First world problems

This video made me think. We throw around the #firstworldproblems line way to much and I don't like it anymore. I think this video was quite poignant to me and made me think about it and what a yucky phrase it really is.

Inspiration

I found an interesting article the other day. Baileys surveyed 4000 women to ask them who inspired them. The results were quite astonishing as most of the women picked fictional characters rather than real women!! It made me think about who inspires me.

• My mum and the women in my family- ok... it's a broad group here! But my mum, sister, aunties, cousin, grandma and my lovely Nannie who is no longer with us are all wonderful in their own rights. I love them dearly and I think that makes them all the more important! 

• My friends- I have some really wonderful friends. I don't really want to bore you by going through and naming every one of them. But they're wonderful and each and every one is special to me!!

• Now actresses are an interesting one- again in the Independent article, many of the inspirational women were actresses. I have actress heroines such as Judy Dench, Julie Walters, Helen Mirren, Maggie Smith and Julie Andrews who are all women I admire for their talent. But again, I wonder how much of my admiration is for their characters rather than precisely for them as individuals. Julie Walters and Helen Mirren particularly inspire me in Calendar Girls, my favourite film. I think this therefore means that I'm actually inspired by Angela Baker; the original calendar girl who raised money in memory of her husband. 

• Now many people know I'm a huge fan of the Bodygossip; through being an ambassador for the campaign I have met the wonderful Tash Devon, Ruth Rogers, Sarah Fullager and Charlotte Gatherer. Now this lot are all pretty incredible too! They inspire me to love my body in all of its real glory! 

• Now the reality is... I could go on for a long time thinking of all the women who inspire me in life. It heartens me to know there are so many fabulous ladies out there who I hope one day to be even a fraction as great as they are. 

Here's to having real life heros! 

My friends are pretty wonderful!

I wanted to write something quickly to acknowledge the amazing things a couple of my friends are doing right now! It has to be a quick post as I should be working haha! I'm not saying that all my friends aren't wonderful but I wanted to mention Gerry and Jazz today.

Today Gerry is walking 13km in aid of a really lovely charity that's fairly new in charity terms!
Associação Livro Aberto is an organisation that provides books and literacy training to children in Mozambique. It's a really lovely idea that by teaching these children to read, they can then go on to change their own lives and the lives of their families. 

Jazz, my other fabulous friend, comes across as being one of the strongest most determined people I know! She's walking 10 miles in aid of the Children's Chronic Arthritis Association. Now for Jazz 10 miles is a lot as she has arthritis herself. Jazz is a bit of a hero for me... not that I tell her as I don't want to inflate her ego too much!! She doesn't complain about her arthritis and just gets on with life in such an awesome and determined way. For her to completing this walk is going to take a lot of strength and energy and I think she's being totally amazing doing it. She deserves tons of sponsorship!!! 

So yeah... my friends are pretty damn fabulous! xx

Better sleep

So tonight is just going to be a really quick post. I feel the need to blog but don't have the energy for a long one! This week I have realised the importance of sleep. Arguably I have the ability to go rather nutty without it. So I'm going to try hard to get myself into a bit more of a good sleeping routine. I've had a read of the national sleep foundation website and they have some pretty useful information about sleep hygiene.. something which sounds a bit random! Sleep hygiene is what's needed for you to have good sleep. Simple enough! I thought I would share some of their tips about ways to get better sleep. My aim is to adopt these to try and improve my own sleep quality!

• Avoid stimulants during the day... now as I don't drink caffeine this should be easy enough.
• Avoid napping in the day- again this is something I rarely do... so hopefully not something I need to worry about too much! 
• Do some vigorous exercise during the day, then something relaxing close to bed. I'm a massive fan of pre-bedtime yoga! 
• Eat earlier on in the evening, late night meals can cause wakefullness. 
• Sort out a good nighttime routine! This is something I need to sort out! I'm going to give myself a bedtime again... like off of when I was 5! 
• Create a pleasant sleep environment. Now this is tricky as a student as my room often doubles as a working area. I guess avoiding the temptation to work from bed will be a good start! 

To finish, here are some pictures of some really cute sleeping animals. 

Night night xxx

What a lot of rage.

Today I have been working on my research methods project proposal. I chose an area to focus on that I am passionate about and interested in, for research methods this is a rarity. I realise the importance of it as an area of study... but knowing this doesn't make it any more fun! So my chosen topic area was 'Body Image and Anorexia', finally a choice on the list that really interests me. So anyway... today I have been writing a proposal based on investigating thoughts and feelings associated with the use of images of low weight anorexics in media articles. Essentially my thoughts seem to echo those of Esther Rich and Ilona Burton in that the use of these images is damaging for individuals who see them and definitely doesn't promote recovery and raise awareness of these psychological conditions. I wholeheartedly agree with B-eat's suggestions for a better media guidelines surrounding the publication of stories about eating disorders. 

It seems slightly ironic that whilst writing this today my Facebook timeline seems to be full of a lot of rage about a topic that seems to tie in with my work and kind of prove my point. It takes a lot to make me really really cross about something but Samantha Brick's ridiculous article has managed to propel me into such a high level of rage; at least I could congratulate her on her ability to write the most awful article I think I have ever read. 

I saw the article described as 'attention-seeking drivel-bollocks' by the wonderful Natasha Devon- co-founder of Body Gossip, Body Image guru and essentially one of my idols! Tash had a really interesting response to the article which is definitely worth a read. That lady is pretty wise! 

As a feminist and body image campaigner and activist Brick's article made me feel cross and disheartened that something like that was published. I agree with Tash that the fact she's cause so much controversy will ultimately mean she is asked to write again. But I still fundamentally disagree with the fact that an article that promotes such unhealthy habits is allowed to be out their in the human sphere. I'm not a great believer in the age old thoughts that the media is a causal factor in the development of eating disorders, as a psychological condition there is a heck of a lot more to it than that. BUT I don't think the media is a helpful influence. Brick has basically tried to pass off disordered eating as something women should strive to achieve. In a sense I feel sorry for her that she has such a negative opinion in herself and self esteem that seems to be so reactive to her weight. 

The main problem I have is that the Daily Mail have published an article that is basically a form of pro-anorexia 'thinspiration' and that makes me sad and cross simultaneously. I want to see articles about real people with healthy lifestyles who are happy in their own skin. How can we expect young people to feel ok about themselves with this kind of rubbish being published by influential media sources. I mean come on... there are media guidelines surrounding suicides that prevent reports to provide intimate details that would allow someone to use them as a guide to take their own lives. Yet this kind of article is allowed to be published and people like Samantha Brick gain a position in the media that they shouldn't have. 

I'd like to see more in the media like this incredible video Dove recently released and more campaigns like those Body Gossip bring to the world. I want to see more about REAL people who don't have to damage themselves to be 'accepted' as beautiful. If that's what beautiful really is... then I'm pretty happy to not be like it at all. 

Why we don't need pictures of skeletal individuals to raise awareness of eating disorders

Now... I fear this post may become somewhat of a rant! I have a real pet hate of the media's need to publish pictures of excruciatingly thin people when talking about eating disorders. Programs like Supersize Vs Superskinny end up making me so angry. One of the first things that is told to people who suffer with problems with their eating is that it's NOT all about their weight. Not only are the images, in a way, offering the idea to young people that such a size is not only achievable but that you can look 'ok' weighing the same. I'm not even really raging about skinny models or mannequins now, but more about the 'look at me at my lowest weight' type articles that fill trashy mags.

It makes me sad that these images are such an important part of a sufferers story for a number of reasons:

1. Eating disorders are not ALL about food/weight, showing images of very very thin people not only implies that you have to be that thin to be unwell, but also minimises all of the psychological symptoms of the disorders. 
2. It's not a good image to portray to people who are unwell with an eating disorder and can feel that these kind of weights are what they should look like.
3. It makes a statement that your weight has to be very low to have an eating disorder and completely over simplifies the range of different weights of sufferers. 

I read an article by a B-eat ambassador who had been told my a journalist that she would need to provide images of her lowest weight to prove she had an eating disorder and this made me rage! I want to see images of healthy people who have overcome eating disorders and can celebrate having their healthy bodies back!! 

Ambassador's article

Kate xx

Autism Awareness Month

April is Autism Awareness Month. Autism is a condition that I feel isn't talk about enough. The Autism spectrum is interesting as some of the individuals who are deemed to be on it are able to function much more normally than others who are severely affected by the disorder.

The guardian have produced a gallery of photographs that were collated by individuals with the condition to help people to understand a little more about it. I thought the idea of doing this was a really amazing one. To me, the pictures demonstrated a lot of the feelings of isolation that come along with being Autistic; that sense of 'watching the world from the inside' but finding it hard to properly interact with it.

Guardian project

My feeling is that conditions such as Autism should be a topic for conversation, we should be talking about all of these forms of human difference and be embracing them and working them into everyday life more. The dichotomy between those who are normal and those who don't quite fit into that idea needs to radically changed. I'm not one for polar opposites and this is an area where I think we need to do a little more to make individuals with conditions that make them slightly different to the norm more included.

Kate xx

It would appear all I shall do is share videos...

A nine year olds perspective on the universe

One day I hope to have a child who is this great! How amazing is he?

The art of procrasti-blogging

Today I have a list of things that I need to do... here is a selection of my list:

1. Sell some things on ebay
2. Decide what I want to take home with me on Thursday/potentially start to pack
3. Clean my room... it's tidy but could do with a really good hoover and dust
4. Do some washing
5. Do some more catch up reading/lecture stuff
6. Book my car into the garage
7. Sort out my life in general! Ha! 

So.... with this big long list of things to do... I feel the urge to write lots today and ignore all of the things I really ought to be doing! Therefore today will be filled with a selection of things that take my interest and excite me more than my to-do list! 

Also... I really like this picture from Dove, it's just amazing! 

A jumbled collection of thoughts of the day!

Today I had a very brief moment of writers block... well perhaps not even block but the precursor to what may have developed into it! I quashed this quickly by asking a few friends for some blogging ideas for today. Hence my rather muddled combination of topics.

My first thought for today is an Easter based thought. My lovely friend Meg suggested I write something about making new starts. Easter eggs have historical significance as being symbols of rebirth and new starts. I found a blog with some Easter egg history on it that looked pretty awesome.

Virtual Victorian Easter Eggs

I like the thought of Easter eggs being a more symbolic gift than one of basic chocolatey greed?? I'm not sure I want to use the word greed here... but in some cases it seems that way with the over indulgence that is shown with these kind of holidays. But anyway... enough of my chocolate based cynicism for now!!

There tends to be a real sense of new beginnings around New Year, but I don't see why this needs to be the only time people can take stock of their lives, make changes and benefit from them. I think being able to make new starts by working out what isn't quite working in life and being able to modify it to be better for yourself is a huge part of Mindfulness. I know I have aspects of my life that I really ought to try and modify... such as my inability to say now to exciting projects and roles even when I know I don't have another second to spare or my harsh sense of perfection that haunts my degree work.. however perhaps these are things I need to gradually work on. Maybe a new start doesn't have to be completely drastic but more of an acknowledgement that you're making changes slowly but surely for the positive.

Now my friend Laura wanted me to write about farm animals. I had a bit of a temptation to find some really cute pictures to fill my blog with, but then I came across a really interesting article about farm animals being used to help individuals with mental health problems! PAT animals aren't anything new. Cats and dogs are often considered to be helpful to individuals suffering with mental health problems but Norwegian researchers found that being on a farm could help with a number of mental health conditions.

Mental health on the farm

For me, animals have always been a huge part of my life. I find in times of stress or upset or just general difficulty it's really helpful to have a creature who is reliant on you to look after them. I think they do have a therapeutic power and I know my... arguably slightly odd relationship with my cat is evidence that animals can be a real friend to you too. I know Stitch will always love me in his own funny way.

And I guess if you can't find a real life farm to visit.... Fourways Farm is a pretty good substitute and it doesn't smell... Oh how I used to adore this program!

My final suggestion for the day was monkeys! I found a lovely article about Orangutans, I have a real soft spot for them since my trip to Borneo with The Blue Cross... more on that in another blog! However, I found an article about the International Orangutan Foundation and how they make sure their quarantined orangutans have lots of toys to play with and things to do to help keep them health both physically and mentally. I thought it was lovely and think it's really relevant to people too... if you're not keeping your mind active, you're more likely to have a harder time keeping your mental health at it's best. So perhaps thinking of new things to do each week is a good start to helping you feel more on top of things.

Enriched Orangutans!

I think that's all for today

Love Kate xx