Words

{Guest post}Sara-Louise Martin. Navigating the loss of a Father

June 18, 2018

A post by Sara-Louise Martin a dear friend of mine. SL (as she is known in our house) and I met in our early teens through an organisation which ran activities for children who had lost a parent. We reconnected a number of years ago which has been such a blessing and the timing has been perfect (for me at least) as I have started to unravel my own grief journey with some guidance and a gentle nod of the head from SL who knows so many of the feelings and thoughts I wrestle. We refer to ourselves as being part of the “Dead Dad’s club” which adds a little humour and lightness to the lives we lead!

Grab a cuppa and read Sara Louise’s powerful story and tips for handling the mass that grief can weigh in our day to day lives.
Navigating the loss of a father… Continue Reading…

Wellbeing

Art + fitness are good for your mental health.

June 1, 2018

A psychologist I am not but a living breathing, emotional, reactive human being I most certainly am. Therefore, my blog allows me to share thoughts, some of my life and my (mainly personal) findings in relation to this topic of art and fitness. It is something I am so passionate about and excited to share with you. In this post we will discuss how art and fitness are linked and how they will improve your overall state of mind. Continue Reading…

Wellbeing

Stefanie McCluskey – Expert of the month

April 30, 2018

I met Stefanie through Mike McCommish and we got along royally! She never stops smiling, laughing and inspiring online and offline. She personal trains clients with such genuine enthusiasm and care. Stefanie holds fitness, food and fashion afternoons in Podium 4 sport which you should keep an eye out for. She is also an athlete with a powerful personal drive for getting better and stronger.  Continue Reading…

Wellbeing

Here’s to you, strong female.

April 6, 2018

“ The emerging woman … will be strong-minded, strong-hearted, strong-souled, and strong-bodied…strength and beauty must go together.”Louisa May Alcott

From Fifty shades of grey ( Jamie, I’m sorry, as lovely as you are, these movies are terrible) to the more serious cases in and out of court around sexual harassment, women are at the centre.
Continue Reading…

Featured, Words

Accepting grief.

March 27, 2018

I read in last months Women’s Health Magazine, in noted that we should be more open and honest in life. Apparently, this helps us to move forward with our lives and to prevent getting “stuck” in toxic friendships and relationships.

When I read it I was drawn to the bullet points they had at the end of the article. One read “Tackle grief …”. It progressed to say how we are held back by unprocessed emotions, grief being one of them.

As someone who “lost” (he didn’t fall of a pier but “lost” seems to be the terminology used often to describe death) my father a week before my eighth birthday, I can put my hand on my similarly defected heart (Dad died due to heart problems) and agree that the notion of dealing with grief stood out to me because it rang so true to me. Continue Reading…

Wellbeing, Words

Feed your mind, the digital way. Libraries NI

March 10, 2018

When I am asked to partner with a brand my first thought/question is always, without hesitation “ Is this the right fit for me and my audience?”.

So ,when  libraries NI approached me – a name and facility which was a huge part of my childhood, my pregnancies, my marriage, the baby years with my first two boys-  I was immediately in and couldn’t wait to find out more for you.

Reading and writing ironically became my favourite thing to do after my years at School which was sadly a little late to pull the A grade I was predicted out of the bag for my incredible teacher, Mrs Black in Friends school Lisburn. Continue Reading…

Food

Sweet potato + coconut soup – Cohu nutrition

March 3, 2018

 

Thanks to Kathleen for sharing her delicious recipe and her story with us. It is a pleasure to have her in my little blog space. Scroll to the bottom to see where you can find her online and enjoy this perfect soup between snow showers in Northern Ireland! 

Name: Kathleen Henderson

  • A food lover for how long? I would say that I have always loved food! However, when I moved to Northern Ireland in 2010, after marrying my husband Daniel (a Coleraine native), I started to get more into nutrition simply because I started cooking more from scratch. Most of the familiar foods that I grew up on in America were not available over here and so I started cooking more from scratch and feeling better for it! I studied medicine for my undergraduate degree and therefore healthcare was always important to me, however, moving to Northern Ireland became a shift for me towards focusing on the role of nutrition and lifestyle in the prevention of ill health.

Continue Reading…

Words

Serving others is good for you

February 20, 2018

I don’t know about you, but the reality tv programme Love island was a shameless part of a my weekly tv watching last year.

After it ended my phone battery took a hit as I crept online at the couples. Olivia and her baby faced farmer, Amber and Kem, Marcel and Gabby (my faves) and of course hot Calvin Klein model Jamie Jewitt and Camilla Thurlow.
All of whom are fascinating to watch as they plummet into the wave of stardom since their departure from Majorca.

What stands out for me about Cam and Jamie is their desire to serve others. Yes, you might think some of it a little contrived or look at Camilla and her privileged upbringing thinking “it’s alright for her standing in a soup kitchen while I’m here in my 9-5 trying to make my own ends meet”.All of which is perfectly valid but… Continue Reading…

Wellbeing

Why massage works – Smart physio

February 9, 2018

In response to my first blogpost of 2018 which you can find here -10 body shifts you need in 2018- tell me, what have you done for your self care routine since you read it?

Share in the comments below as I am also in the position where I want ALL the change and want it ALL now – yoga in my life, less meat (I have actually managed that for two meals this past week) , stretching etc etc.

However, no matter how good our best intentions are, often we feel overwhelmed and rather than start small (which is was what I suggest we do in the blogpost) we rush in.

So, share your achievements even if they are one less meeting in the work diary or a stretch of the legs after dinner. I want to know and to support you as you allow self care to be a part of your world.

In relation to self care I mentioned that I am attending physiotherapy for six weeks with Maura of Smart physio. Continue Reading…