routine?  The answers to all these questions should be a resounding, NO!

When the wind chill picks up, and the temperature drops, it is easy to call off your run and stay indoors.  It’s easy to curl up under your blanket and watch some TV instead of taking a nice long bike ride.  It’s NO EXCUSE!  Get outside, and get your exercise.   But, be safe about it.

If you have heart problems or other ailments, check with your doctor about the appropriate methods of exercising during these frigid winters.  But, in general, here are a few tips to help you stay warm and stay fit even when the conditions outside are frightful.

Dress in layers.  It might seem like a great idea just to throw on every sweatshirt and jacket you own to make your run more comfortable, and you should, but you really should be dressing in layers.  That way, when you get hot from exercise, you can peel away the outter layers.  This keeps you at a homeostatic temperature that keeps you healthy and comfortable.  Protect your face, feet, hands, and ears.  When your skin interacts with the cold air, it is vulnerable to frostbite at worst and discomfort at best.  So, cover up with a face mask, gloves, and thermal socks.  Pay attention to conditions.  If your normal route is covered in ice, think about going a different way, or wearing shoes with better traction.  Keep an eye out for black ice, and dress appropriately to counter the wind chill.  Be sure to eat right.  Prepare your metabolism for a run in the cold.  Bring energy bars or bananas for the run, but also eat plenty of carbs about two hours prior to your heavy workout.

Also, if there is an indoor gym/swimming pool in your area, sign up for a winter trial.  Get on those treadmills, and lift those weights.  If you don’t want to spend the money on a membership, set up a little exercise arena in your own home.  It’s easy – all you need is motivation!  But, don’t overdo it.  Keep safe, and keep healthy.

Stay fit even in the cold.  Don’t let the weather freeze you out of your normal exercise routine!

“Because we refuse to marginalize women in society in all roles that comply with sharia [Islamic law], we have decided … to involve women in the Shura Council as members, starting from the next term,” King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia said in a five-minute speech to his advisors.

He added: “Women will be able to run as candidates” in the 2015 municipal election “and will even have a right to vote.”

-          LA TIMES

Things are changing in the ultra-conservative nation of Saudi Arabia, and they’re changing for the better.  Women are standing up for their undeniable rights, and they are gaining the right to vote and run for public office.  Although this seems very late, remember that American women only fully gained the vote in 1920.

While discriminatory laws and mores still exist in Saudi Arabia (i.e. women are not allowed to drive, men are not allowed to work in lingerie stores, only 5% of women make up the workforce, etc.), many believe that this bold reform could open the door for broader, sweeping changes for all Saudi Arabian women’s rights.

It is a slow change, but at least it is happening.  It is only as late as 2009 that Saudi Arabia began regulating the a common practice of marrying off child brides, a tradition that is comparable to sex trade.  Although it is not formalized, at least there has been a backlash against these simple, yet politically-ignored civil rights abuses.

The women of Saudi Arabi have been fierce by our definition of a fierce woman!  They are fighting for these rights, and they are being very smart about it.  They are turning to social media to unveil these ongoing human rights abuses.  Twitter and Facebook accounts are helping women share their views on their world.  They really are creating a woman’s world in Saudia Arabia, slowly but surely.  How are you making your own woman’s world.  Let us know in the comments and look out for our upcoming fierce woman of the month!

During this time of year, most organizations take inventory of all the fascinating moments of the year. Radio stations recap top 100 songs, news networks run stories on the most influential people, and fashion magazines list top trends of the year. At Maxim Hygiene, we take the time to acknowledge our Fierce Women of the year!

The fierce woman philosophy is a large part of our brand’s identity. It revolves around the idea of empowering women and engaging them in bold conversations and actions. Our first ever featured fierce woman, Lisa Elifritz, was not only inspired by what we defined as a fierce woman, but also embodied the true essence of one when she took on the challenge of founding You ARE Loved in memory of her daughter Amy who passed away from Toxic Shock Syndrome.

In light of fierce women everywhere and as a testament of our continued commitment to women’s health, we’re ending the year with A Gift of Love that will help save lives by donating a percentage of Maxim Hygiene product sales to You ARE Loved.

We also want to thank YOU for all the love and support you have shown us throughout this absolutely fierce year. We invite you to continue to join us on the journey of empowering fierce women in 2012 by subscribing to our blog, being our friend on facebook and following us on twitter. Also email us at info@maximhy.com to suggest any women you’d like to see featured as our fierce woman of the months coming up in 2012!

Fierce and Fabulous Wishes for the New Year!

Love,

The Maxim Hygiene Family

What is your New Year’s resolution? Lose weight?! Workout?! Eat healthy?! Spend less?! New Years Resolutions can be daunting.  Sometimes, we put so much pressure on ourselves to be better people that we give up, and the goal gets thrown by the wayside on January 2^nd!  Our goal in this blog is to help you make a New Year’s Resolution that will stick so you can become the person you aspire to be.

What is it about these big goals that become such a burden?  Is it our will power?  Is it our laziness?  NO!  The problem is with the resolution itself.  Most often, the proposed goal is too broad.  If you can come up with a goal that is succinct but also direct, you will be more likely to stick to the deadline and follow through with your resolution.  For instance, instead of simply promising to work out, tell yourself that you will workout three times a week for 20 minutes each session, or something concrete along those lines.  Make sure your goal will fit into your life and that you can work hard to stick to it!

Also, write your resolution(s) down!  Writing your goals down in a very noticable place will keep you at it.  Seeing your written confirmation of that resolution will be a daily reminder of your good intentions and idea for change.  Place that written note prominently on your refrigerator if your goal is to eat less junk food.  Place it in your wallet if you’re trying to stick to a tighter budget.  Put it on your TV if you want to work out every time you get want to watch a rerun of Gossip Girl.

You can also tell yourself that everyday is like New Years.  Creating smaller resolutions for yourself as you also try to work on your year-long resolution will increase your motivation and help you succeed in both long-term and short-term goals.  If you’ve always wanted to write that novel you’ve had in your head, do it!  But, also make sure you accomplish all of your smaller goals as well.  By working hard at smaller, less time-consuming goals that are more readily achievable, you will actually be able to find success more often in your long-term goals.

If you’re having trouble thinking of your own new year’s resolution: here’s a list of USA.gov’s top ten list of popular New Year’s Resolutions, TOP TEN.  If you want some fun facts on the New Years, its history, how its celebrated around the world, and some celebrities that celebrate their birthday on Jan 1, check these fun facts. If you want the internet to generate your particular New Years  Initiative, check the Resolution Generator.

This year is your year!  Make it happen. Stick to your resolution by using Maxim Hygeine’s helpful hints to keeping track of your progress.  2012 is your year!  Enjoy it!  Tell us what your resolution is for 2012, and we’ll keep you posted on ours!

My personal goal is to spread the word about Maxim Hygiene as far and wide as I possibly can.  I think that saving the environment and being good to your body are the two best resolutions, both of which can be taken care of through buying organic and natural cotton feminine products.

Good luck with your new year’s resolution.  I know you can stick to it!

With love,

GQ xoxo

Sometimes, when you get a week off from work or school, you’re too exhausted or strapped on cash to make that big dream trip to Cabo or Puerto Rico that you’ve been dying to take.  We, at Maxim Hygiene, know the feeling well.  All you want to do is stay home, get some good R+R, pamper yourself to a bowl of popcorn and that rom-com you’ve been putting off because of your busy schedule, just a little time to pamper yourself by doing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.  We’ve all been there.  For all of you who are in the midst of your “stay-cation,” a vacation right in your own hometown, here are a few helpful hints to make your last few days all the more enjoyable.

1) Turn off all electornics.  It’s so easy to get bogged down in electronics nowadays.  Staying connected with friends, and staying up-to-date with online trends can easily take up an entire day.  The TV, the computer, and the phone cane be burdens when they start to run your life.  Even in the comfort of your own home, you can de-stress and unburden youreslf by getting the best out of your free time.  The best way to enjoy your enivronment is by shutting off your electronics for a while, and enjoying the real world.

2) Get in the vacation state of mind.  Notice the italics?  Even the word oozes relaxation in that font.  For those of us that work at home, or those of us that get stressed out by the little tasks at home, it’s difficult to stay at home but feel like vacation.  To get into this vibe, we recommend something we all know well, indulgence.  Splurge on some things that you might not normally buy.  Hire a cleaning service to clean your house for the week, or take a bath with those expensive bath salts you’ve been saving up for instead of a quick shower, or simply light a fire!  It’s easy to make those slight differences to your routine that will make your day at home a stay-cation instead of a wasted day.  Try and forget about chores and work for a little while.  And for the love of all that is feminine, DO NOT, do that thing that you’ve been putting off forever that you can get to.  You’ve been putting it off for a reason.  Leave it for later.  Enjoy your stay-cation by forgetting about it.

3) Plan all your meals for the exotic factor.  Steer clear of the normal pasta dishes you eat almost every week or the easy meals that get you through the year.  Order in from that Cuban place you’ve seen but never been, or even just get that personal pie from Dominos you loved as a kid.  Or, another and healthier alternative, is to plan the week’s list, and prepare your some new and interesting meals for yourself.  Make some Szechuan Tofu, or an intense Cobb Salad.  Try to liven up your palatte with some new, inexpensive meal templates.

4) If you’re feeling up to it, host a girls’ night in.  Get your best friends over for some baking and the fine pampering.   While the brownies are baking in the oven, pop in your all time favorite girly movies (mine is Dirty Dancing) and talk about your dreamy alternative to Patrick Swayze.

5) If you’ve been holding on to gift cards or your holiday bonus money, take yourself on a shopping adventure!  Go to that strip of top notch outlets, and find yourself the perfect bag.  If you are just going shopping for the essentials, like tampons for instance, buy only the best, organic and all natural cotton… Maxim Hygiene would be your best choice for the eco-friendly and health-conscious consumer we know you are.

From the Green Queen Headquarters, we wish you the best of all vacations, whether your staying home or not.

At only 17 years old, this month’s fierce woman, Brittany Kanovsky might not yet technically be a woman, but she sure presents herself as one when it comes to speaking about a topic that is near and dear to her heart and the highlight of “A Gift of Love,” Maxim Hygiene’s latest educational campaign – Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS).

Brittany is a TSS survivor with a miraculous story of triumph about how she fought the illness and how she so bravely shares her story. After three days of flu-like symptoms, rashes and changes in skin color, Brittanychecked in to a hospital where she fell in to multi-organ failure and was quickly diagnosed with TSS. She spent five weeks in recovery (10 days on life support and 3 weeks in critical care) and had to have surgery to remove all the black dead tissue on her toes, one of the many results of TSS. Brittany’s fierce spirit not only helped her beat the odds with TSS, but is the driving force behind her bold and brave effort to share her story with others and head in to her next phase of life as a college student.

I had the great pleasure of meeting Brittany at a taping of the television talk show The Doctors, where Brittany, along with her family and previously featured fierce woman Lisa Elifritz, were brought on as guests to speak about their experience with Toxic Shock Syndrome. Maxim Hygiene’s products were also scheduled to have their first nationally televised feature on the show as an example of a safer tampon option that is less likely to cause TSS. This claim is based on extensive research conducted by Dr. Philip M. Tierno who was also interviewed for the clip. What looks like cotton in some tampons is not always 100% cotton, rather a blend of synthetics, like rayon and viscose, materials that can not only cause TSS, but a slew of other health and environmental risk factors of concern to Maxim Hygiene, like irritation.

Unfortunately the products were cut from the episode due to time constraints, but the experience of supporting Lisa and meeting the Kanovsky family was invaluable. It contributed to the launch of our Gift of Love campaign, where a percentage of product sales through the end of the year will be donated to You ARE Loved, a non-profit committed to TSS Awareness and Menstruation Education.

Brittany’s calm, cool, collective and inspiring attitude shined through during her interview with the Doctors. We wanted to give you a more detailed look at this fierce woman with an interview of our own:

It’s about a year and half since your terrible experience with TSS. How’s your health now?

My health has been improving, I still have to be careful with my feet because they are still sensitive. I am not sure if I am allowed to have children when I am older but only time will tell.

Will you need to go undergo surgery again or are you a part of any recovery programs to deal with the aftermath of TSS?

The Plastic Surgeons have suggested that I could have another Surgery to have my nail beds replaced, but as of right now, I don’t think I am going to have that surgery.

How do you overcome the painful memories of your experience with TSS to share your stories with others?

To overcome the painful memories of my experience, I tell students and adults my story.

What were you thinking when The Doctors called to feature your story on their nationally televised show?

When the doctors called I was overly excited and I wanted to be on the show to make others aware of TSS as its getting out there more and more.

How have your friends been supportive of all that you’ve been going through?

My friends have been with me every step of the way, and I think that is one of the reasons I have been so successful. They push me to do bigger and better things. I really appreciate everything they have done for me being visiting me in the hospital like my best friend Bryce or to just making posters. I love each and every one of them.

Maxim Hygiene defines a Fierce Woman as “a glorious female creature whose idea of beauty is hinged upon the idea that she can change the world with each choice, each moment and each breath of her life.” Who in your life would you describe as a fierce woman and why?

In my point of view, I believe that one of my friends from school is my “fierce woman.” She is 17 years old with a 2 year old son. She has missed out on all school events, never been to one football game and she comes to school, always has a smile on her face and I really admire her. Even though she struggles, she is “fierce” and she is one of the strongest girls I know.

Green FH Queen E is super happy it's nice outside!

Welcome back from the holiday weekend! Not everyone celebrates Christmas or Chanukah, but most people get wrapped up (pun intended) in the spirit of the season anyway by joining others for their holiday parties or creating one of your own. At Maxim Hygiene, we celebrated the holidays last week on an abnormally warm December day with a stylish and healthy pizza party! We all wore some sort of holiday decor and feasted on delicious organic veggie pizza and salads from Skinny Pizza that all made us cheerful!

We of course had to take pictures and are happy to share them with you below! We invite you to share the joy of this season and all the fun you had at your holiday parties by posting up your holiday pics because we love to see the love and festivities from our friends and family (which includes you!). Also since this is the season to be giving we are giving the first three people to post their holiday picture on our Facebook page a Free Trial pack! Aren’t you excited!

Green King J eating his delicious salad from Skinny Pizza!

The weather is so nice out we all decided to partake in the sun (which is full of Vitamin D) and enjoy the holidays with the people we love the most!

Hey! It's Rebecca Alvandi! Super Green Queen and co/founder of Maxim Hygiene!

We had fun taking pictures with each other!

"Nom Nom Nom My pizza is so good" says Green King J

Hey it's Kenneth Alvandi! Founder of Maxim Hygiene! He loves veggies.

We were all festive and wore holiday ornaments to celebrate! We even got presents!! We all love presents!

I love presents!

So hurry and be the first of  three people to post holiday images to our Facebook wall to receive a free trial pack!!

Happy Holidays!

This is the time of year to GIVE and we’re not just talking about gift wrapped gifts; we’re thinking charitable donations and a gift of love!  As the old saying goes, “It is far better to give than to receive.”  During this holiday season, we challenge you to give to a cause rather than just  the store clerk. But, there are so many charities we’d love to give to, how can we choose the best place to donate?!

There are many worthy causes out there.  You’ve got UNICEF, TOYS FOR TOTS, GREEN PEACE,  DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS, the ASPCA, and many more.  We support donating widely, and we support all of these great charities and others, but there is one that is near and dear to our hearts and company philosophy.

It is a charity called, You ARE Loved, which is dedicated to raising awareness about tampon related Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) and increasing menstruation education.  Our commitment to You Are Loved has been growing since the charity began in May, 2011, and our support continues with our current campaign, A Gift of Love.  We are currently donating a portion of all sales to this fantastic charity so we can help this wonderful charity spread the word about TSS, which is a potentially fatal illness caused by a bacterial toxin. Read more here.

You ARE Loved, is dedicated to Amy Rae Elifritz who passed away from TSS at the young age of 20.   Amy is the daughter of You ARE Loved’s founder Lisa Elifritz (a former featured Maxim Hygiene fierce woman), and Amy’s initials are represented by the ARE in the charity’s title.

Our Gift of Love campaign was launched on October 16th, 2011 in honor of what what would have been Amy’s 22nd birthday and will continue to run through the rest of the year.  Join Maxim Hygiene in showing support for this worthy cause by purchasing Maxim Hygiene products, an organic and all natural cotton alternative that according to extensive research by Dr. Philip M. Tierno is less likely to cause TSS than the leading brand tampons.

Maxim Hygiene is all about feminine health, but we’re also all about supporting great causes, especially when they have to do with keeping you Soft, Safe and Natural!  You ARE Loved is our favorite place to give, and it would be fantastic to get as many people on board to donate as possible.  So next time you need to pick up your feminine hygiene products, think Maxim Hygiene, and help protect women from TSS!  Or, donate directly to You ARE Loved and help the world learn about a fatal disease that women can protect themselves from.