Wellness blog

There’s no such thing as a perfect Christmas. The perfect Christmas only exists on the screen. The pressure for perfect is all around- and starts earlier and earlier. It’s like a race, isn’t it? The pressure to make all your own paper (eco-friendly, of course) , to have the gifts wrapped monogrammed by mid-August and the turkey to be picture perfect is NOT what Christmas is all about. Besides, turkey is a dry old bird. A nice juicy chicken is much less hassle and, in my opinion, far tastier!  I’m not running that race anymore. It’s exhausting and no one...

Today I released my podcast with Sarah Benson, CEO of Women's Aid Ireland. What she shared with me is confronting- we all know someone who has been touched by domestic abuse, even if we are not actually aware of it.   The sad reality is that at Christmas time this abuse increases. And it doesn’t just affect women. Society as a whole suffers. It pulls at the threads that hold us all together in the caring love all human beings deserve. Children are often caught in the cross hairs, under the care of their mother who struggles and puts on a brave face....

  When times seem hopeless, look for the helpers. No matter what tragedy unfolds- and there are many- humankind rallies and organises to carry aid to those who need it, to gather community, to rebuild. It’s easy to feel low though, isn’t it? We are bombarded with bad news stories, complaints on the radio, cost of living, crises here in Ireland and beyond globally. We are pinged by our phones, making sure we know all the bad things, all the time. It’s easy to get snowed under with it all.  However, it’s not normal to be aware of global strife all...

🎄Do we really need to be frazzled and stressed every Christmas? Honestly, is everything on that to-do list absolutely essential? And what about those people who only pop up once a year and somehow manage to suck all the joy out of you? Could you skip the visit altogether, or maybe just send a lovely card or a box of chocolates or bottle of wine instead? Let’s be real here. This time of year can be mad for all sorts of reasons. Between school plays, Christmas jumper days, and cake sales, to work parties and hosting family dinners, the calendar...