Read our latest posts

19Feb

Why Writers Need Retreats

Deborah Dooley

creativity, retreats

Soul

 Most writers develop the ability to block out noise and a certain amount of chaos. Complete peace and quiet is a rare commodity, so in the interests of getting any work done, this is a skill worth nurturing. What writers don’t always manage is to block out the endless nagging feeling that there is something else they should be doing. And this feeling is invariably made worse when the writer is working from home – as so many writers do. The answer of course, is to leave home for a while and go on a retreat. Preferably a writing retreat. A jobbing journalist, as I was...
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18Feb

What is Scaravelli Yoga?

Lucy Greeves

exercise, wellbeing, yoga

Body

Having studied with some of the most inspirational teachers in India, Vanda Scaravelli set up her own yoga style, based on gravity and its effect on the body
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18Feb

Applying to University? Read This.

Anne Wilson

career, education, student, university

Work

Choosing your course at university is a complex subject, so you should start early if you are thinking of applying for tertiary education
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17Feb

Is Your Diet Causing Chronic Inflammation?

Noonie Zand

nutrition, wellbeing

Body

When studying nutrition I was initially very taken by the idea, provided by one of my tutors, that inflammation is the seat of all chronic disease. This concept had never crossed my mind before as I had always thought of inflammation as being the acute kind – the pain, heat, swelling and redness that is the result of scraping your knee or cutting your finger. Of course this kind of inflammation is important and, in a place without antibiotics or antiseptics, it is life-saving. This is because it is the body’s primary mechanism for dealing with trauma and...
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17Feb

The Ground Beneath My Feet: a Fear of the Unknown

Owen Stone

anxiety, phobias, psychology

Mind

I was 13 when I had my first panic attack, though I didn’t know what it was then. I was at a café in Biarritz when I got a chicken bone lodged in my throat. My entire body went white hot; I became convinced I was going to die. The blood drained to my feet, every bit of me screamed to get outside, so I walked around the block eating yoghurt until the fear drained away. When we got back to New Zealand, the same white heat would flow through my body again whenever we would go to a café or restaurant. I had to give myself ‘outs.’ Sit facing the door. Don’t order food....
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14Feb

How Couples Counselling Deals With Affairs

Nathalie McClure

couples, divorce, marriage, relationships

Therapists

Counsellors have different ways of dealing with couples who've had affairs, but healing is possible – here's how relationship counselling can help couples move forward after betrayal
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13Feb

How Empathy Can Advance Your Career

Anne Wilson

career, empathy, work

Work

You can use empathy at work to help you understand what your colleagues and boss are thinking says Anne Wilson
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13Feb

How to Meditate: Discovering Headspace

Nick Duerden

meditation, mindfulness

Soul

In his book Headspace: 10 Minutes Can Make All The Difference, Andy Puddicombe writes: "This is meditation, but not as you know it. There's no chanting, no sitting cross-legged, no need for any particular beliefs… and definitely no gurus." This, then, is  Meditation 2.0,  aiming to free the practice from its hippy associations . Puddicombe is mindfulness's first poster boy, a former monk and  circus trainer, who boasts good bone structure and an Abercrombie & Fitch dress sense. The New York Times has already suggested he is "doing for meditation what Jamie...
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12Feb

What I Would Tell the Younger Me

Angela Neustatter

friendship, marriage

Soul

Angela Neustatter contemplates what she would tell her younger self
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11Feb

What is Yin Yoga?

Lucy Greeves

yoga

Body

The American cartoonist Scott Adams once observed, “There are two types of yoga: the kind that hurts like crazy, and the kind that looks like you’re sleeping.” Yin yoga definitely falls into the latter camp.
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