Lifestyle

We prepare for cooking by buying plates and cups, we prepare for paying accommodation fees by budgeting and we prepare for workloads by organising events in a diary. But no one tells us how to prepare for loneliness. “University will be the best years of your life!” “You’re most likely going to meet your husband or wife at uni!” “All the friends I talk to now are ones I met at university!” From the time we are accepted into university, we are bombarded with optimistic praises from post- graduates and adults that it was the best years of their lives and that we have so much to look forward to. Hollywood films project a harmful stereotype about teenagers finding their romantic soulmate and being the life of the party at a different club every night, drilling unrealistic expectat...

For many of us around the world, a new year represents a fresh new start and the chance to set goals such as getting fit, being more adventurous or reconnecting with distant friends. Those awkward days between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day are usually filled with anticipation and excitement for the year ahead, but it’s safe to say that this time around, it was such a relief when 2020 finally came to an end. Who would have thought at the end of 2019 that words and phrases such as “social distancing,” “unprecedented” and “quarantine” would enter our everyday language as a virus that practically appeared out of thin air swamped the entire world? The devastating impact that the pandemic has had across the globe left many of us feeling helpless. Three national lockdowns later, it’s safe to ...

Renée Lewis The damaging impact single-use plastics have on the environment has become a global concern over the past few decades, especially because they are present in so many everyday products and packaging. The British Plastics Federation has estimated that 32% of single-use plastics end up in the sea each year, which would be the same as one rubbish van full of plastic being dumped into the ocean every minute. Consequently, tiny particles from these plastics have been entering the food chain after being eaten by fish and other marine life, which has been causing them harm and even killing them. Thankfully, big corporations, supermarket chains and individuals have been actively reducing the amount of plastic they have been using, opting to use more sustainable materials instead. If...

Elena McCaffrey As I’m writing this, the chaos of Black Friday – Fast Fashion’s favourite day – has just begun. However, in the year that Amazon has reigned supreme, we should be doing everything we can to support small businesses. A thing to remember is that small businesses often process their Christmas stock really early, so if you’ve missed your chance, don’t be afraid to get your loved ones a gift card. This could feel like a cop out, but the right card can make a really lovely gift.  Here are some of my favourite small businesses:  Oski Studios: www.oskistudio.co.uk Instagram: @oski.studio There is nothing better than receiving a gorgeous piece of jewellery as a Christmas present. What’s even better is knowing that it was made sustainably and came from a pla...

Renée Lewis University life this academic year has been a lot more stressful and unfamiliar than before, with anxieties about the pandemic being added to the pre-existing worries and stress about managing workload and other commitments. Naturally, it has become even more important to not only take care of our physical health, but our mental health too. The practice of actively protecting one’s wellbeing – known as “self-care” – has become a phenomenon in recent years, and you may have come across self-care threads on social media. However, I have noticed that the advice on many of these threads rarely extended past tips like “drink water” or “do a face mask”, which aren’t always effective in reducing stress and anxiety. Here are some tips that may help: Cover all the basics With ...

Harriet Hallam Mental health issues impact us all, adults and children, but unfortunately many suffer from ill mental health, making day-to-day life a lot harder than it is for others. It is not until recently that society started to understand mental health and the importance of balancing work and pleasure, and we can now be more open when talking about it. According to mental health charity Mind, 1 in every 4 people experience some form of mental illness in their lifetime, 1 in every 6 people experience a more common mental health disorder such as anxiety or depression, and 1 in every 5 people experience some form of suicidal thoughts. These figures illustrate the sheer commonality of mental health problems within society, and that each individual has either suffered themselves or kn...

Thom Cuffin-Munday Besides adding beautiful earthy colours and allowing mother nature into your room, there are many health benefits to having houseplants. According to the Royal Horticultural Society, these include improving mood and attention span, as well as reducing stress, blood pressure, fatigue and headaches (by up to 25% in one study!). In my experience, houseplants also have a psychological benefit – understanding the basic needs of a houseplant, such as regular watering, sunlight and warmth, helped me to understand my own basic needs. Just like human beings, your plants’ health can begin to deteriorate without daily care and attention.  On a base level, a plant respires in the exact opposite way we do. They ‘breathe in’ carbon dioxide and ‘breathe out’ oxygen, so a ho...

Thom Cuffin-Munday *Disclaimer: the following article is meant to entertain and provide information on different beliefs and approaches rather than provide medical advice* In Western culture, the use of scientific methods has arguably been the primary approach to the treatment of mental health, with medication and psychoanalytic therapy being some of the most popular options suggested by GPs in the UK. However, across the East/West binary, the Eastern approach to mental health and wellbeing focuses less on finding the root cause of the issue and more on proactive, self-care methods to retrain yourself and shape your own psychology. This is known as holistic therapy, and is an approach that attempts to heal the whole person rather than their symptoms, aiming to change mindsets and ou...

Some content in this article may be uncomfortable and/or triggering  My experience of sex education at school was bizarre and that seems to be a common theme. Everything was taught through a song, a strange cartoon, or a game, and the limitations of the content are frankly scary. Excluding putting condoms on phallic objects, and scaremongering about pregnancy and STIs, what did we learn? The answer is practically nothing of value. Providing a useful and inclusive sex education curriculum would be absolutely invaluable to young people in navigating themselves as well as society in general. Here are a few of my suggestions. Focusing on women’s health Surely at the very least the aim of sex education should be to inform teenagers about their bodies, and make them feel comfor...

I think we’ve all been there, while glaring at the smooth, perfectly toned model in barely-there underwear we feel a blanket of self-loathing surrounds us. For me, the questioning always begins with, ‘How on earth am I meant to get my boobs in there without them dangling down by my knees?’ I find myself in a difficult battle with saucy underwear. Sometimes it feels so badass to be wearing something that makes me feel sexy. But then I question myself.  Who am I wearing it for? and Why does shopping for it make me feel so sh*t? Ever since we were little we’ve been told to strive to look like the ideal woman: tanned…but not too dark, skinny…but not too skinny, big boobs…but perky, curvy…but only in the right places, hairless…but without any signs of removal. All in all we must be eff...