On Tuesday evening I attended a welcome reception for the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, Rashida Manjoo (thanks to UN Women Australia for the invitation, and to Allens Arthur Robinson for hosting this important event). It was – to say the least – depressing.  To hear Rasheeda's research findings that femicide is on the increase around the world in developed as well as developing countries.  And to be reminded that it’s here, in Australia, too.  In Australia, 1 in 3 women are in (or have been in) abusive relationships and 1 woman is killed every week by an intimate partner.  Did you know? Read More

I came across this fantastic TED talk by Dr Noel Bairey Merz on the single biggest health threat women face: heart disease.  Did you know that one out of two women will be impacted by cardio vascular disease in their lifetime and that since 1984 up to four times more women than men have died from heart disease in the USA and around the world? Read More

Did you catch this week's Four Corners program on the forced adoption practices in Australia? (If you missed it, you can watch it on iView here - it's absolutely brilliant journalism by the FourCorners team.)  The program covered the policies and practices relating to forced adoption in Australia and the tragic human impact of five decades of soul-destroying interventions of government and adoption agencies (read here: the churches).  I admit to having a very sleepless night after watching it. Read More

According to a new article on MamaMia, women are just not getting a fair go when it comes to media coverage of women's sports.  Did you know that: Read More

This is a sponsored post from Fruit At Work - enjoy a 2 week trial at 50% discount for fresh fruit, delivered direct to your office

With all those Apples and Blackberries dominating desks, you would think the Australian workplace is brimming with health.  But in a wakeup call to employers, Fruit at Work’s latest National Workplace Health Survey revealed over 85% of Australian workers believe their workplace is unhealthy.  “If we were consuming anything like the quantity of Apples and Blackberries we are using, our workplace would be a whole lot healthier and more productive,” commented Wendy Visontay, Founder of leading workplace fruit supplier Fruit at Work, which delivers fruit to over 4,000 workplaces a week nationally. “We were astounded that almost a third of workers questioned ate no fruit at all and 60% failed to identify how much fruit a day they should be eating for good health”.  Read More

If you've ever thought of shopping as "therapy"... you're probably right! Turns out shopping really does make us happy - it's effective at elevating mood, and it doesn't lead to buyer's regret, research by The Pennsylvania State University shows.  Read More

We’ve all received gifts that just weren’t right, and possibly given some too! Get more for your gift dollars and avoid those ‘Oh, you shouldn’t have!?’ moments with the help of The Art of Gift Giving. Read More

I love my doctor.  Partly because her combined GP and psychology training means she can sort out my anxiety and ailments all in one visit!  But mainly because as a busy working mum, she really gets it.  She gets that we don’t always put ourselves first.  She gets that we're busy. And she gets there are things we really don’t want to do – like having that regular pap smear.  And so she has a process for making sure busy women like me can’t mean to do it, but never get around to it. Read More

95% of people in the U.S. - and many, many Australians too - watch TV or use other technologies such as computers or cell phones in the hour before bed at least a few nights a week. The National Sleep Foundation, which surveys people on their sleep habits, says exposure to light from screens enhances alertness, making sleep more difficult. 60% of respondents experience sleep problems (snoring, waking, not feeling refreshed) every night or almost every night, the organization says. Read More

On 16^th March 2011 Macquarie University’s Faculty of Business and Economics and iConneXX Pty Ltd are bringing together a blend of business, law, risk management, psychology and health experts at the inaugural The Body & Mind Corporate, a strategic workshop to explore the serious psychological and physical health conditions that executive women are experiencing. Read More