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Something about this lockdown feels harder. Perhaps it’s the darkness that starts to creep in before dinnertime. Maybe it’s the weather: mostly grey, always cold, sometimes pouring. Or potentially it’s the sheer relentlessness of it all. Whatever it is, the majority of my days are characterised by a strange sense of time moving at the speed of treacle off a spoon. Continue reading Something About this Lockdown Feels Harder
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As a baby, your parents wait with anticipation for your first steps and from that moment, you’re off. Children are encouraged to run around as much as possible when they’re little. In primary school, we had three breaktimes a day which were spent darting around the playground. If you asked a five-year-old whether they ever felt embarrassed whilst running, you would most likely be dismissed. However, if you asked a twelve-year-old girl, I am sure it would be a different story. Continue reading My Culture Comforts: Couch to 5K
Productivity seems to be society’s obsession. Whilst a strong work ethic is a desirable quality, a fixation with it can lead to a mindset that is dangerous and harmful to our wellbeing. Perhaps we are left with a feeling of guilt no matter how much work we get done, or perhaps we become so overwhelmed with these thoughts that we are unable to work at all. Productivity is a spectrum, and ‘toxic productivity’ actually lies at both ends; mental health nurse Emma Selby defines the term as ‘an obsession with radical self-improvement over all else’, a goal which is ultimately unachievable. Continue reading Toxic Productivity and Why You’re Probably Experiencing It
Growing up, I used to spend every month of the year counting down to December. My most beloved month, full of Father Christmas, family and food. However, the older I get, the more I realise that in many ways Christmas isn’t always the happiest time of year, and dismantling the pressure to be happy is crucial, this year more than most. Continue reading If You’re Feeling the Pressure this Christmas, It’s Okay
Being in the midst of a global pandemic and the exam season closing in, means that taking care of your emotional and physical health as well as being kind to yourself has never been more important. Continue reading Creative Corner: Art and Wellbeing
It is undeniable that the pandemic has had a severe impact upon many people’s mental health. Invariably, people are spending less time interacting with other human beings in social situations and work environments, and more time in isolation with only their thoughts for company. This has caused the worsening of pre-existing mental health issues such as depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder, along with the rise of anxiety and loneliness amidst the general population. Furthermore, the ways in which Covid-19 has shifted the nation’s focus away from crucial, time-sensitive efforts to mitigate the effects of the climate crisis have also had a particularly negative impact upon those individuals suffering from a chronic fear of the consequences of environmental damage. In the past few years, this state of heightened concern for the future of the planet has been termed ‘eco-anxiety’. Continue reading Bleed Greener: Eco-Anxiety or Eco-Empathy? The Climate Crisis and Mental Health
Meet Dr Helen O’Neill: molecular geneticist, lecturer at UCL and CEO of Hertility Health, the company on a mission to de-mystify the bewildering world of female reproductive health and put women in charge of their own biology. Continue reading Hertility: The Company Empowering Women to Take Charge of their Future
Now that the month is over, it feels like a good time to consider the scope of what the Movember movement is tackling in terms of men’s physical and mental health. First started in 2003 in Australia when four friends asked twenty-six others to ‘bring back the trend’ of growing moustaches, Movember has come a long way – raising £598 million over the last sixteen years. The annual event has become about more than just growing out your facial hair, with men and women across the globe raising awareness and money for this worthwhile cause. Continue reading More Than Moustaches: Why Movember Matters
