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My parents didn't exactly follow the norm, they raised a family of vegetarians at a time when people didn't really know that was and as much as they possibly could. Sure we were all vaccinated and if we got really sick then we saw a doctor but for everything else there was an alternative remedy. I will admit knowing what to keep in your medicine cupboard (bar panadol) in case of illness or for the avoidance of same has come in handy but I don't follow this lifestyle exactly to the letter. I will admit to having a low pain threshold and basically being a bit of a wimp when it comes to illness. So I'll take extra garlic and oil of oregano at the first signs of a head cold but if I'm working long hours or really feeling unwell, I am straight into the nearest chemist asking for whatever drugs they are willing to give me over the counter.  In my social care job we have a night duty rotation every five weeks as I am sure I have mentioned in many other blog posts. Ni...

To be a woman online is quite a daunting prospect. This is a fact many men have great difficulty fathoming but I would say it is probably more unusual for a man to be made to feel deeply uncomfortable or unsafe from just internet contact. Now, you there in the back, before you hit me with not all men. I know this. I fully accept that not every man I speak to is going to be a creep or in any way a threat to me but on the other hand it is fair to see I have had the misfortune to encounter many who fall into this category and it makes me a little wary in my online interactions. So I have a little bit of online presence. In that I use a variety of social media so I suppose it does make certain details of my life somewhat accessible. I obviously have this blog but I have never had unwanted attention because of that. Largely I believe because my following is pretty small and I would say 99% of my readership are people who have actually met me in person but that's cool because this i...

I don't think I'd ever really been on holidays by myself before and I will admit to being a little bit concerned at the prospect. I had wanted to go away for a few days last year but my ex (then actual boyfriend) was a bit put out at the thought that I might go away without him (even though in truth it was mostly relationship related drama I needed a break from) and persuaded me to go away with him which went as well as you might imagine and we split up two weeks later. So I was worried that I might be bored or lonely if away too long plus I still wanted to get in some training and I had an appointment I couldn't cancel on Thursday morning and then I decided I would have a mini break Thursday to Sunday. I had already cleared with my parents because they own the house I was staying in and I had to make sure they weren't going to be using it.  As I discovered over the few days, I am actually very well equipped to travel alone and I had a lovely and relaxing time. I ...