Trauma ? woundedness ? loss Trauma can be described as any incident or experience that cause a threat to your perception of being safe and secure.  After a trauma experience, nothing is the same as before.  Trauma is woundedness, and vulnerability that can be physical and emotional.  This woundedness always has a component of loss. Some types of traumatic experiences: An accident Crime Abuse – verbal, physical, emotional, and sexual Violence Illness and disease Natural disasters Moving to a recent house / Relocation Divorce Death – natural or violent Retrenchment / Loss of work The threat to safety and security…

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Since the rise of the internet, we have been overwhelmed with information like never before: news as it happens, fake news, facts, life stories, conspiracy theories, and rumours every second of the day.  Fake news affects our lives negatively – because it is usually terrible news. Trained journalists covered stories before the internet and verified information to the best of their ability. Nowadays, anyone can write anything and post it. Reports can be made up or twisted, and photos altered. True or untrue, a story spreads worldwide faster than you can put your socks on. “Social media allows you to…

Depression in women Fast facts on depression & anxiety in South Africa, according to SADAG: 1 out of every 6 South Africans (+10 million people) suffer from depression, anxiety and substance abuse problems 1 in 3 women in Cape Town suffers from postnatal depression. 41% of pregnant women in Kwazulu-Natal are depressed (3 x times higher than the prevalence in developed countries.) Six million South African have post-traumatic stress disorder because of crime and motor vehicle accidents. Less than 16% of South Africans get help for mental illnesses More information on depression in women How do black women experience depression?…

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Before the interview – prepare yourself psychologically.¹ Accept that you have flaws and lack of virtues – all of us have. Accept yourself as you are. That includes the things you would instead try to hide. Remember, there are no perfect employers, neither are there perfect candidates. Most people are nervous before an interview. Fear of failure can make your mind go blank during the interview. The only way to relax and rid yourself of fearing rejection is to expect defeat in advance. You are going to the interview not to get hired—but to go through an interview. Do not…

An estimated 150,000 people belong to 100 gangs on the Cape Flats, some of which date back to the 1940s. Gangsterism is a global phenomenon. It includes groups’ formation to commit violence and crime and defend themselves physically against the violence of other groups. Gangsterism is often characterised as antisocial behaviour. Gangs emerge from within communities and have many root causes, such as socioeconomic conditions (unemployment, low-income employment, and poor living conditions) that lead to poverty and deprivation. ‘Drugs are the main currency of gangs—peddling drugs is the most lucrative activity. In addition, kingpins run other ‘legitimate’ businesses to launder…

I recently watched parents in shopping malls with their kids. I saw a mom leaning over her shopping trolley, in which a child stood crying, trying to get the mom’s attention. Instead, she was texting, seemingly oblivious to her child’s distress. I watched families in restaurants—where young kids were misbehaving and trying to get attention, and both parents were happily texting away, also seemingly oblivious to their kids’ needs. My question is now – how has it happened that the person on the other side of your cell phone has become more important than the real-life ones you have around…

“There’s no point in talking to you: you don’t understand me. You don’t even know me.” For many moms, these are devastating words. After all the effort, love, and care, it feels like your child is a world away from you. Moms are not superheroes, and we make mistakes. It is hard if a child throws that back in your face, and a rift between you and your child suddenly develops with the onset of puberty. The fact that teens live on their cell phones and prefer to communicate via text hampers communication between family members even more. They chat…

A virus is a parasite. It cannot survive on its own. Viruses are not plants, animals, or bacteria, but they are the living kingdoms’ parasites. Viruses are not technically alive: They are like a brain without a body. To make more copies of itself, a virus must hijack our cells and use them to make new viruses. Without a host cell, viruses cannot carry out their life-sustaining functions or reproduce.  Well-known diseases caused by viruses are different types of flu, Ebola, smallpox, HIV, Hepatitis, Rabies, and Herpes, to name a few. The HIV  lifecycle¹ When viruses reproduce, it is called…

“Oh darling! You can’t fix yourself by breaking someone else!” Kim Jones Pothier What is Revenge-porn? Revenge porn, also known as ”non-consensual sharing of sexual images”, is the distribution of one or more sexually explicit photos of someone else without the subject’s permission. The photo may be one that the victim took herself and naively shared with the eventual poster, a photo taken by someone else (usually an ex-boyfriend or lover), or an image taken from the victim’s computer or device by a hacker. The victims are overwhelmingly female, and the damage done to their reputations and psyches can be…

It can take approximately 18 months after a loss for people to no longer experience significant grief levels. At this point, life often returns to a more ‘normal’ state, according to Psychology Today, with the vast majority of individuals reporting that they have experienced some level of recovery. However, whether you experienced a loss recently or years ago, there is no “normal” amount of grieving time. Despite the average two weeks in which people feel the worst emotions after a loss, some triggers can instantly ignite feelings of intense sorrow and pain for years to come. It is especially true…

Weight loss is a topic that never gets old. Many desire to lose weight faster and easier, but the challenge remains to lose weight and keep it off. We often read about the next diet trend and new ways to make it easier to stay lean and look good. Our self-image is influenced heavily by what we perceive as ‘healthy’ on magazine covers, social media and television. But what does good health entail? Is it limited to the number we see on the scale? WHY IS IT NOT ADVISABLE TO FOLLOW A GENERIC (‘MAGAZINE’) DIET? Diet/ meal plans in magazines…

A schizoid personality disorder is a group of conditions called “Cluster ‘A’ ” or eccentric personality disorders. People with these disorders often appear odd or peculiar. Detached And Distant: Signs Your Loved One May Have Schizoid Personality Disorder A schizoid personality disorder is often characterised by antisocial behaviour, detachment from others, and lack of interest in personal relationships. At first, their behaviour may be masked as other issues, like clinical depression. Still, as time passes, they worsen rather than improve and continue isolating themselves, which illustrates a different problem. With closer observation, you may distinguish some specific symptoms/behaviours that could…

What Are Personality Disorders? People with personality disorders have long-standing thinking patterns and acting that differ from what society considers usual or customary. They are often unaware that they have a problem and do not believe they have anything to control. They have trouble perceiving and relating to situations and people. It causes significant problems and limitations in relationships, social activities, work and school. In some cases, you may not realise that you have a personality disorder because your way of thinking and behaving seems natural to you. And you may blame others for the challenges you face. Personality disorders…

The Australian government worked with leading parenting expert Dr Justin Coulson to provide practical support and resources to parents on this sensitive issue.  Why do you have to talk to your kids about this issue? ¹ 1: 10 kids in South  Africa watch porn every day. There is a very short period from when a kid starts watching porn to when they start acting out what they saw. Older siblings often become sexual predators of younger siblings. While more than 68% of high school children in SA admitted they had been exposed to online pornography, only 0.8% of kids told a…

Colleges TVET: Technical Vocational Education and Training courses are vocational or occupational by nature. The student receives education and training with a view towards a specific range of jobs or employment possibilities. Under certain conditions, some students may qualify for admission to a University of Technology to continue their studies at a higher level in the same field of study as they were studying at the TVET College. The colleges mainly offer courses on Levels 1 to 4 on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF). There are 50 registered and accredited public TVET Colleges in South Africa that operate on more than…

Parent: ”I know that my child can’t have ADHD. He can play video games forever!” What is ADHD? ADHD ( attention, in short, is a combination of inattention (disorganization) combined with hyperactivity (impulsivity). Persons who suffer from ADHD struggle to control their focus of attention and have a decreased ability to resist distractions. They have trouble with foresight and hindsight and have an increased need for immediate feedback and reward. When it comes to paying attention, ADHD doesn’t mean you can’t. It means you can’t pay attention to anything except the most interesting stimulus available. Therefore, a person with ADHD…

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself – nameless, unreasoning, unjustified, terror which paralyses needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.” A phobia is a type of anxiety disorder that describes an excessive and irrational fear of a specific object, activity, or situation. Phobias involve intense fear surrounding an object or situation that poses little or no real danger. They are different from common concerns in that the associated anxiety is so severe it interferes with daily life and the ability to function normally. People suffering from phobias may go to extreme lengths to avoid encountering or…

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Vaginitis is the term for any infection or inflammation of the vagina. These inflammations or infections may cause: itching irritation smelly abnormal vaginal discharge https://youtu.be/SLmeVCvUMQA There are  different types of vaginitis, each having its causes and symptoms: Yeast (Candida) infection is the most familiar form of vaginitis, occurring when too much of the fungus Candida grows in your vagina. Bacterial vaginosis is the most common vaginal infection in women of reproductive age, caused by an overgrowth of bacteria present in the vagina. Chlamydia is a curable infection which many women have and don’t even know it. Herpes simplex virus (genital…

Trichomoniasis, (also called “trich”) is a common sexually transmitted disease (STD) that affects both men and women. Trichomoniasis is caused by a protozoan parasite called Trichomonas vaginalis and is a cause of vaginal infections in women and urethral infections in men. It is characterised by a yellow or greenish discharge, painful sex & urination and red or soreness of genitalia. Trichomoniasis is the most common curable STI. How does it spread The parasite is passed from an infected person to an uninfected person during sex.  In women, the most commonly infected part of the body is the lower genital tract (vulva,…

Scabies is caused by a parasite that infects the skin and causes really intense itching. Scabies is transferred by skin-to-skin contact and can occur anywhere on the body. This means that while scabies can be passed through sexual contact, it is usually passed through non-sexual skin-to-skin contact. https://youtu.be/ivSsiJnpulc Symptoms Scabies causes intense itching and a pimply rash. The itching will often be worse at night than during the day. Itching and rash most often show up on the penis, buttocks, wrist, nipples, waist, shoulder blades, armpits, elbows and between the fingers, but it is not limited to these areas. Scabies…

Molluscum contagiosum is caused by a virus, a member of the poxvirus family. Pox viruses are brick or oval-shaped viruses. The virus may be sexually transmitted by skin-to-skin contact (it does not have to be mucous membranes) and/or lesions. It appears most common in children but can affect adults as well, especially those with weakened immune systems. In adults with an otherwise normal immune system, molluscum contagiosum involving the genitals is considered a sexually transmitted infection. https://youtu.be/F-dmnqj193E It can be spread sexually and by non-sexual contact through contaminated objects like towels, clothing or sex toys. Symptoms Symptoms include shiny, smooth,…

Since the early days of the HIV epidemic, HIV tests have improved considerably. We now have multiple methods to test for HIV infection, and today’s testing technologies are getting better at detecting new infections. This has led some HIV testing experts to suggest that we can detect the vast majority of HIV infections much earlier than many people realize. Did you know a home test is available that can give you a result within 20 minutes? The test uses an approved oral test method that detects antibodies to HIV in cells from your mouth. It is easy, convenient, and reliable.…

Pubic or “crab” lice are parasitic insects that survive by feeding on human blood. Pubic lice are parasites different from head or body lice and are usually found in the pubic hair. They can also be found in coarse body hair, such as eyebrows, beard, chest, or armpit hair. Pubic lice have forms: the egg (also called a nit), the nymph, and the adult. Nit: Nits are lice eggs. They can be hard to see and are found firmly attached to the hair shaft. They are oval and usually yellow to white. Pubic lice nits take about 6-10 days to…

Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is the most common vaginal infection in women of reproductive age, and it occurs when there is an overgrowth of certain “bad” bacteria in the vagina. Bacterial vaginosis is linked to an imbalance in the bacteria that are usually found in a female’s vagina – an imbalance in the vagina’s naturally occurring bacterial flora. However, nobody fully understands why this imbalance occurs. The vagina usually contains mostly good bacteria and few harmful bacteria – bacterial vaginosis occurs when these harmful bacteria grow in numbers. It is not known what role these harmful bacteria play in causing…

What is immunization? Immunization protects children (and adults) against harmful infections before they contact them in the community. Immunization uses the body’s natural defence mechanism – the immune response – to build resistance to specific infections. Nine diseases can be prevented by routine childhood immunization: Diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, poliomyelitis (polio), measles, mumps, rubella, Haemophilus influenza type b (Hib) and hepatitis B. All of these diseases can cause severe complications and sometimes death. Immunization is given as an injection or, in the case of the polio vaccine, taken as drops by mouth. Immunization helps children stay healthy by preventing serious…

There are sure warning signs in pregnancy that need immediate medical attention. 1. Bleeding First trimester bleeding (0-3 months) Bleeding during the first three months could be an indication of an ectopic pregnancy. Ectopic means the foetus is developing somewhere outside the uterus, for example, in the Fallopian tube. It is a medical emergency. First – the second trimester bleeding (0-6 months) Heavy bleeding with cramping can be a sign of a miscarriage during this time. Last trimester bleeding (6-9 months) Bleeding during the 3rd trimester may indicate Abruptio placenta – which means the placenta tore loose from the uterine…

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What does the acronym ‘LGBT’ stand for? L (Lesbian), G (Gay), B (Bisexual) and T (Transgender). LGBT people, as members of a social minority group, are suffering from various forms of socioeconomic and cultural injustice. The lack of social recognition affects the capacity of LGBT people to access and enjoy their rights as citizens fully.  In addition, they are more likely to experience intolerance, discrimination, harassment, and the threat of violence due to their sexual orientation than those who identify themselves as heterosexual. Which areas of life does the rejection come from? Social/family – We need to belong. While we…