Have A Good Old Moan....

That sounds similar to one that I do Janine, mine was actually an exercise from voice lessons when I was studying drama but I find as you say the light maths helps occupy my mind and the breathing calms me. With mine I breathe out for 6, hold empty lungs for 6, in for 6, hold full lungs for 6 then the same for 7, 8 and 9, then 8, 7 and 6 again. Other than that I just try to plan something boring, like a shopping list or a detailed method of making something and eventually I drop off (sometimes!)

I can't do that, I've got way too much of a scatterbrain and just start thinking about anything and everything. Especially things like that time I was in an exam with severe period pains and ended up puking all over the girl in front of me with projectile vomit! I can laugh about it now, but in the dark of the night things like that just pop up when I least expect it and I fester over it. Getting up is the only thing I can do if breathing doesn't work.

Hahahah oh my goodness! I can imagine that one popping up in one of those middle of the night judas sessions brains like to pull on us! Mine like to bring up the time I peed myself in infant school and it filled up my welly-boots.

Ugh, I'm so sorry, that sounds awful!

If I were you, I'd get in touch with the environmental health department, possibly your local council and the landlords association for advice. I'm pretty sure that the situation is dangerous enough for a serious complaint as it's the kitchen.

This might also help http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/going_to_court/how_to_complain

Good news, they've half finished it! The floor is now flat but we're still without an actual floor surface (like the linoleum we had before).

Bad news, my bathroom floor also has to be done but it'll take 4 days and they need to rip out the toilet and bath.
Also, I'm exhausted. Working 9 days in a row is kicking my butt.

Great news about your kitchen floor Exoskeletal! Glad you got it sorted! Sorry to hear your bathroom has the same problem though

So my brother in law proposed to his girlfriend of 4 years! yay! your saying that's not a moan, but wait.... so my future sister in law decided to pick her bridesmaids and she picked me to be in it, well that's all great but what she said after wards was not so great. She informed me that they will be choosing the dress from some ritzy shop in NYC, which is all well and good but that they don't do plus sizes, so I need to lose weight in order to be in the wedding. Which ok I will admit im not tiny by any means but I think its a little ridiculous to ask someone to drop weight just to be in a wedding, but it didn't stop there, she also asked that I grow my hair out because she wants all the girls to match. So along with losing about 40 pounds, she also wants me to grow out my hair and since even with my fast growing hair I will be no where near the length she is asking, she also wants to get extensions put in my hair!! Mind you she has been engaged for less than a month and is already making all these demands! talk about bridezilla! Anyway because I hate confrontation and I just got married a few months ago myself, I understand the crazy monster that comes out in all brides and I am going to try and do as she asked, it just stinks!

I'd be flat out telling her where to go! I'm normally quite tactful unless I'm riled up and that would totally rile me up. I think most people would know better than to ask that of me though.

Really though, that's beyond unreasonable and incredibly rude, IMHO. She's basically dictating your life for the next, how ever many months it is. Your diet and growing your hair out from a style I know you like. That's just not on.

Looking back on it I wish I had said something, I think I was just dumbfounded that she said that I was in a state of shock, but I may go back to her and say something or just politely withdraw from being in the wedding, I'm not sure yet, I think either way she won't be happy with me.

I'd withdraw personally. I wouldn't even want to get involved with someone being THAT controlling. Like you say, she'll probably never be happy and you'll be miserable growing your hair out when you don't want to! I wouldn't be surprised if she ends up being one of those brides that ends up falling out with all her best friends!

Obviously it's up to you lol

Put your foot down. Tell her she either has you in the wedding just as you are, (which will mean choosing dresses from a shop that caters for your size, or having your dress made)or you can't be in her wedding party.
If she wants the bridesmaids hair the same, the long haired Bridesmaids can wear their hair up.
You are not a prop, or a model hired to make her wedding pics look good, you are a person. No-one has the right to dictate how you should look.

That's ridiculous and you are well within your rights to refuse! What if she asked all the long haired girls to get pixie cuts - I'm sure that wouldn't go down well and frankly I think asking you to grow yours out is just as cheeky a request! The dress size thing is naughty too, she should be making provisions for you to have something in your size! I had something similar when I was a bridesmaid for a girl I no longer speak to and she ordered me to  get a spray tan and acrylic nails (neither of which I went through with!), asked her sister to half hide behind another bridesmaid so her tattoos wouldn't be seen and bought my two-piece dress with the skirt in a size 12 (my size at the time) and the top in a size 16 then didn't release it to me until it was too late to have it altered! Seems like the title of bride really brings out the worst in some people!

I was a bridesmaid for a girl I no longer speak to

lol that speaks volumes!

Thank you everyone, that kind of gave me the kick in the butt I needed. I figured to be fair I would ask my wife since its her brother actually getting married and she told me the same thing, that I should just withdraw. So I sent her a very nice email explaining that it would be too much pressure to both grow my hair out and loose the weight before the wedding but that I wish her the best with future planning. I didn't want to create too many waves because my mother in laws 60th is coming up in a couple weeks and I don't want to be fighting with her about this issue then.

Hahah Janine - exactly right? I had a big cull of toxic people from my life a little while back and she was one of the first to go!

Good work Emmer, I think you have done the right thing 🙂

I must have slept weirdly the other night and I woke up with a stiff and painful neck. It's day 3 now and though the pain is a bit better, movement feels more restricted and it's affecting me more. Maybe it's just the pain getting to me a bit now when I thought it was going to be a day long thing? I don't know.

Not the worst thing in the world, but it's getting me down a bit today!