By the time December rolled around, I was exhausted—not just physically, but spiritually. The past year had been a whirlwind of creative projects, back-to-back travel assignments, and relentless professional pursuits. From the bustling streets of Tokyo to the vibrant Mexican markets to attending conferences, I had been in constant motion. Each destination was a treasure, each experience a gift, but collectively, they had worn me down to a thin, almost transparent version of myself.
My work as a creative professional demands energy—writing, speaking, creating, connecting. But this year had been different.
The pandemic's lingering effects, combined with an industry in flux, meant that every opportunity felt like it needed to be seized, every moment maximized. I had become a master of productivity, but at a significant cost to my inner peace. So as the year winds down, I decided to do a fun weekend getaway to Houston to pour into myself. The signs of burnout weren't subtle.
My creativity was becoming mechanical, my inspiration flickering like a candle about to extinguish. Conversations that once sparked joy now felt like transactions. My body was sending urgent messages—tension headaches, disrupted sleep, a constant low-grade anxiety that hummed beneath my skin. I needed more than a vacation. I needed a reset.
The Thompson Houston: A Sanctuary for Creativity and Peace
A Physical Space for Mental Restoration
For this reset, I chose to spend my days reveling at the Thompson Houston. The Thompson Houston wasn't just a hotel; it was my chosen sanctuary. Its design spoke to my need for simplicity and elegance—clean lines, thoughtful spaces that invited introspection. The suite felt like a blank canvas, free from the clutter of my usual environments, providing the mental space I desperately needed to breathe.
Credit: Thompson Hotel
Holistic Wellness Beyond the Typical Retreat
The spa became more than a luxury—it was a therapeutic experience. Each treatment seemed designed to peel back layers of accumulated stress. The massage therapists didn't just work on muscles; they seemed to understand the emotional weight carried by physical tension. Here, healing was intentional and comprehensive.
A Quiet Witness to Personal Transformation
Most importantly, the Thompson Houston offered something intangible: permission to be still. In a world that constantly demands movement, the hotel provided a gentle pause. My suite, with its expansive windows overlooking Houston's dynamic landscape, became a cocoon of reflection. I journaled, meditated, and allowed myself to simply exist without the pressure of constant productivity.
Credit: Thompson Hotel
The Transformation
As someone who thrives on meticulous planning, the ultimate retreat became embracing spontaneity—letting my days unfold naturally from journaling to leisurely walks to reading, all within a beautifully unhurried rhythm. By my retreat's end, something fundamental had shifted. I wasn't just rested; I was realigned. The constant motion had been replaced by a profound sense of clarity. My creativity, which had felt like a depleted resource, began to pulse with renewed energy.
This wasn't about escaping reality, but about creating the space to genuinely reconnect with myself. The Thompson Houston was more than a destination—it was a catalyst for personal renewal.
For fellow creatives, travelers, and professionals who find themselves constantly in motion, remember this: Rest is not a luxury. It is a critical investment in your most important resource—yourself.
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RELATED
Yeah, even though having more years on this earth is indeed a blessing, that doesn’t mean we don’t go through quite a bit of transitioning, from head to toe.
And what if you just read all of that and immediately thought, I love my lips and I don’t want time to change them? Sis, I feel you. Believe me, I do. That’s why I want to share 10 things that you can do to, at best, keep your lips looking just like they do now and, at worst, get them to age far more gracefully than you would without these helpful recommendations.
10 Ways to Keep Your Lips Hydrated
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1. Exfoliate
No matter how old you are, it’s always going to be a wise move to exfoliate your lips on a weekly basis. Not only does it help to remove dry and dead skin (so that your lips end up looking less chapped), it can make your lips feel smoother, reduce the appearance of discoloration on them and it can help to increase hydration to your lips as well. Although you can actually use your toothbrush to exfoliate your lips (by rubbing your damp brush in small circular motions), there are also homemade lip scrubs that you can try. Healthline has 14 recipes that you can check out here.
2. Massage
When was the last time that you gave your lips a nice massage? By first applying a mixture of peppermint oil (no more than one drop) with a carrier oil like grapeseed, avocado, or sweet almond oil and then using your index fingers in a circular motion on your lips, you will increase blood circulation to them, help them to become more plump and full and they will become more rosy-looking too.
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3. Hydrate
If you’ve ever wondered why it seems like your lips get dried out faster and more often than any other part of your body, the main reason is because they don’t have any oil glands; this means that they require hydration from your system and then moisturization (from lip balms, lip gloss, lipstick) on the outside to keep them looking healthy. This is just one more reason why you need to drink no less than 4-6 glasses of water a day. Do you?
4. Consume Collagen
Did you know that collagen accounts for a whopping 30 percent of your body’s protein? And since it’s pretty well-documented that we lose collagen as we age, and that can impact our bone and joint health, how much muscle mass we have, and also how good our skin looks, you definitely need to check out, “We Lose Collagen As We Age. 10 Ways To Naturally Boost It.” If you do, your lips will be grateful because collagen helps to give them the fullness and definition that they have. So, if you haven’t been on top of your collagen intake as of late, here is some inspiration to do so.
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5. Give Your Lips Some Sun Protection
There is no part of your body that shouldn’t be protected from the sun, regardless of how much melanin you may have — including your lips. When it comes to your lips, specifically, if you don’t protect them from potentially damaging UV rays, not only do you put yourself at risk for having a skin cancer diagnosis, but your lips could end up drying out and aging faster than they are supposed to. That’s why it’s imperative that you coat your lips with a lip balm that contains SPF. For the record, jojoba oil and carrot seed oil can support your sun protection efforts too.
6. DIY Vitamin C Lip Balm
One of the best things that I’ve done for my skin over the past several months is to use vitamin C serum on a consistent basis. From providing hydration and reducing hyperpigmentation to boosting collagen production, brightening the skin and protecting skin from UV rays — vitamin C serum really is the truth. That said, if you want your lips to look youthful, I recommend making a lip balm; one that has some vitamin C in it. Although you can apply vitamin C serum directly to your lips, because it might be too strong, it’s actually better to go with a recipe that has citrus essential oil in it (like this one here, here, and here) or one that contains orange peel powder (like this one here).
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7. Treat Your Lips to Some Peptides
Peptides are amino acids that play a variety of roles within your system. As far as your skin goes, peptides are important because they help to create a barrier for your skin while also reducing fine lines and wrinkles, decreasing breakouts, and increasing elastin as well. For all of these reasons, I think that it’s a good idea to apply some peptides to your lips, at least a couple of times a week. These days, there are all types of peptide lip treatments to choose from. One article that provides a variety to test out is Harper BAZAAR’s “The 10 Best Peptide Lip Balms Worth the Hype.”
8. Use Avocado and Mango Body Butter
Although avocados are high in fat, they’re healthy fats (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats); ones that can help to lower your cholesterol levels. Not only that but avocados also contain lots of fiber, vitamins C, E, and K, folate, magnesium, and potassium, and they even have some omega-3 in them too. If you get this fruit in the form of avocado oil, you can get the same benefits from the fruit itself which is why I recommend that you either apply avocado oil directly on your lips or make some of your own avocado body butter.
If you blend some avocado oil along with some vitamin E oil (which helps the cells on your lips to turn over faster) and mango butter (which slows down skin age, repairs damaged skin tissue, and helps to protect your skin) and whip it together with a blender, you will end up with a whipped body butter that will work well on your skin and your lips too.
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9. Try Some Calendula Oil
Antibacterial, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory are all properties that calendula oil contains. And since research has indicated that it can help to protect your skin (by reducing the amount of oxidative stress that it encounters), this is why you might want to try it on your lips. Your lips will especially adore it since it can help to provide a barrier to your skin which could protect it from outdoor elements that could dry it (including your lips) out.
10. Apply an Aloe Vera and Honey Mixture at Night
If you don’t already have an aloe vera plant somewhere in your home, maybe this will get you to invest in one. Although it’s a plant that consists of 99 percent water, it also has nutrients in it like selenium, zinc, copper, manganese, magnesium, and fatty acids. These work together to speed up the healing process of minor cuts and wounds, heal sunburn, bring relief to dry skin, and even help with the inflammation and discomfort that are associated with eczema, psoriasis, and acne.
That said, since aloe vera is good at providing so much hydration, if you mix its gel with a drop of honey, the honey’s antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties will help to heal your lips by repairing any damaged tissues it may have. The combo is the perfect all-natural all-night lip treatment.
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Aging is coming — and there is nothing wrong with it. Yet if you can get your lips to look and feel wonderful during the aging process, that will make the adjustments so much easier to welcome.
After all, a sexy pair of lips? They are timeless.
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