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bridgyrose · 3 years

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Heya! I'm really glad you enjoyed writing that Faunus!Cinder prompt. If you feel like like revisiting it again, could you write another bit for it?

Apologies if it's a bit of a long prompt.

Awhile after revealing her secret to Ruby and Neo, Cinder is suddenly starting to hiding her wings again, becoming more irritable and and distant. Neo and Ruby try to give her space at first, but when Cinder starts wincing whenever something for someone touches her back and they end up finding the burnt remains of discarded feathers, Neo or Ruby suspect the worst.

They confront her about it, hoping to get some answers and provide comfort. But in the end it is revealed that Cinder is busy molting. It makes her wings very sensitive and it is something she is very self conscious about?

Feel free to add as much angst as you want XD and a tag for @incorrectspicecreamquotes ;)

(@incorrectspicecreamquotes )

Ruby sighed as she watched Cinder from a distance, missing her girlfriend. Cinder had started getting a bit… irritable and cranky, no longer wanting hugs or even cuddles, which Ruby understood that she might not be in the mood all the time, but it still seemed off even for Cinder. Especially since she was now going on a week of this attitude.

Neo sat down next to Ruby, looking for some sort of sign that Cinder was starting to feel a bit better. Or at least was willing to be near them.

Ruby shook her head. “She’s still a bit cranky. Although, the last time I saw her, she smelled like smoke and burning hair.”

Neo sighed and pulled out a charred feather she head picked up near the dorm. It was still warm to the touch, which means it wasnt long ago that flame had met the defenseless feather.

Ruby hesitated for a moment when she saw it, immediately knowing what had been done. “N-no… that… that cant be right… she wouldnt… would she?”

Neo shrugged, not quite sure how to answer. She had the same exact thoughts that Ruby was having: that Cinder was finally trying to get rid of her wings. And none of that sat right with her. She pulled out her scroll and started running through Cinder’s schedule, trying to find the right time to confront her.

Ruby peered over Neo’s shoulder, looking over the schedule as well. “We could try to hit her up after Remnant History. I’ve got Peach’s dust class around then, which isnt too far off. And there’s a few empty classrooms near that period that we could get her into.”

Neo shook her head and pointed to the class after, suggesting they get with her then. Neo had a free period before then that she could use to set up anything they needed to make sure Cinder would come with them and talk.

Ruby thought about it for a moment and smiled a bit. “Alright, if you can get her into a classroom after that, then we can finally talk her out of this. Just… be ready to stop her from harming herself. I dont want to see her in any more pain.”

Neo nodded, putting her scroll away and using her semblance to start blending into the crowd to make her way to a room to set up.

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Cinder groaned and winced as someone ran into her back, sending a bit of pain through her spine. One the pain died down, she could feel an itch flaring up with the dry skin on her spine. And of all the times for her to be going through… this… Well, at least class was over and then she could have a bit of time alone to finally finish-

“Cinder!”

Cinder sighed as she heard the familiar voice she’d started to grow fond of. “Ruby, I’m sorry, but I’m really busy-” She couldn't finish her sentence before she was dragged down the hallway and into an empty classroom by her girlfriend. Once they were stopped and Cinder could regain her balance, she looked at the younger girl and sighed. “Ruby, I need to get back to the dorm-”

“Not until you tell us what’s going on.”

Cinder was about to ask until she saw Neo appear next to the door, holding out a charred feather. She looked between her girlfriends and the feather before sitting down. “Its… not what you think.”

“Cin, we know you’re having issues with being a faunus and we just want to help.” Ruby took Cinder’s hand and smiled at her. “We’re your girlfriends. You can tell us anything.”

Neo nodded and took Cinder’s other hand, looking up to her with pleading eyes.

Cinder hesitated for a moment when she finally realized what Ruby and Neo thought this was about. “W-wait… you… you think I’m hurting myself, dont you?”

“W-well, yeah. You’re trying to burn your wings off, arent you?”

“What? No! I’m molting and it’s irritating as fuck!” Cinder took her shirt off and turned around to show her wings: feathers were matted every which way, a few looking more vibrant than before while others looked charred and burnt. “I’ve been trying to burn the feathers off to help speed this up. You dont understand just how frustrating it is to be itchy and in pain with these once a year. Usually I’m lucky enough that it happens when I’m not in school, but this time, of all times, it had to be with finals for the semester. And I cant even spar like this either because the second I try to do anything, my wings hurt as feathers try to loosen up!” A few of Cinder’s feathers started to glow as she used her semblance, a small explosion of feathers leaving her wings in charred bits. “I just want this to be over with.”

Neo gently walked around to Cinder’s back and carefully touched a wing. A few of the feathers had a little wax on them that seemed easy enough to wash out with a real bath. With a few careful strokes, Neo started getting a few of the loose feathers out of Cinder’s wings.

Ruby sighed in a bit of relief at Cinder’s explanation. “Oh thank the gods. I thought you were trying to burn your wings off.”

“I… may have thought about doing that when I was younger, but… not anymore. I just…” Cinder sighed and looked away from Ruby. “I’m sorry I worried you. I wanted to take care of this on my own and well… I guess I went a little overboard on trying to be alone for it.”

Ruby nodded and gently hugged Cinder, making sure to avoid her wings and not put a lot of strain on her back. “We understand. Just let us know how to help and Neo and I will do what we can, alright?”

Cinder nodded and winced as she pressed into the hug. “Think you could help me wash my wings? I think I’ve got a few charred feathers that are a bit… stuck.”

“I can help tonight.”

#rwby #ruby rose #rwby ruby rose #cinder fall #neo politan #neopolitian (rwby)#cinder x ruby x neo #spiced shortcake #faunus!cinder

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murasakiyuzu · 6 years

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List your top 5 Anime Characters, then tag 10 people

thanks for tagging me @glassmoonfortuneteller! sorry it took be a while to do this lmao -w-

in no particular order bc that would kill me:

1. Oikawa Tooru (Haikyuu!!)

i love every single character in this heckin anime, but oikawa rly messes up w all my feelings. im too weak for characters w gap moe, even if its the ‘looks very nice, is actually a bit of a demon’ kind and not the other way around, lmao. the thing abt oikawa is that he twists in and out of himself; he is handsome, charismatic and endearing at first glance, but hes also cunning and easily overcome by feelings of jealousy, inferiority and egoism. even so, hes an observant and hardworking leader who places his strength on the strength of his team as a whole, never thinking himself higher than his teammates. oikawa looks like he got everything easily, looks like hes a genius, but everything he has he worked very hard for. oikawa built himself to be a winner but never got the victory he wanted the most. nothing w oikawa is as it looks, and that why i cant help but love him.

2. Noiz (DRAMAtical Murder)

u knew he was going to be here, its gotta count for something that i, at least, didnt put him on number 1 too lmAO

just like oikawa, i fell victim to noizs gap moe as well. i mean, u give me a delinquent in weird clothes whos rude to everyone, pushy and even violent, and then turns out hes like a little kid at heart who buys foods without knowing their names, who doesnt know when to stop fighting bc he doesnt feel pain and no one ever cared abt his safety and thinks hes a monster bc of his insensitivity and silently suffers bc of it, ofc im gonna lay down my life for him. im gonna die for noiz ya hear me

theres not many scenes in anything that fucks me up more than the scene (that didnt make into the anime, sob) where he fights w aoba as theyre hiding in the oval tower, and then he tells aoba abt his insensitivity to pain and aoba pulls him down to him and tells noiz the world isnt as bad as he thinks and makes noiz slowly open up to him and learn from aoba how is it like to care abt someone else. its beautiful to see him, whos so young but is both hardened by the ugliness of the world hes seen and ignorant to the good things the world still has to offer, finally open himself up and make the first steps towards growth, and meaning to grow beside the one he fell in love with. im soft. my heart was found full of love.

3. Olivier Mira Armstrong (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)

ive been in love w this woman since i first read the manga and when i watched the anime i died, thats the story

just like haikyuu!!, i love every single character in this anime, like, im physically Incapable of hating any of them. but olivier stands out for me. i think theres people who prolly had a bad impression from her as she antagonized ed and al right when she showed up, but young me was in awe of her attitude and her strong resolve in seeing for herself what ed and al were worth. shes known as ‘the ice queen of briggs’ and she leads her men with an iron fist, but its also clear that shes fair and values the life of every one of her subordinates, like when buccaneer and the others were late in coming back to the surface after their rescue mission and thought they would be left for dead, only to find that olivier had subtly made sure they would be received any time they came back.

her confidence in her own judgement, how she dealt w miles’ conflict as an amestris soldier and part ishvallan and the way she doesnt rly give a fuck abt whats lawful and correct and goes through with the things she herself considers right, are all things i love so much abt her. when i was a kid i even tried to get my hair to be like hers LMAO

tldr; queen of my life

4. Kinomoto Sakura (Cardcaptor Sakura)

cardcaptor sakura was my first true anime. i did watch saint seiya and naruto on tv around that time as well, but cardcaptor sakura was the first one i actually watched in full and then rewatched again and again and obsessed over, lmao.

i was rly, rly young then. not a baby anymore, def; i was about 10-12? it was an age at which i was building my own personality. honestly, at that point in time i think i was already kinda Messed Up, lmao; id get on Moods and be rly depressed and then super cranky, and i was always socially awkward. sakura made a huge impression on me; it just seemed like her attitude made everything better. she talked to everyone and had lots of friends and it seemed like she had a lot of fun like that. i tried to be more cheerful like that (i wanted roller blades too but i dont live in a place where i can use it a lot, and my parents never bought it for me lmao), and while i never got the hang of being super bright to Everyone and im still kind of moody, i think she rly taught me to be lighter and not take myself too seriously, to always try to see the bright side of things and believe that everything will be alright.

5. Nino (ACCA: 13-ku Kansatsu-ka)

thats not an anime a lot of people watched, i think, and on that note, if @ u all didnt watch it, GO WATCH ACCA ITS SO GOOD UR LOSING OUT???, so theres prolly not a lot of people who would put nino in their top 5 favorite characters lmao

but hes absolutely worthy of it. its fascinating to see the mystery of his identity and actions throughout the anime slowly unravel itself. i even wrote a oneshot that delved into what he was doing and what he was thinking as the events of the show progressed, trying to fill the blanks that the canon didnt show. ill try not to be spoilery w this one bc i want u all to find out for urselves, but i love ninos intelligence, his attitude and his strong loyalty, and in that loyalty, the conflict he feels between his duty and his desire. the episode that shows his past is one of my favorites bc its so heartrending. i love how naturally he fits in with jean and lotta and how the three of them look like a family. anyway, watch acca and love nino w me ♡

I’m tagging @lithuanina, @satyr-syd, @realm-of-spells, and thats it bc im not in contact w a lot of people and tumblr is apparently not letting me tag some others either lmao rip

#feel free to ignore -v-#mumbling yuzu

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cefstickles · 7 years

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Excitement Extraction

Finally! This is a fic based on the prompt: “Umm for a prompt, how about a 4 against 1 on Thomas? Like, maybe he was getting frustrated with something and he snaps at them, so they cheer him up and get revenge?” - HappyAnon.

This took me a couple days to write. Marching Band has been really hefty. I might take a three day hiatus from writing fics because I’m tired out. But I’ll be back hopefully by saturday.

Without further ado please enjoy:

Excitement Extraction

(Ships): None

Words ~ 1,974 ~

It had been three days since Thomas had last called upon his sides for help. The human sat in the kitchen on his phone, elbow to the table and hand on his cheek. Melancholy would be the best word to describe Thomas at the moment. Not really happy, not really sad, just extremely lethargic and unproductive.

Logan had noticed this much before any of the other sides. His thought process became jumbled after the first day, unabling him to do much work. He tolerated longer than he would have because he concluded that Thomas just needed some space, but after two more days of this he had had enough.

“Thomas.” Logan popped up with his arms folded, obviously in a very irritated mood. “Please. Engage your brain,” He motioned to himself as he said this. “So I can be rid of this so called...funk.” He picked out a vocab card for the last word to make sure he used it right.

“Yeah sure whatever.” Thomas whisked the logical trait off by mentally pushing him back down into the mind space.

“Hey! Wai-” But he was already gone, out of earshot for the human to hear anymore of his pleas. Thomas knew Logan had went and complained to the others, because not a moment later Roman appeared in the same place.

“Excuse you! I am about as irritated as Logan right now and I-”

“Yeah yeah sure. That’s great Princey.” With that the human, pushed the aspect in the same manner as Logan, clearly being ignorant of anything the fanciful aspect had to say.

Next to show up was Patton. “Heya kiddo. You’ve been distant lately? Are you...avoiding us?” Patton looked at his feet then back up at his human. Thomas groaned in response.

“No Patton, I just don’t want to be bothered right now. Nothing against you or any of the others. Please just go away.”

“But kiddo-” Morality tried to reach out only to have Thomas shoot him down.

“Don’t kiddo me and just sink down or Ill push you down like the others.” Thomas didn't look up from his phone at all, so he did not see the heartbroken, pouty face the dad trait gave as he sank down slowly.

For five more minutes it was quiet. Thomas sighed in relief as he thought the others had learned their lessons. He did not see the black figure slowly rising from behind him.

“THOMAS!!” A voice yelled in his ear causing the human to jump and fall out of his chair.

“AAAAAHHHH!!” He whipped his head toward the source of the voice, in enough time to see Virgil hopping on top of the table and swiping Thomas’s discarded phone.

“Thats enough of that.” Virgil huffed as he sat criss-cross applesauce on top of the table and peered down at Thomas from his perch. “Start talking.” He looked at his human sternly and shoved the phone in his pocket.

Thomas shook his head as he rose to his feet and sat back down. “Please Virgil...I just...I don’t want to talk to anyone, let alone myself.”

“I know. I’ve noticed. How do you think I feel when you keep pulling me into your videos? We are talking whether you like it or not. You owe me that much.”

Thomas sighed as he got up off the floor and sat back in the chair he was previously in.

“Look...I enjoy talking to you guys...but I need my peace and quiet too.”

“You got your peace and quiet! For three whole days we left you alone! Do you know how worried Patton has been? Or how restless Roman was? Even Logan couldn’t keep himself together! You’ve just been sitting around doing nothing! I can’t even do my job! What's the deal dude?! Do you hate us or something?!” Virgil accused feeling betrayed.

“No! No...its just-” Thomas quieted as he felt a set of hands carefully place themselves on his back lovingly. Virgil turned his attention to look at the cardigan-clad figure behind Thomas.

“I know what the problem is.”

“You do?”

Just like that, the other two Sander’s Sides popped out from the floor, pulled a chair over, and sat at the table as well. Both Logan and Roman were eager to hear Patton’s take on the situation so that this predicament could be solved.

“He just went to New York, met a ton of really awesome people, and do a lot of really cool stuff! But now that it’s over, he’s-”

“-having withdrawals.” Logan finished looking at Thomas as an epiphany struck him. “You are having withdrawals from the excitement that you were given over the weekend. Thus it is making you extremely lethargic.” Eyes widening, he extended a hand motioning to Thomas, before bringing it back to rest under his chin.

“Aww...I wanted to explain.” Patton pouted earning a snrk from Virgil.

“So...what your saying Logan is that I’m unmotivated...because…”

“Because the rush of adrenaline that you last felt three days ago is over, thus your body refuses to do anything until it feels the same rush of adrenaline once more.”

“But that isnt going to happen on its own...is it?” Virgil added.The human lowered his head in shame, shaking no in response to Virgil.

“Then it is our job to raise his adrenaline level once more!” Roman pounded his fist on the table. “But ways to do this…” Roman thought as the others including Thomas leaned in to hear his ideas. “We can cook a meal together, or go see an action movie in theatres.”

“Pillow fight!” Patton interjected earning a chuckle from everyone but Roman, who just glared at his fellow side. Thomas lifted his head, mood slightly lifted with a smile on his face.

“Well whatever it is before we begin I want a proper apology from you, Thomas!” Roman shaked a finger at the human sternly.

“Yes I must agree with Roman on this. That was extremely uncalled for.” Logan frowned.

Thomas re-hung his head. “I know I should apologize, but I don't...really...feel like doing that right now...either…?” his voice trailed off and became smaller when he began to notice the looks on his sides’ faces became more irate with each word that he spoke. Even Patton looked like he was about to give the human a stern talking to. Which, he did after a minute of awkward silence had passed.

“Are those your final words Thomas?” The other three sides stared at him in surprise. The fact that Patton had actually said his name instead of the nickname he commonly used unnerved them all. Virgil, wanting to get away from the angry Patton, slowly crawled off the table and backed away a couple steps, wanting to observe from afar.

“What...Patton…?” Thomas meekly asked for clarification on Patton’s words.

“I said…” Patton stomped up to Thomas and looked at him straight in the eyes. “...are those your final words?”

“...yes…?” Thomas gulped feeling extremely intimidated, but was soon replaced with bewilderment as a small, mischievous grin appeared on the parental trait’s face.

“Well then I guess we'll just have to find some way to get that apology out of you.” Patton stepped behind Thomas and motioned something to the other aspects that the human could not see.

Judging by the smile that spread on Roman’s face and the grins of both Virgil and Logan, he could tell they were up to something.

“Thomas. I believe we have found a way to both restore your adrenaline and bring forth an apology.” Logan arose from his chair and began to walk towards Patton.

Once Roman also decided to advance, Thomas finally felt the adrenaline pulsing through his body, compelling him to apologize and stop their plans. “Hehey guys! I feel the excitement again! You don’t have to do this...I can apologize now!! I’m sorry!! I didn’t mean it!! I was just....cranky...you know…” His words seemed to have no effect on any of them and he realized this as he felt his arms being trapped above him.

“Do you really think we are going to listen to you after all those mean words Thomas?” Not a second later, Roman trapped both of his legs underneath his arms.

Thomas began to giggle with anticipation. “Noho tickles!!”

“Yes tickles!” Patton teased as he used his free hand to scuttle along Thomas’s side, while Logan got in position to tickle his kneecaps.

Thomas’s giggles turned into laughter like lightning. “Hahahahaha!!! Nyuhuhuhuhu!!”

“Hey Virgil! Wanna help?” Anxiety looked upon the restrained, laughing human and shrugged.

“Sure. Not like I got anything better to do.” He casually walked over and positioned himself next to Thomas’s stomach.

“GUHUHUHHUYSSSS!!! I’m SOHOHOHOHORRRYYY!!!” As Logan scratched his fingers behind Thomas’s kneecaps and Roman began to work off his socks and shoes, all aspects were hellbent on getting their revenge. Virgil casually rested a hand on Thomas’s stomach and began to squeeze the loose bits raising Thomas’s laughter even more.

“Hahaha! I forgot how ticklish Thomas is!” Roman scuttled his fingers up and down the trapped humans sole.

“Heeheehee! He is! But that also means we are too!!” Patton moved his hand from his side up into his armpit swirling slowly and teasing as he went. “Tickle tickle Thomas! Maybe this’ll teach you not to mess with yourself!”

“Patton that sounded wrong.” Virgil commented, now lifting up Thomas’s shirt and spider tickling his soft skin.

“THEHEHEHEH TAHAHAHAHLKING MAHAHAHHAKING IHIHHIHHIT WOHOHOHOHOHRSEEEE!!!” Thomas was howling with laughter as tears of joy splashed down his face.

“Oh it is? Well then...perhaps some more exposition will speed up this process.” Logan gave a silly grin while he squeezed the human’s inner thighs.

“Pffffahahahaha! Good one Logan.” Roman was now slowly stroking his fingers in between and under Thomas’s ticklish toes.

“GUHUHUHUHUYSSSSS!!! I CAHAHAHAHAHAHAN’TTT TAHAHAHAKE IT AHAHAHNYMOHOHOHOREEE!!” Thomas had been trying to flail and escape, but in this situation he was his own captor.

“Yeah...he needs a break. I’m his fight or flight reaction so...you’d kinda think I would know when to stop.” And stop is what he did, but not before dishing out a sharp poke to Thomas’s belly button and putting his shirt down.

“Oh alright.” Roman stopped tickling but held his feet in place. Logan lifted his hands off of Thomas’s thigh and took a step back.

“Awww…” Patton pouted, clearly not wanting to be done yet. “Oh fine. But not before I do this!” Ever so slightly did the parental trait wiggle his fingers against the sides of Thomas’s neck, eliciting several squeals from the human. Everyone chuckled at the human’s reaction.

“Alright Patton. That’s enough.” Roman nodded back to Morality at which he reluctantly ceased his attack. They all carefully released the giggling human and stepped back as Thomas began to stand up.

“Hehe...what wahahahas this...youhoohoho are all...ahahs ticklish as mehe?” He looked up at them, bright red in the face and panting, with danger shining in his eyes.

“SCATTER!” Roman yelled as all the sides ran different places around the apartment.

Thomas just laughed. “Guys I’m johoking! You’d just all gang up on me ag-”

“PILLOW FIGHT!”

“Patton wha-asdfhjkkl” The rest of Thomas’s words were smothered by a pillow to the face thrown by the moral aspect. The pillow dropped to the floor in enough time to see Patton pelting the other sides with pillows. He shrugged, laughed, and joined in the fun. After five minutes of all the silliness, the five clones sat down together on the floor, all giggling their hearts out.

“Looks like Patton got his pillow fight.” Virgil commented. They all nodded in agreement.

“How about you Thomas? Do you feel better?” Roman asked.

“Yes. I do. I’m really sorry. I won’t ever say anything like that again. To any of you. I love you all so much!”

“We love you too Thomas! We love you too.”

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viralhottopics · 7 years

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I Gave Up Added Sugar For A Month And This Is What Happened

In our monthly series, GIVING UP, newsroom staffers deprive themselves of a beloved habit and track how it went. In March, Lifestyle Editor Suzy Strutner, 26, gave up added sugar.

Suzy Strutner

You could say I was in love with sugar.

What are you giving up?Im giving up added sugar (which is not the same as naturally occurring sugar, mind you) for Lent.

What made you decide to give it up? I love sugar in a way that sometimes makes me feel like its ruling me instead of the other way around. When a habit starts invading my life like when I miss out on an hour of sleep because I needa fresh-baked midnight cookie or cant get through the day without spending $6 on frozen yogurt I know its one I need to kick. Plus, I tried to give up sugar last year and failed without realizing why, so I wanted to prove I could do it, and do my body a favor at the same time.

How did your friends and family react? People either 1) tell me theyre impressed by my efforts (I started an email newsletter with updates on how the challenge is going), 2) ask if Im STILL not eating sugar, then inquire when Ill be available for dessert dates again,or 3) tell me theyve given up sugar too! Thats my favorite reaction, for sure. Two of my friends ditched sugar last month because I was doing it, which makes me feel like a positive influence.

Suzy Strutner

Did you do any research before you started?Yes, because Ididnt do enough research last yearand wanted to make sure I gave up added sugarcorrectly this time around. My colleagues and I have written a number of articlesabout added sugar over the years, so by now I know that added sugar is never, ever a good thing for your brain or body. Thats major motivation.

Did you slip up? Not yet! Well, it depends on how technical you get. Added sugar is in all kinds of foods, from store-bought bread to mayonnaise to pasta sauce. Ive avoided buying those items for myself, but I havent stopped eating at restaurants. Im sure theres been sugar snuck into a few dishes there. Ive also been eating dried fruit and other forms of naturally occurring sugar, which I learned is not entirely acceptedin the anti-sugar community.

Suzy Strutner

Yup, that cinnamon-raisin bagel has sugar in it, too.

When did you first feel deprived? Two days in, when a giant sundae appeared on the table at my moms birthday dinner.It was tough not to deem it a special occasion and cave in.Most of the time, though, this challenge has been strangely easy. Ive found enough other treats to look forward to like nut butters, banana bites and a granola-dark-chocolate-date-coconut melange that I concoct myself to guarantee sugar-freeness which taste indulgent enough to do the trick. I cant say I havent daydreamed about deep-dish cookie pie, though.

Suzy Strutner

What snack time looks like when you’re eating added sugar.

Suzy Strutner

What snack time looks like when you’re not eating added sugar.

Any awkward social encounters?Im afraid of being a buzzkill when I dont indulge at group get-togethers.Today at lunch, my colleagues didnt order dessert because I wouldnt be sharing it with them. It was a nice sentiment, but I felt like I was holding them back from sugary fun!Another time, at Taco Tuesday with some new friends, I felt awkward passing up margaritas in favor of a tequila soda. (This is NOT a real hardship, I am aware. But still.) I was pleasantly surprised, though, when my friends noticed the move and changed their orders to sugar-free drinks, too.

Notice any changes to your mood?I still get cranky when Im craving something sweet, but my new naturally sweet treats usually do the trick. Overall, I feel like a more capable human. I tend to doubt my level of discipline, but this challenge has shown me I can do anything even deny myself of favorite sugary snacks if I decide to commit.

Changes to your body? I used to sometimes feel sick after eating too much sugar, especially if I mixed it with alcohol. Now, I dont need to worry about my heart racing from a bunch of cookie dough. However, the lack of added sugar has caused me to start indulging in other unhealthy foods like pizza and fries more often, so I cant say I look or feel more fit.

Changes to your productivity? Yes, majorly. I struggle with prioritizing activities and would often spend a night baking sugary goods or venturing off to get ice cream instead ofpracticing healthierself-care habitslike calling a friend or going to yoga. Now that I dont have to track down my sugar fix every day,I have one less chore to complete and therefore feel less guilty about how I spend my time.

Suzy Strutner

Typical after-work activity for a sugar fiend: Bake cookies with different types of sugar, and label them to see which turns out best.

Changes to your relationships? Surprisingly,yes.Posting on social media about the challenge has gotten me in touch with friends I wouldnt talk to as often otherwise.One friend, for example, read my newsletter and sent me amazing sugar-free recipe recommendations. And my former roommate, who now lives in Germany, gave up added sugar too. We text about how its going on two different continents.

Im also more present in-person: During our weekly hangouts, my sister and I used to fight the chaotic L.A.traffic for our favorite frozen yogurt. Now, we sit and drink wine. Maybe wine isnt any better than froyo, but quality time out of traffic certainly is. And at parties, I can focus more on humans because Im not beelining to the snack table. These small changes truly result in more quality conversation!

What does an expert say about doing this? Is there any benefit? Theres no question that quitting added sugar could extend your life, prevent dementia, curb anxietyanddecrease risks of anxiety and heart disease, all while making you a more vibrant personoverall. No expert everpromotes the consumption of added sugar, so eliminating it can only help your body.

Would you do it again? Yes. This is a simplification of my life and diet that Id like to continue, so Im thinking of making it a weekday habit.If not, Ill definitely be back for more next year!

Previously: Heres What Happened When I Gave Up Complaining For A Month