PR-manager Cosmotheca Victoria Arakelyan about running and favorite cosmetics
For category "Cosmetic" we study the contents of beauty cases, dressing tables and cosmetic bags of interesting characters to us - and we show all this to you.
About work and study
I am a couple of weeks twenty three years old, and I am an eternal student. After two years, I left the first university (Moscow State Pedagogical University, where I studied as an English teacher), then I studied for a journalist in Toronto for three years - and I began to feel sick, although I used to dream about this profession. Now I finish my studies at Canadian University in York with a degree in Professional Writing and for the first time I am infinitely happy to be in high school. Life in another country turned out to be a difficult test for me: I went through several depressive episodes, sobbed at the thought of distant Moscow and carried the birch bark from a dacha with me in a suitcase (seriously). Without the support of my husband, mother, beloved grandmother (and, of course, a good psychotherapist) I would not have coped, and I am extremely grateful for their care and faith in me.
Previously, I sometimes worked as an English language tutor - I, in principle, liked it very much, it was especially pleasant to see the progress of the students. I thought to connect my life with teaching, but this summer I started working at Cosmotheca and suddenly I felt that I was absolutely on my way. Now I have something in between a brand journalist, a PR and a SMM manager, and I’m really happy about work.
About acne and care
It seems to me that one of the main misconceptions in the field of beauty, care and health is the belief that external signs may indicate diseases or bad habits. For example, millions of tests and surveys have shown that I have no disturbances from either the hormonal system or the gastrointestinal tract, there are no allergies either: in my case, acne is a consequence of the structure of my skin, namely the amount and susceptibility of androgen receptors. Similar features also haunt other features of the exterior: circles under the eyes — certainly “diseased kidneys”, early wrinkles — terrible dehydration, and their completeness is inextricably linked with “poor” health. It's funny that this delusion works in the opposite direction: external manifestations of practices, which, on the contrary, can be dangerous, are assessed in society as something positive. What is only the phrase "healthy tan"!
Since my skin has turned into a "problem" almost in childhood, since the age of eleven I have had a full care regimen. Of course, in its original form, he was very far from the right: in bouts of despair and the desire to have a “normal” smooth face, like thin-skinned classmates, I clutched at homemade scrubs of coarse salt with lemon (hello to the beauty bloggers of zero) and hellish alcohol tonics, from which the eyes were on his forehead. But by the time I was fifteen, my care was no longer very different from the present: there were acids, and sun protection, and occasional moistening. The main principles that have been added by the age of twenty are: gentle cleansing (no “to squeak”), regular and thorough moisturizing, not just “struggle with flaws”, and a thorough understanding of the compositions. I'm not lazy to go into PubMed and read, for example, studies on the compatibility of niacinamide with vitamin C, if I'm interested in this question. There have always been experts who said that my skin looks like this precisely because I "smear all this" on myself. They have always been opposed by the camp of those who say that "those who have acne simply do not wash their face!" - apparently for balance.
About fragrances
Until the age of seventeen, I lived carelessly, occasionally receiving caramel-flower rectilinear aromas for birthdays. And then I once went to Lush to try The Voice of Reason perfume. I read somewhere that he was inspired by Burroughs, Kerouac and the beatniks, and at the age of seventeen I was all terribly interested. I remember how disappointed I was when I first met: the aroma seemed to me a fierce filth, giving sausages with barbecue. And then I was driving home and could not tear my nose from my wrist. When I arrived, I realized that I could not live without this bottle.
So a wonderful new world has opened up for me, where you can smell not only flowers and vanilla - you can make a bonfire, you can use iron and blood, but literally anything. That fragrance from Lush was removed from production, and I suffered for many years about this - but now I have found perfumes that are not less “mine”.
About taking care of yourself
Masks, long baths with fragrant foam, a bath with brooms and other bodily pleasures - this is my element, but all this should be built on a solid foundation, and not replace it. And the foundation is a healthy sleep, good nutrition and physical activity. I believe that self-love is expressed mainly in the fact that you refuse to sacrifice your own physical and mental health for the sake of immediate tasks, even if they seem incredibly important.
I felt it very acutely at one moment. It was the second year of my studies at a Canadian college, I slept a little (but did not sleep well), did not have time to have breakfast and ran, shivering from the cold, to the subway at 7:30 in the morning. I felt that I was very hungry, small stomach problems made hunger a very unpleasant sensation. And here I am running, angry, even more angry with the pain in my stomach and suddenly I understand - and what the hell actually? Why am I afraid to be late for a couple more than to spoil my own health? I stopped, turned around and proudly walked towards the tent with some kind of a healthy lifestyle burrito. In a fit of self-love, she picked up another green smoothie for change, calmly ate and went for a couple. Naturally, I was very late for her - but absolutely nothing terrible happened.
About active lifestyle
Physical activity is my sore subject. I skipped physical education classes from school, merged with any sallies of friends, if they suggested any volleyball. By the way, by the way, everything was a little different: I adored playing soccer with my friends and dreamed of going to karate. Although in my family there had never been quite noticeable manifestations of gender prejudice, for some reason the option with karate was not even considered - and I was given to rhythmic gymnastics and choreography. I hated these activities with all my heart - I do not know who will like it when they put a ninth grader on you "for stretching", which is heavier than you several times and constantly screaming. In general, I left the gym pretty quickly, and more sport in my life was not until recently.
At eighteen, I met my future husband, who rides on everything: skate, BMX, wakeboard, surf. Thanks to him, I began to gradually step over my fears, carefully laid in the subcortex by my parents. I got up on a longboard, learned how to make slides and slide down slides. I also know how to ride back and forth in a ramp on a skateboard (and even turn!). And two years ago in Barbados, I embarked on the surf. I was terribly scared, the ocean with light waves seemed to me a ruthless machine, ready to devour me, and under my feet were hard reefs and hedgehogs. I cried a lot, I was afraid, I often panted and retreated - but several times I still got up and drove along the wave.
About sport
A diverse wheelchair, however, remained an episodic exercise for me: I still spent my basic leisure time in a horizontal position while watching the TV series “The Fortune Teller” (#giltiplage). In April of this year, after a series of problems with health and pressure (at twenty-two years old!), I realized that this is no longer true. I downloaded Nike Running Club and started running. First, two and a half kilometers, then three, then five. Last week I ran six for the first time. Before that, all my attempts to go in for sports failed, and I understood why: earlier my motivation was in the spirit of “lose weight by the summer”. This time I began to run not from hatred for my body, but from love for it. And this turned out to be the best motivation to get off the couch. In the days when I'm lazy, the banal motto "Just Do It" helps me the most. I do not think, do not analyze, do not look for the pros and cons. I just mechanically put on sneakers with sweat pants and go outside.
