Old Habits Die Hard

As a kid, my parents - my Mum, mostly - would tell me things. You know, typical parent stuff like, "if you keep crossing your eyes they're going to stay like that," and, "one day you'll run out of breath so you'd better stop talking." Most of it I never really believed and realized it was just a bunch of nonsense but some I actually believed and have kept with me until recently. Seriously.

I'm 29 years old for goodness sake and only this summer have I really began to think critically about some of the ridiculous things my Mum told me when I was a kid. For example, she insisted to me that I only use conditioner on the ends of my hair because otherwise, the roots would never be clean and my hair would be perpetually greasy. I only ever used conditioner on the ends of my hair until we had some family photos taken a couple of weeks ago. In preparation for the photos I decided to take a risk and condition all my hair *gasp* since it would need the extra moisture from blowdrying anyway. Amazingly, my hair looks healthy and shiny and isn't at all greasy.

The other thing she always told me was about my bras. I have a relatively large chest; even bigger when I'm breastfeeding or pregnant. So does she. She insisted to me that I wear bras that have absolutely no padding in them so as not to make my chest size any larger than it already was. I've been frustrated my whole life with sagging boobs and bras that don't fit quite right. My epiphany moment was while talking to a friend who also has big breasts. She told me that bras without padding are the worst for her because she just stretches them out within a dozen uses. The padded ones hold their shape much better and offer her far more support without creating a uni-boob. My Mum would just die knowing I wear padded bras... well, I will when the boob juice stops flowing.

Another strange myth that sticks in my mind is about makeup. I don't wear makeup but not because I never wanted to. When I was a teen I suffered from acne - like any teen - and went on birth control pills to help control it. At the time my doctor advised me to not use foundation or powder because it could clog my pores and cause irritation. My Mum convinced me that makeup of any kind would damage my skin. Eyeliner, mascara, blush; anything expect for oil-free moisturizer and suncreen had to be completely avoided. I believed her and so, never learned to use any of that stuff. Now I'm closing in on 30 and not only is the cosmetic aisle at the pharmacy overwhelming, I've never even worn foundation a single day in my life. Well, maybe that's a lie. I wore it for my wedding but that was thanks to my mother-in-law who did it for me. I'm positive my face will not break out into wild, angry zits the moment I put on any form of makeup.

There's so many other wierd things my Mum told me would happen that only now I am realizing were literally 'old wives' tales'. She was a country gal and maybe she learned all these things from her Mum. Wherever they came from, I can't believe I have 3 kids of my own and am only starting to think critically about these wild ideas.