Blogs (Page 2)

Pregnancy and motherhood are presented to us with very specific imagery growing up – always an aura of serenity surrounding them, pictures of peace and tranquility, an expectation of feeling completeness when considering any aspect of birth, pregnancy, and motherhood. What more could one want than the gift of motherhood? It is presented as the ultimate job, the most beautiful experience, the greatest love of all. And whilst it can feel like this for some, seeing as all people are different, the idea that this is the blueprint for motherhood is a false facade, a rose-tinted glass dome placed upon the reality of life, leavingRead More…

The gender norms that society applies to us from the moment the doctor tells our parents whether we fall into the category of Boy or Girl are stifling to say the least… Picture this – a person finds out they are pregnant and they excitedly tell their partner. This couple is pleased because the pregnancy was planned and they welcome it. With bated breath they await the week that they are able to find out what the gender of their baby is – ‘we must make plans!’, ‘we must know what colours to paint the room!’. The gender is revealed to them by their doctor,Read More…

There is an expectation by all to dissect and ridicule, with there being only one seeming aim throughout all of this – shame … The most interesting and enjoyable things to be experienced in life lay beyond the comments one finds themselves capable of conjuring about other people. The feeling is palpable, you haven’t seen your family in a while and you are going to have lunch with them, and all of a sudden your body breaks out into a cold sweat – not because you are nervous of seeing people you have known your entire life, no, unless you have generalised anxiety this isRead More…

Maya Angelou once said “Each time I write a book, every time I face that yellow pad, the challenge is so great. I have written eleven books, but each time I think, ‘Uh oh, they’re going to find out now. I’ve run a game on everybody and they’re going to find me out.” Imposter Syndrome (or, imposter phenomenon) is very real, and our brains are very tired. It can loosely be defined as the feeling and worry of being undeserved for that which one has achieved, received, earned, or even who one is. Many of us can perhaps relate, in varying degrees, to envisioning aRead More…

What does Feminism mean? And, most importantly perhaps, what does Feminism mean in the twenty-first century, and what do feminists need to bring to the table? Feminism has gone through many easily definable eras, from the suffragette movements ever-present at the turn of the century, to those focused on reproductive health and workers’ rights throughout the 1960s straight into the 1990s. Although many around the world are still fighting for reproductive healthcare and rights, which upon first glance should really have been resolved within this Second Wave, we now find ourselves in an entirely new era of the movement. Ever since the internet emerged asRead More…