THE AGE OF LONELINESS

I'm not sure I even want to post this. Because it's pretty hard for me to even write this to be honest with you.

It's really hard blogging and putting all those small thoughts you have into a descriptive post for the world to read.

But when it edges into something more personal then it should always be harder.

I've never written anything like this, save for my own journal but sharing to the world is another thing altogether.

I've been thinking lately,

Thinking quite a lot actually.

Because that's all I have right now. Is free time to think and think and think.

And I've realised that I'm quite lonely. And how hard it is to get yourself out of that loneliness. You can be surrounded by people you love and who love you in return but you can still feel pretty isolated if you're going through something.

It's quite gloomy really. And boy does it make you feel guilty.

You ask yourself if you're being selfish and you feel guilty for feeling the way you do because you know there are people who are worse off than you and who have nobody.

But you know you're not alone. You'd be surprised how many people feel the way you do and have the same questions running through their mind too.

So how do we overcome loneliness?

Because you see, you could have all the people in the world around you and that doesn't mean you're not going to go through something at some point in your life.

People can personally understand, people can try to understand, but it's not always a cure.

And why do we feel lonely?

Does communication play a big role? We have the internet at the tips of our fingers. In an instant we can connect with people from all over the globe but it can be a lonely experience and it can be a real changer in your perspective on people and yourself.

We're closer than ever but more alone than ever.

Have we lost purpose? Do we feel a purposelessness and isolation from a community we haven't been a part of in a long time?

I think there's so many factors.

I know from my own experience that it is incredibly hard to create relationships as you get older. People come and go in your life and don't always stay.

And we won't always connect with everybody. So you see you can be close to people all the time (say work) but if there's no connection then it can be pointless. Wouldn't you say?

And the internet? Well the internet to me is both a negative and a positive thing and sometimes I'm not sure which one outweighs the other. I mean it's good because there's so much knowledge to obtain and you can learn so much in a short space of time for no cost.

It's negative in regards to communication. It can really isolate us and it's incredibly difficult to be noticed on the internet. You can feel pretty ignored. And you can compare to others quite frequently and though we say what we see on the internet is not the same as a real life thing we can still compare ourselves to others and be somewhat critical of ourselves. Harshly too.

And I know from blogging and social media how hard it is to be noticed and have engagement. And engaging with others and taking the first step doesn't always work. I have tried many times to strike up conversations and make friends online and each time I've had no response.

It can be quite sad actually.

So say we take the internet out of the equation.

What would you do to feel not as alone?

Does talking to someone close to you help? Do you blog? Do you YouTube? Do you help somebody in your community? Do you have opportunities like clubs? Do you force yourself into really uncomfortable situations to really try and connect with others?

What works for one person doesn't work for another though, does it?

If you have nobody in your life? No friends or family then what do you do? Are you lonely? If you're lonely how do you help yourself to feel less alone?

I know blogging and Youtubing really helps me a lot. I love doing it and really enjoy sharing my passion. But it can be really lonely too.

Doing it for yourself is the biggest thing in my opinion. It's why I started blogging.

But sometimes it's nice to feel appreciated. Sometimes it's nice to be noticed, you know.

Because being invisible all the time can wear you down.

So the answer to the question 'How do we overcome loneliness?

And 'Why do we become lonely?'

I definitely think we are social creatures by nature and we are not usually left alone. I think purposelessness can play a part into how lonely we feel.

Take the working man. You go to work, you come home with little time to spare before you need to go to sleep because you know you're going to be so tired the next day otherwise, and then you just repeat the same process again. We lose time and meaning and when that happens we lose purpose.

And feeling like nothing is the worse. I think we can always feel useless sometimes.

I know it's how I've been feeling lately. That feel of being useless with everything and you wonder what is the purpose of yourself.

Isolating yourself can be the worst thing to do. But then some people thrive on being alone.

We are all different really and different things affect us, well, differently as individuals.

There's not much point to my post. Only I've been feeling incredibly useless and alone lately and question the point of myself. And it made me question people as a whole, how unconnected we've become from each other, and how a lot of us feel purposelessness.

Will we ever get it back?

NEW BEAUTY BOX - UNBOXING JULY'S ROCCABOX

I've subscribed to another beauty box and this one has me soooo excited.

I feel this one has got a different take to the rest of the beauty boxes out there. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love receiving my Glossybox every month and have no plan to cancel that box.

**You can read my blog posts on them as well as watch my Youtube videos. (You can find me under Josephine xoxo by the way.)**

But introducing Roccabox, well it's one of a kind really.

Their products you receive are chosen by bloggers and influencers themselves. So each box you receive is a collaboration of some sorts. Meaning the products you try are products that bloggers or influencers are pretty much loving and using at that moment in time.

And not only that that, it gives you the opportunity to be introduced to new bloggers and influencers you may not have heard of before, and I think that's pretty great.

This is the first box I have received from Roccabox and I'm super impressed. It cost roughly the same as most of the other UK boxes you can subscribe to (Like Glossybox, Birchbox, etc) though I don't think there is a rule to how many products you receive. I think two are usually full sized at least.

Might not sound so impressive to some of you but don't be disheartened. Remember these are chosen by bloggers themselves and you always get travel sizes to try out too and sometimes you get more than five products as well. The products you receive are still worth more than what you pay.

But onto the box,

This is what it looks like.

The box is simple white with Roccabox along the front.

And this is what you get inside. It's very similar to other boxes. You get the bed of straw, you get the information card too.

And this is what the card looks like

This box is a collaboration with Carly Musleh. I did briefly check out her twitter but haven't checked out any other of her other social media handles. I think I will have a delve into her blog. Like I said it's always good to discover new bloggers and influencers.

So the first thing product is a sample size Revitalize Mask by PCA. It says the mask is packed with papaya, honey, green tea and vitamin E which combined are an exfoliating, brightening, tightening, and hydrating powerhouse.

The second product is an Original Balm by Dr Paw Paw. It says you can use it to treat dry skin, chapped lips and sunburn, smear on your collarbone, gloss your eyelids, glam your cheekbones, and tame your brows.

The next product is the Bare Minerals Gen Nude Patent Lip Lacquer. It says this high gloss liquid lipstick is a serious welcome summery antidote to matte lips, and a shade of nude that cleverly looks flattering, chic and oh-so-glam on all skin tones.

The fourth product is the Pureology Hydrate shampoo. It says this shampoo is so packed full of deeply nourishing, yet super gentle ingredients, that it can be used both as a colour- preserving shampoo on coloured locks and as a hydrating shampoo for dry hair.

The fifth product is the Pureology Hydrate Conditioner. It's 100 percent vegan, totally sulfate-free, colour preserving, deeply hydrating - that you can't not love.

And the last product is Pixi, by Petra Lash Line Ink. It says this innovative liner creates the most natural-looking eye definition.

Here is the list of the products in this month's box and the Rrp too.

1. Skin Revitalize Mask by PCA - £49 (Sample Size)

2. Original Balm by Dr Paw Paw - £6.95 (FULL SIZE)

3. Gen Nude Patent Lip Lacquer by Bare Minerals - £17 (SAMPLE SIZE) Rrp £6.90 for sample.

4. Hydrate Shampoo by Pureology - Rrp £18.50 (SAMPLE SIZE)

5 Hydrate Shampoo by Pureology - Rrp £21.50 (SAMPLE SIZE)

6. Lash Line Ink By Pixi by Petra - Rrp £12 (FULL SIZE)

So, like I said at the beginning, I'm super impressed with this box. I'm definitely excited to try the balm out by Dr Paw Paw and I'm due to colour my hair again soon so I'll use the shampoo and conditioner as well. I'm not really fussed on the Bare Minerals lip lacquer as I hate gloss based lip products.

I've also done an unboxing video on my Youtube so check it out.

I can't wait to see what the next box brings.

If you are subscribed to Roccabox, what was your favourite product this month?