ISSUE 16 • MAY 2018 • SUFFOLK
Lifestyle Magazine by Students, for Students
www.student-life.co
Proud supporter of
Cover photo by KELSEY BRADLEY 1 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
STUDENT Life
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Editor’s
What is even better is that May gives us two bank holidays, so there are extra days to get outdoors and enjoy what Ipswich has to offer. Keep your eyes peeled for events held in one of the parks, whether this is a concert, festival or an outdoor cinema screening. Often, there is little or no charge for attending these events, which makes it really easy and accessible for students and their families to attend. For the more adventurous, why not hire an Urbo bike (they are bright green and all around the town!) and take it for a ride. These activities and events could provide a much-needed break from the academic demands and pressures many students will be facing this month. For some, this is the time where you will be buckling down, head buried in textbooks and writing assignments as long as your arm. If this is you, then do not forget to take regular breaks and try looking after yourself. For tips on self-care, check out our Student Life Mental Health section, headed up by Leanne. In my last Ed’ words, I mentioned that April was the launch of our Mental Health workshop and we had a fantastic evening held at Kesgrave High School, showcasing the project to friends, family and those who we work closely within the community. The evening was truly inspirational and I know I felt extremely honoured to be part of the project and to be involved in raising awareness of such an important topic. I’m really looking forward to seeing how this develops over the coming months. Watch this space!
WORD
CONTACT US 01473 35 35 12 rachel@student-life.co www.student-life.co FB: @studentlifeips Instagram: @studentlifeips Twitter: @studentlifeips
Best wishes, Rachel Gilbey Co-editor
Contents... STUDENT STYLE STUDENT BEAUTY STUDENT TRAVEL WHAT THE FOOD STUDY TIME
4-7 8-11 12-13 17-22 24-25
RORY’S REVIEW SEXUAL HEALTH STUDENT SAFETY STUDENT CAREERS MENTAL HEALTH
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The sun is starting to come out of hibernation and May is upon us!
26-27 28-29 30-32 33 37-60
THE
OFFICIAL LAUNCH
OFF & RUNNING
Following an extremely successful pilot period, last month saw the official launch of our Schools’ Workshop Project. Over 60 people attended the launch night at Kesgrave High School, including representatives from local schools and the County Council, strategic partners and past & potential funders. The evening included an address by Student Life director - Richard Stewart, the presentation of the workshop itself and the premier of ‘Out of the Dark, Into the Light’; a short film on mental health, featuring five students from the University of Suffolk & Kesgrave High School telling their own, very personal accounts of mental health. The film was produced by film & media students at the High School. The evening was supported by Suffolk Mind, Volunteering Matters, Career Ready & the Terrence Higgins Trust. With further assistance coming from Subway on Duke Street and Windmills Florist, who donated refreshments and bouquets, the latter being presented to various contributors. Having been in pilot stage at the University & Kesgrave High School, the workshop will now be presented to additional schools throughout the town and further into Suffolk, engaging the County’s students and getting them involved in all aspects of the Student Life print & digital publications. 3 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
COLOUR IT RIGHT The clocks have gone forward and we are hopefully just beginning to enjoy the lighter evenings and warmer temperatures – at last! My FCS event fashion calendar started on Sunday 22nd April at GLAM Colchester. My models rocked the catwalk, and the sold out event was full of fashion, beauty and lots of fun all day long! May is a very busy month, planning SFS18, forthcoming fashion event projects, and so much more. However, it begins as my role as a Show Host for a Charity Fashion Event; Fashion Fusion on Friday May 4th at The Apex in Bury St Edmunds. I am thoroughly looking forward to this role for the 2nd year running.
WRITTEN BY OUR FASHION EDITOR PAM DAVIS This Month, I would like to share with you the art of colour in fashion. UNDERSTANDING COLOURS IS KEY The natural order of colour is red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet. This is the easiest way to understand how different colours work together, in turn, ensuring your outfits are perfectly matched. DO YOU WEAR COLOUR - OR DOES COLOUR WEAR YOU? The colours you wear say a lot about you. They may indicate your mood, your style or your attitude. You probably have colours in your wardrobe that are more festive, serious, playful or business like.
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The colours you wear, the way colours blends with each other, and the way colours blend with your skin tone or complexion is important to building your versatile wardrobe. Colour makes the initial impact, a flash of colour is like a breath of fresh air. FIND OUT WHAT COLOURS WORK BEST FOR YOU. Shopping for clothes becomes much easier, giving you a greater selection for putting outfits together. In the Fashion industry, there are buzzwords for colour matching “ warm undertones” “cool undertones”…the understanding is this….. Our skin’s surface tone is the colour you’d describe yourself as having (ivory, light, medium, tan, dark, etc.) Your skin’s undertone is the colour underneath the surface. We've started with the basics to help you better understand how to create chic colour combinations that suit you.
WOMEN FAIR/WARM/IVORY/ BLONDES/FAIR SKINNED/ PINK You have a light delicate look, soft and warm. Your depth of colouring is light, choose a darker tone and contrast with a light apricot colour to complement. MEDIUM/COOL/ STRAWBERRY BLONDE/AUBURN/ BROWN You have a warm and golden look, with soft colouring and the undertone will be warm and cool. When wearing your neutral colours balance them with lighter shades. NEUTRAL/WARM/COOL/ DEEP OLIVE SKINNED/DARK SKINNED From porcelain to black, including all the shades in between. You have a dark and strong look, and the undertone will be cool. Bold colours bring out the best in your undertone.
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MEN HIGH CONTRAST A high contrast skin tone is where the skin tone is light or dark and the hair colour is black or dark brown. Both of these men have light or dark skin tones and darker hair. MEDIUM CONTRAST Those with brown skin tones and black hair or tanned skin tones and medium brown hair are generally considered to have medium contrast. Those with medium contrast have the most leeway when picking colours to wear; however, they should still be careful to pick colours that, when combined, will have some 'pop' to them. LOW CONTRAST Men with low contrast or muted tones are those with lighter skin tones and lighter hair colour. Those with muted tones are at risk of something you have probably heard bandied around before: being 'washed out'.
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FASHION CANDY STYLE - GO TO COLOURS OLIVE/DARK Turquoise, moss green, purples, reds, oranges, warm blues
AUBURNS/BROWNS/ STRAWBERRY BLONDES Royal blues, emerald, purples, lilacs
FAIR/BLONDES/IVORY Peach, jade green, placid blues, blush pink, primrose
I would like to invite all of our readers to send me suggestions for anything you would like me to feature in future issues. Any budding fashionistas who need fashion advice, please feel free to get in touch. Follow me on social media for all the latest news. GET IN TOUCH Facebook: Fashion Candy Style Twitter: @pammystyles Instagram: @fashion_candy_style PAM DAVIS
Fashion Candy Style E: pamela@fashioncandy.co.uk M: 07713 095355 www.fashioncandy.co.uk
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STUDENT Beauty
Lipstick Nick
MASTERCLASS WRITTEN BY OUR BEAUTY EDITOR ROSIE MAY I have admired Lipstick Nick for a long time. Her makeup skills are phenomenal and can be seen on Youtubers such as Jeffree Star, Manny MUA and Laura Lee. She’s built up her career from nothing and she’s an inspiration to all aspiring Makeup Artists out there! I was lucky enough to get tickets to go to her first ever international Masterclass! I booked quite far in advance and I booked myself onto the third row so that I’d be guaranteed to meet her after! I was so excited! The tickets were quite costly at £140, however for that price you got a 4-hour masterclass including two different makeup looks, a meet and greet afterwards AND a goody bag worth
over £100! So in my eye, it was definitely worth it! On the day I shopped in London for a bit then headed to Leicester Square Theatre, where the Masterclass was being held. There was a super long queue outside so I waited for a bit but made some friends whilst we waited! Going alone had already made me a bit anxious but it was reassuring to speak to some lovely girls that had travelled up alone too! Once we got in and sat down, we were all given a notepad and pen to make notes throughout. I thought this was a nice touch because I ended up filling it with different product names, brush names and general tips and tricks! The stage set-up was really nice and relaxed and there was a huge TV screen that was angled on the model’s face, so we could see exactly what Nick would be doing. Nick arrived on stage and she is even more
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beautiful in person! She spoke to us about her background and how excited she was to be in London and you could tell she was genuinely so down-to-earth! She then introduced her first model onto the stage; the well-known English YouTuber Rachel Leary! I love Rachel’s videos so I was so happy to see she was the first model! She seemed very nervous but she didn’t let it affect her modelling skills! Nick started off with a soft bronze look on Rachel with a bold red lip (something Nick is most known for!). She used a lot of products that we received in our goody bags, which was so nice to be able to go away and recreate the exact same look! Nick was excellent at answering everyone’s questions throughout and to explain exactly what she was doing and why she was doing it. The finished look was dewy and gorgeous and Rachel loved it too!
lush and it is up there with my favourite highlighters! The masterclass was not just a fun day out, but an educational one! Meeting Nick afterwards was such a pleasure and she was so lovely! I’m so happy I decided to go and can’t wait for her to return to London!
Lipstick Nick’s
TOP PICKS
The second look was more creative and colourful. She did this look on another influencer but I wasn’t familiar with her. Nick completed this whole look freehand and I was in utter awe! She used Jeffree Star lipsticks on her eyes to get a real bold colour, then used very fine art brushes to create the shape and depth. She is seriously talented! Throughout the whole Masterclass, Nick spoke to us about her worst jobs, favourite makeup looks she’s done, how she became such good friends with Jeffree and her job at Mac! It was really inspiring to hear how she built her business from the ground up and even with every barrier she faced, she still carried on and look where she is now! Our goody bags had so much makeup in! I was so happy with the contents! My personal favourite was the Ofra Highlighter in the shade Rodeo Drive, I used it for the first time and it was BLINDING! The formula is 9 • M AY S TUDENT 2018 • BEAUT S TUDENT Y LIFE
MORPHE E8 Brush
MORPHE Highlight Sponge
MORPHE M224 Concealer
MORPHE M530 Brush
TOM FORD Bronzer
STUDENT Beauty
MY MUST-HAVE
BEAUTY PRODUCTS WRITTEN BY JENNIFER MEREDITH
If there’s one thing I hoard, it’s beauty products… I’m currently sat at my dressing table assessing my ‘situation’. In front of me is a jumble of beauty products – some I’ve bought myself, some are PR samples, and a few have been gifted to me by friends or family – precariously stored in a variety of repurposed containers (mason jars are a current favourite). It’s clear to me that I don’t use all of them, but I can’t bear to throw them away. So they just sit there, taking up space. I’m like Ariel from The Little Mermaid with my ‘whozits and whatzits galore’; only, instead of legs, I want a streamlined makeup bag containing a handful of go-to products which fit my skin type. But something tells me I’m not the only one. According to a survey conducted by beauty retailer Escentual, some people hoard makeup products for as long as six years. Now, I’m happy to say that I haven’t got to that stage (yet), but it got me thinking: if I had to ditch everything else and pick my ‘desert island’ products, what would they be?
JENNIFER’S DESERT ISLAND BEAUTY EDIT BARRY M ALL NIGHT LONG FOUNDATION STICK, £6.99 FROM SUPERDRUG Did you know that a lot of Barry M’s products are vegan? Their All Night Long Foundation stick is one of those products, and features a lightweight, easy-to-blend formula as well as vitamin E to keep skin moisturised.
THE BODY SHOP ALOE SOOTHING DAY CREAM £13 Good beauty starts at your skin. For me, it’s essential to have the right moisturiser for my skin type, and The Body Shop’s Aloe Soothing Day Cream is perfect. If you have dry skin, like me, this cream will soak in like a sponge and leave you super hydrated.
E.L.F. VOLUME PLUMPING MASCARA, £4.50 FROM SUPERDRUG The problem with having very short and straight eyelashes is that you go through so much mascara to make them look longer. Luckily, this one from affordable makeup brand e.l.f. does the job!
I managed to whittle it down to three products – and, refreshingly, they’re all vegan! 10 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
HOW TO:
Get started with makeup WRITTEN BY CARA FOLLON Mascara is a good way to slowly dip into makeup. You can add a subtle change to your eyes. I would suggest starting out with a slightly cheaper brand before you dive into the more high-end products. The MUA Volume Mascara is a great choice. This creates a very natural look and the consistency isn’t too thick and clumpy, but it’s enough to make a difference to your eyes and add some volume. I suffer from having very short eyelashes and this mascara has helped me a countless number of times. And for £3 you can’t really complain! Everyone loves a good eyeliner flick but that can be quite hard to achieve, especially when you’re just starting out. Liquid liners are the way forward. I would suggest the Revlon Colourstay Liquid Liner as the application is extremely easy and it stays on all day without smudging. Now, you don’t have to
worry about trying to create the perfect flick, you can just add some liner to your eyelids to start off and when you become more comfortable, buy some tape and watch some videos to help you out! Skincare is extremely important. There’s no point slapping on tons of concealer and foundation if you don’t look after your skin. Skin needs to be prepped before any product goes on your face and you can do this by using moisturiser and primer, which allows your makeup to last all day. It also makes your skin feel nourished and happy. I personally use the bareMinerals primer and moisturiser as it helps my skin stay fresh and calm. It’s so easy to apply before putting on any makeup. You dab some of it on and smooth it around your skin. It’s vital you remember to remove make up. I was a fan of wipes until I realised how bad it was for my skin and the environment. Mineral oil or cleansing water is the safest way. It’s all about making sure you don’t clog up your pores and treat your skin well. I’d suggest Simple Micellar Cleansing Water, a well-known brand that leaves your face feeling smooth and clean. It’s also not a ridiculous price, as when wearing makeup, you will get through a lot of this!
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STUDENT Travel
BANGKOK to BOMBAY
in 21 days
WRITTEN BY AMBER DANIELS When I left Sixth Form, I was stuck with the decision – what now? I felt like I wasn’t ready for Uni life and to continue studying, even though I knew this was what I wanted to do longer-term to fulfil my dream of becoming a sports injury specialist. I longed to travel the world on a gap year but working parttime during my studies meant I couldn’t afford the lifestyle; I’m definitely not a ‘backpacker’, so hostel life wasn’t my ideal! When my boyfriend decided to take eight months out to travel around Asia, I was hit with massive FOMO! That summer, I worked my butt off in my bar job and saved every penny I could, and on Boxing Day I rocked up at Heathrow with my backpack fully loaded (I succumbed to at least having ‘the look’ of a traveller…) and boarded my plane to Bangkok. The next morning, I arrived bleary-eyed in Thailand’s capital. We spent two nights in a cosy hotel tucked away in a back street, just minutes from Khao San Road. If you’ve ever seen the film ‘The Beach’, you’ll know that Khao San is fondly referred to as ‘the centre of the backpacking universe’ – and it’s easy to see why. Teeming with market stalls, bars, street food and internet cafés; it really is the bustling hub of all things travel.
After our short stint in Bangkok, checking out the temples, tuk-tuks and eating questionable snacks (fried scorpion, anyone?) it was time to take the 8-hour trip via bus and ferry to Koh Phang-an; one of several islands in the Gulf of Thailand. New Year’s Eve was just around the corner and the looming Full Moon Party on Haad Rin beach had me buzzing with anticipation. But there is so much more to this tropical paradise than partying on the shore: hiring a 4x4 for the day, we took a drive around the island roads, stumbling across hidden beach coves, waterfalls and views that I had only seen in movies. For the vegans and healthfood lovers, Karma Kafe is well worth a trip across the island to sample the delicious menu of beetroot burgers, handmade energy bars and revitalising smoothies. Despite #health, we did take a one-night trip to Koh Tao to join the infamous - and originally named - Koh Tao Pub Crawl: definitely a night to remember (if you manage to!) The only dampener on our Thai travels was the weather: it was unseasonably wet, with only two days of sunshine in the duration of our stay! After 10 days of island life, our time in Thailand was up. We spent a final night back in Bangkok before heading to our next destination: India.
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Our first – and most obvious – stop was Mumbai. This was the most interesting and surprising part of my trip; for some reason, I had it in my head that India would be more Third-World than metropolitan, and while for the most part you could see the poverty and overpopulation of the country down every street and in every slum, there were beautiful pockets of nirvana everywhere we ventured. The highlight of a crazy 24 hours in Mumbai (where it took twice as long in a car to get anywhere than it did to walk – if you think London traffic is bad, wait til you experience this!): visiting the Gateway to India; a beautiful yet bizarre experience - we spent more time being asked for selfies by the locals than taking our own photographs.
about the ‘hippy’ vibe of these two fishermen villages, and headed to the famous flea market to pick up some souvenirs of our trip. Home to one of the most beautiful beaches in India, Arambol hosts a ‘sweet water lake’, and if you go off the beaten track into the forest behind, you’ll stumble across a banyan tree that has an unusual attraction! Three weeks in Asia was a whirlwind, fascinating, and unforgettable. And all on a budget of around £1500 (including flights), it was a trip that anyone can do with a little saving, adventure and an open mind to their itinerary!
After the Bombay bustle, we retreated to the serene coast of Goa. In contrast to the wet, tropical conditions of Thailand, Goa delivered the sunshine in spades. It was here that we truly experienced Indian hospitality; staying in a familyrun apartment block a short walk from the white sandy beach overlooking the Arabian Sea. Savouring local delicacies in a beach shack was a welcome break from hours of sunbathing, and the beautiful weather got us out exploring; we headed to Dudhsagar Falls – an incredible 320m high waterfall, with a swimming area below and countless monkeys zipping around the rocks! The final leg of our trip was a spontaneous 3 days in Anjuna and Arambol, in northern Goa. We read
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FROM Policing TO Volunteering WRITTEN BY DARREN OXBROW
Readers will recall that Darren Oxbrow was a previous guest writer in his capacity as a Sergeant in the Suffolk Constabulary, heading up the C & YP and Schools Engagement team. Having recently taken the option of retirement from the Force, Darren explains what life holds for him now. It’s been a strange couple of months as I adjust to life outside Suffolk Constabulary. Having completed 24 years it was always
going to be a sad occasion to say goodbye to so many good people who I have worked with during my service. But with this change comes new challenges and an opportunity for me to work in a different environment. I must confess that I did have some concerns and worries as to what I was going to do. Being in the job market again is a little unsettling, searching for a job which you hope can provide you with the continued stimulation, enthusiasm and passion that you previously had. This change in circumstance has allowed me to sample the world of the job market again, it was scary even for someone like me, so I can’t imagine how it feels for a young person
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to go through this process for the first time. The first objective is to find a job that appears to fit with your requirements and offers you those core values of enjoyment and love for what you are doing. It can’t be great if you are doing a job that you don’t enjoy or love. So the first step was to find a job that appeared to fit my skills and ability but was also suited to my needs in respect to job satisfaction. I wanted to remain working with young people and to continue to offer young people opportunities to reach their potential, so I had some idea of the environment I wanted to work in. I considered the school environment and also youth services, but was fortunate enough to see and apply for a job at Volunteering Matters as a Volunteer manager for youth social action, something I will explain in more detail over the coming months. This post appeared to tick all my boxes, so I proceeded and requested an application pack.
I received an email a few days later stating I had been offered an interview, it was great news, but this only created more worry in respect to the interview. The email correspondence had also provide some detail regarding the interview process, I would be required to complete and deliver a short presentation. I would then be asked a series of questions, the process would last about an hour. I was informed that two individuals will be asking me the questions. On the day of the interview you can’t help but be a little nervous, who else has applied? I see an individual come out of the room whilst I wait, I question myself, is he one of the other applicants, I then try to justify to myself that I look like the better candidate!! I get the call to go through. Yes, the interview did challenge me, but I felt I had answered the questions well, my preparation had been worthwhile and beneficial. I just had to await the outcome, the following day I got the phone call to say I had been successful.
This is where things became challenging, the application process, filling in the application, there was so much information required. Personal details, previous employment, education and exam results, plus numerous questions about my ability to deal with challenging issues and situations, examples of working with young people and so forth. I had to also include a CV, I didn’t have one so had to create a new one.
My new challenge was about to begin. I must confess the process of finding employment has changed considerably since I first entered the job market many years ago. It has become a challenging process and in order to be successful you need to have some specific skills, something a young person raised with me recently, “It’s not straightforward just applying for a job, there is so much more required these days”, and he wasn’t wrong.
Once happy with the content of my application it was then returned to Volunteering Matters. You then spend the next few days in anticipation awaiting a reply, have you got an interview or not!
I am the new Volunteer manager for Youth social action in Ipswich, working for Volunteering Matters UK. Over the coming months I hope to tell you more about what we do!
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1 WOLSEY BUILDING COLLEGE STREET IPSWICH 01473 233327 IP4 1BF
at the LOCK
SUMMER HAIR TRENDS Come and meet the
The 90’s is still a major influence for hair this season. The super cropped early 90’s supermodel cut may be intimidating, so it’s best to invest in a cut that suits your lifestyle. Steve Croft artistic director explains, “The classic pixie cut is the perfect style to rock this summer; it’s low-maintenance, incredibly chic and so liberating! Have fun experimenting with iced pastel shades to keep it fresh”.
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BOOK ONLINE AT JOHNOLIVERS.COM THE LOCK, COLLEGE STREET 01473 233327 16 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
WTF W H AT T H E F OO D
Cover photo by MARIANA MEDVEDEVA 17 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
WHAT THE Food
WHAT IS
VEGANISM? WRITTEN BY ROSIE WEDGE All of us live a lifestyle that is different and unique to us. Shaped by our own life experiences, our social groups, education, and occupation, each and every one of us has a diverse life story. However, in recent years, veganism has been a lifestyle choice growing in popularity, and thousands of people are turning to an eco-friendly, cruelty-free, plant-based life style. Between 2006 and 2016, there was a 350% increase in the number of vegans amongst the UK population, and has been continuously growing ever since. So, what exactly is this new lifestyle and dietary choice that is showing significant influence in the UK amongst a multitude of other countries? As a vegan myself, I often find that those who are not vegan are surprisingly uneducated in what it is to be vegan; not at all in a bad way, its just that many people do not realise the extent to which veganism reaches. Sorry to dampen all the classic jokes but veganism is not all about protein deficiencies, treehugging, and endlessly craving bacon. Veganism is a lifestyle not just a diet. Vegans, for a multitude of reasons, follow a strictly plant-based diet, whereby the consumption of any animal’s products is not accepted. This includes meat, fish, eggs, milk, and honey. This may be for environmental reasons, personal health, or most commonly in protest against animal cruelty.
So here comes the questions that I have probably answered several hundred times in the past few years; “So, what do you vegans eat? Like, grass?” Thankfully not! With the increase in the vegan diet tripling recently, more and more vegan companies are being formed and producing vegan alternatives to all the foods vegans leave out when of animal origin. Tesco recently launched a new brand, “Wicked Kitchen”, with over 200 vegan options, including sandwiches, pizzas, and cooked meals. As opposed to cows milk, vegans will consume plant-based milk, such as coconut milk, almond milk, or my personal favourite, hazelnut milk; its like a liquid Ferrero Rocher! Coconut milk and soya milk are often also used to make vegan cheese, and I don’t mean to brag, but when we use it for macaroni and cheese or cheese toasties, I’m sorry cheddar eaters; ours is gooier! For those who miss the taste of meat, there are countless brands producing fake meats, primarily made from a tofu base. The number of options is surprising, and personally I am yet to find a non-vegan food item for which there is not a close vegan alternative; I’ve had vegan duck, a vegan cornetto, vegan fish fingers, the whole shizzam! However, veganism does not just impose rule upon diet, but as I said before, it is a lifestyle choice, and therefore those who go veggie will often be trading everything we grew up with for more suitable alternatives. On the no-animal-product basis, vegans will not use or wear any products made from wool, leather, or animal fur and skin. Neither will they use toiletries that have been tested on animals. This may seem confusing for some people, as it is likely you will meet vegans who only follow the dietary aspect of veganism, however to be fully vegan, these items will be replaced. You are probably
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wondering how, but vegan leather is a thing. It can be made from mushrooms, coconuts, pineapples and even bamboo! Sometimes even those who are not vegan will invest in these vegan alternatives if they are against the killing of animals to wear them. Coincidently, since the start of 2017, fur has been banned by numerous designer brands; such as Gucci, Ralph Lauren and Armani, and even as widespread as the entirety of San Francisco in the USA! Even those not endorsing a vegan lifestyle are contributing to the significant changes being seen alongside the global increase in vegans. You may be surprised to find that some vegans take their lifestyles even further than this, however these are often only seen by those who are dedicated to veganism
more so for the environment and animals than just personal health. Zero-waste has become an increasingly popular lifestyle, as it promotes a plastic-free Earth, often in the best interests of marine life and animal ecosystems. Vegans will often also avoid visiting zoos and circuses that use animals in their performances and will opt to adopt animals rather than buy from breeders and mills. Veganism is not all about depriving yourself of all the world’s luxuries; it’s about trying to change the world to make it a cleaner, more sustainable, ethical place, and is clearly proving a popular way of living, and is expected to continue increasing over the years to come!
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WHAT THE Food
The Effect of Veganism:
OUR ENVIRONMENT WRITTEN BY ROSIE WEDGE Becoming vegan is a fantastic, positive lifestyle choice in a multitude of ways. Not only are you improving your own health and standing against the violation of animal cruelty, but you are having a preservative, progressive impact on the environment. As far as it stands regarding the environmental impact of veganism, there are no recognized negative impacts. Some may argue I am saying this from the biased perspective of someone who has been vegan for a long time, but trust me; it can really have a fantastic impact on saving our beautiful Earth! And how, you ask? Well, the two most influential changes veganism makes regard greenhouse gas pollution and water consumption. Regardless of whether you perceive global warming to be true or not, there is no harm
in changing our lifestyle to reduce our carbon footprint. ALL animal agriculture, in some way or another, contribute to the unnecessary emission of greenhouse gases; primarily rearing animals for meat. Researchers at the University of Chicago suggest switching to a plant-based diet is a more efficient way of reducing your carbon footprint than switching to a hybrid car, as it takes 11 times more fossil fuels to produce one calorie of animal protein than it does one calorie of grain protein; and this is one of many meat-plant based diet ratios in favour of the vegan diet. And as if this wasn’t enough, switching to veganism has an even more influential impact when it comes to reducing waterconsumption. Currently, we are facing a serious issue concerning our wasteful nature when it comes to water, that is putting our marine life and personal lives at risk. The U.N. released a report showing that by 2030, the world will only have 60% of the water we require to continue as we are now, unless we see a significant change! To produce 1kg of beef, we require 15,000 litres of water, but for a kilogram of potatoes, we require 250 litres! Other studies show the amount of water saved by not eating a quarter-pounder hamburger is equal to not showering for 14 weeks!
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The Effect of Veganism:
OUR BODY WRITTEN BY NUTRITION EXPERT BEN STEWART
The simple truth about being Vegan? It’s hard work. It takes a lot of commitment. You have to do your homework. No you won’t feel faint or be ‘weak’ if you don’t eat meat. Yes you can live a healthy and balanced life on a plant-based diet. Yes you can avoid many illnesses and conditions by cutting out animal products.
3. There are many alternatives to the everyday foods we love, and the market is getting better and better every day. Whilst vegan cheeses may not always taste like cheese, they are still very enjoyable with your favourite meals and don’t come with the harmful health risks associated with cheese and dairy in general.
I get the same questions every time I tell someone I’m Vegan:
It would be sensible to look in to plantbased foods and understand for yourself how and why someone would commit to being Vegan. If you knew what was in your cheese or the damage that a bacon double cheeseburger causes to your body, you would think twice before visiting the drive-thru. The health benefits of a plant-based diet are overwhelming, and when you start to learn that eating animal products actually causes inflammation in your body and has been linked more than once to the cause of many diseases, including cancer, you would struggle to enjoy eating meat again. But don’t take my word for it, look up the many documentaries on Netflix, or search it online, and see for yourself what could be possible if you wanted to consider it. What have you got to lose, and what could you potentially gain?
“Where do you get your protein?” “You must be deficient in iron” “I couldn’t live without cheese!” MY RESPONSES ARE SIMPLE:
1. Protein is in a lot of foods such as beans, pulses, lentils, rice, oats, wholegrains, nuts, seeds and even vegetables! If you’re really worried there are plenty of vegan protein powders on the market too. 2. As with any balanced diet, as long as you are eating the right things and enough of them you should be getting all of the vitamins needed to survive. Iron can come from many vegan sources, spinach and dark green vegetables being just a few of them.
21 • M AY WHAT 2018THE • SFTUDENT OOD LIFE
RECIPE OF THE MONTH
Vegan Chocolate Cake SUBMITTED BY JASMINE PIPER-WILLIAMS Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 35 mins 12 servings INGREDIENTS • 300ml dairy free milk(e.g. soy, almond) • 1 tbsp lemon juice • 150g non-dairy margarine • 3 tbsp agave golden syrup or maple syrup • 1 tsp instant coffee granules/ espresso powder • 275g self-raising flour • 175g granulated sugar • 4tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder • 1tsp bicarbonate of soda
FOR VEGAN CHOCOLATE FROSTING: • 75g non-dairy margarine • 200g powdered icing sugar • 4tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder • 2tbsp water (double recipe to cover sides of cake too!)
1. Preheat oven to 180°C/160° fan/Gas mark 4 (350F). Lightly grease 2x20cm/8inch round baking pans. 2. Stir lemon juice into the milk and set aside. 3. In a pan over a medium heat, melt the margarine, syrup and coffee granules together. Set aside to cool slightly. 4. Sieve the flour, cocoa, sugar and bicarbonate of soda into a large mixing bowl. 5. Pour the milk and melted margarine mixture over the flour mixture and stir well until it becomes a smooth batter 6. Divide the mixture between the two prepared baking pans and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. 7. Allow the cakes to cool in the tins for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. 8. Meanwhile, to make the icing, beat all the ingredients together until smooth. 9. When the cakes are completely cold, sandwich together with half of the icing. Spread the remaining icing over the top of the cake. 22 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
STUDENT Music
Festival Faves If you love music, then you’re bound to love live music events and for me, especially the festival scene! It’s the talk of summer and the suspense of waiting for the line-up releases is exhilarating. A time of year that almost everyone looks forward to. Here are my top three festivals for 2018...
WRITTEN BY CHANEL McKENZIE
READY FOR THE SUMMER
Park for four days from the 12th - 15th July. There are multiple stages at Latitude which all showcase different talent. The festival caters for many different people, with a kid’s area, music and film arena, comedy arena and much more. Everyone is bound to be entertained throughout. Latitude is not only a festival to attend with your friends; it’s something you can enjoy with your family too. This year, headliners include; The Killers, Solange and alt-J.
WIRELESS FESTIVAL First up is my favourite festival and one that I attend every year without fail. Wireless Festival is held at Finsbury Park in London and consists of urban music from all around the world. The line-up continues to excite it’s audience every year. Wireless is a three day, non-camping festival and this year is headlined by J Cole, Stormzy and DJ Khaled from the 6th - 8th July. The festival always impresses with secret surprises and exclusive collaborations, so who knows what to expect this year!
STRAWBERRIES & CREEM FESTIVAL This festival is held at Haggis Farm in Cambridge. Unlike the others, the festival is for one day only and this year is on 16th June. Strawberries & Creem first began with an attendance of around 1,000 people and has now soared to catering for 5,000 people! Similar to Wireless, the festival mainly consists of Urban genres; which include new and old artists. Reggae, Afro-bashment and Garage music are all genres you can expect to hear at Strawberries and Creem. Performers this year include headliner T Pain along with Kojo Funds, David Rodigan and many more.
LATITUDE FESTIVAL Latitude is a local festival for those of us that live in Suffolk. The festival is held at Henham
So there you have my top three festivals for 2018. Not sure about you, but I am very excited!
23 • M AY S TUDENT 2018 • MUSIC S TUDENT LIFE
Study Time WRITTEN BY ROSIE WEDGE
Our monthly feature offering advice on study techniques & tips. If you have any tips or tricks that you want to share, simply let Rosie know at info@student-life.co Exam season is just around the corner, oh the horror! However, despite the seemingly never-ending revision, copious amounts of stress, and those annoying topics that no matter how many times you revisit them, they don’t go into your noggin, there are ways to make your revision, and the exam season a somewhat enjoyable experience! I like to make some of my revision techniques a game, as opposed to a chore. This doesn’t mean I don’t take it seriously, but I just don’t take it as seriously as I used to do. Furthermore, this increases your information-intake, as you are more engaged in what you are revising. My favourite is a good old-fashioned game of pairs! Instead of writing your flashcards with the answer and question on different sides of the same piece of card, write them on
separate cards, jumble your set, and lay them all out face-down. Now, turn over two cards, and if the Q and A match, put them to one side, but if not, turn them over and try again! This game can also boost your memorising skills, which further increases the success of your revision. It can also be played with a friend, making revising a sociable activity too! My second revision-game is inspired by my childhood classic Pass the Bomb! Choose a topic that both you and a study-buddy know about, for example within psychology, you may choose Milgram’s study. Then, choose an object to be the ‘bomb’, and set a timer for one minute. One person starts holding the bomb, and states a fact about that topic, then passes it to the other player. This continues back and forth until the timer goes off, or the ‘bomb’ has exploded. Whoever is holding the bomb when it sets off gains a point, and the winner is whoever has the fewest points by the end of the game. What is even better about this is that you can use multiple players, and can vary the timer with each round, as traditionally, the timer is randomised each time. So, there you go! Revision doesn’t have to be a gruelling, pain-staking experience, as there are ways of introducing elements of fun to your exam season!
24 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
TRIED & TESTED
TRIED & TESTED : STUDY PLACES Finding somewhere quiet but suitable for studying can be a tricky task. We sent our students to 4 different places to test out if it was suitable or not…. QUAY PLACE : RATED – 4/5 Quay Place is a renovated church on the one-way system into Ipswich town. It is now a library type area for people to work from and study in free of charge. My first struggle was parking, if you’re a driver then you have to pay for parking outside which is annoying. The area is quiet and there’s plenty of plug sockets and access to hot drinks with a donation! Only other downside is it’s very cold in there!
CAFÉ NERO : RATED – 4/5 I sat in the upstairs area right at the back and it was perfect! Plug sockets, warmth and quiet in this area. Obviously you have to buy a drink or something to be able to sit in, but I wanted a cup of tea anyway! Parking’s a struggle as it’s in town but a nice area to work from.
IPSWICH LIBRARY : RATED 4/5 This was my first time in the library in town and it was actually okay! I was in the Northgate room and there were plug sockets and it was a nice environment. Very quiet so I felt a bit uncomfortable if I made any noise on my laptop.
NOVOTEL : RATED 4.5/5 Novotel is obviously a hotel and not a study area, however I tested them out anyway! I sat in the bar area and I actually really enjoyed working in there! Plug sockets, hot drinks and very warm! Staff weren’t the friendliest but there’s parking too!
25 • M AYS 2018 TUDENT • SLIFE TUDENT LIFE
RORY’S WRITTEN BY RORY BATHGATE
THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI
Rory’s Rating:
26 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
Director: Martin McDonagh
Runtime: 115 mins
Certificate:15
A young girl murdered. A town that has moved on. A mother’s war on the police that she feels failed her. What starts with three simple billboards soon spirals out of control, as small-town conflict erupts onto the screen in what may be this year’s best film. In the lead role, Frances McDormand delivers a career high - Mildred Hayes, a mother hell-bent on getting justice for her murdered daughter, is a force to be reckoned with, at once brutal, distraught and viciously funny. McDormand’s dedication to the role, and the ferocity she brings to it, is truly a marvel to behold, whether she’s reconciling with her son or spitting out a string of swears that could make a sailor blush. Woody Harrelson brings real warmth to the role of Chief Willoughby, the brunt of Hayes’ billboards, tastefully addressing the strains and joys of family life in the wake of personal crisis and terminal illness. As racist, bitter police officer Jason Dixon, Sam Rockwell is also on perfect form here - what could have become a paint-by-numbers depiction of ignorance and contempt is instead dealt with with surprising sincerity and tenderness, Really, no one steps out of line in terms of acting performance - the rich supporting cast, boasting names such as Game of Thrones’ Peter Dinklage, populate the film with a suitably ‘small town’ feeling, a welcome and well-established backdrop throughout. The soundtrack, a mournful blend of country tracks and orchestral pieces, provides a gorgeous rhythm to the piece, triumphant at times but always underpinned with the sorrow that plagues all the characters. At times it’s reflective of the score to McDonagh’s In Bruges; as both films deal with themes of untimely death, and humour in the face of despair, this is fitting. Considering the subject matter, there was a lot that could have been dealt with poorly - death, rape and cancer aren’t subjects one would normally jump to include in a film billed as a comedy. And yet director Martin McDonagh effortlessly executes a tasteful, self-assured piece that remains true to itself amidst its many tonal changes. Tragic, shocking, hilarious, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri is proof that in the age of cinematic universes and endless reboots, original cinema is still alive and kicking; an emotional journey deserving of all the praise it can get. rtificate: PG
27 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
SEXUAL Health
STI Spotlight:
WARTS, HERPES & LICE WRITTEN BY ANDY TURNER
In the March Issue of Student life I wrote about Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), and went into detail about chlamydia and gonorrhoea – remember if you’re under 25 you can order a free test for these at www. youngandfree.org.uk This month we’ll be taking a look at three other infections. GENITAL WARTS Genital warts are caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). They are small fleshy growths which can appear around the genital area. You may just have one wart or a cluster. Warts can itch, become inflamed
or bleed. If they aren’t treated they may eventually go away, or they may stay the same size or grow larger. Warts can appear weeks, months or years after infection with HPV. You may only have one outbreak, although many people find they have further episodes. Two strains of HPV are linked to around 70% of cases of cervical cancer in the UK - types 16 and 18. However, the strains of HPV that cause genital warts (types 6 and 11) do not cause cancer of the cervix, vulva, anus or penis. Currently all girls in the UK who are aged between 12-13 (Year 8) are offered vaccination against HPV which protects against the two strains which cause the majority of cases of genital warts, as well as the two strains of HPV which cause the majority of cases of cervical cancer. The same vaccine is not yet offered to boys, although it is offered to men who have sex with men (MSM) aged up to 45 via sexual health clinics. HPV can be passed on through genital contact, sharing sex toys and very rarely through oral sex. Again, using the male condom or a Femidom cuts the risk - but only if the condom covers the skin where the wart virus is. Genital warts must be treated by a doctor, either with a cream or by being frozen off. Laser treatment and surgery can be used in hard-to-treat cases. You would be advised not to have sex until treatment has finished.
28 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
TERRY HIGGINS
HERPES You can catch genital herpes through vaginal, anal or oral sex. The herpes virus stays in your body for life but antiviral tablets can help prevent outbreaks, manage symptoms during an outbreak and make them heal more quickly if a recurrence appears. Some people find that pain-killing creams and bathing in salt water may help with treating the blisters which occur. Blisters are the main symptom of herpes. Before they appear, your skin may itch, tingle or feel numb. They can be painful, especially when going to the toilet. Blisters hold an infectious clear liquid before they burst, scab over and heal. Infection is more likely when blisters are on the skin but it sometimes happens when no blisters are present, especially before or straight after an outbreak. If you kiss or have oral sex when you have cold sores on your mouth, you risk giving your partner herpes on their lips or genitals. Yes, cold sores are a form of herpes! You may also feel tired, with flu-like aches and swollen glands.
PUBIC LICE Pubic lice are often called ‘crabs’ and are very common. They usually cause itching,
and you might be able to see the lice and their eggs. They can live on all body hair, including pubic hair, facial hair and even eyebrows or eyelashes (although not the hair on your head). Unfortunately shaving off pubic hair will not get rid of the lice. Pubic lice are usually passed on by body contact during sex. Lice can also spread on towels, clothes, and bedding (although this isn’t common). If you get them, you can stop them from spreading to others by washing bedding, towels and clothes on a hot wash (above 50° C) which will kill the lice and their eggs, as well as ensuring anyone who you have had close contact with is treated (including sexual partners from the last three months and everyone in your household). You can treat yourself at home with an insecticide cream, lotion or shampoo bought from the chemist without a prescription. It’s important that you avoid sex or close contact until you and your partner have completed your treatment. Remember to have a regular sexual health check, regardless of whether or not you have any symptoms, as some infections rarely show any. For more information visit www.icash.nhs.uk
Email: sexualhealthsuffolk@tht.org.uk
Website: www.tht.org.uk
29 • M AY SEXUAL 2018 • HEALTH S TUDENT LIFE
STUDENT Safety
ONLINE &
SOCIAL MEDIA
ENVIRONMENTS CO-WRITTEN BY PROFESSOR EMMA BOND & KATIE TYRRELL
Professor Emma Bond is Director of Research at the University of Suffolk. She is Professor of SocioTechnical Research and also Director of the Suffolk Institute of Social and Economic Research (SISER). Katie Tyrrell joined the University of Suffolk in 2017 after graduating with an MSc in Mental Health Research with distinction from the University of Nottingham. Katie is a member of SISER. The rapid development and interconnectivity of smart phones, tablets and social media has enabled the easy photographing and filming of both the self – the selfie - and others in private spaces, which can be quickly made public at a click or the touch of a screen. Whilst sexting or the sharing of nude selfies and dic pics by young people has been the topic of research and has attracted considerable media and educational attention, to date there is little research on revenge pornography. However, this rapidly escalating phenomenon has extremely distressing and often devastating personal consequences for victims. We know
that the psychological consequences of revenge pornography can have a very damaging impact on a victim’s emotional and mental wellbeing. Posting images and videos without someone’s consent with information which identifies them can also increase the potential for further abuse and harassment. Whilst the personal consequences are well understood, revenge pornography can affect your career too as people have had to leave their job because of embarrassment after photos have been shared or because they are frightened by the threat that images will be published. It is important to remember that revenge pornography is, more often than not, part of an abusive relationship. Sometimes abusive relationships can be hard to recognise and very hard to cope with. The number of people affected by revenge pornography is very hard to estimate because people are too embarrassed to report it. Because of the humiliation and fear that victims experience, and like other abusive relationships where people are threatened or bullied, the majority of cases remain unreported. Furthermore, due to the increasing numbers of websites dedicated to revenge pornography images and videos and variety of social media platforms and personal mobile technologies, the actual number of these types of images and abusive behaviours is impossible to even attempt to estimate. The problem is more complicated because although the image(s) and video(s) can be removed they can remain searchable and, therefore, still exist on search engines like Google especially if the image has been tagged or associated with a person’s name. Revenge pornography is increasing but it’s important to remember that, since its introduction to the Communications Act in 2015, it is considered to be a criminal offence. Those found guilty of sharing intimate images
30 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
and videos without the person’s consent can potentially face a prison sentence of up to two years. It is also important to note that whilst the person responsible for committing revenge pornography is typically a former partner, this is not always the case. The Revenge Porn Helpline suggests that actually, some cases arise from hacking either devices or cloud storage, or via methods using third party apps to harvest or leak images, for example ‘the snappening’ in which personal Snapchat accounts were hacked and thousands of images released. The Revenge Porn Helpline also receives increasing calls related to Sextortion, when a person has been blackmailed often after performing sexual acts via webcam. The person can then be a victim of coercion and control in the form of financial blackmail or threats that the images or video content will be shared with friends or family. These acts are all a form of abuse, a method of coercion and control via online mediums, which have devastating effects across both the online and offline worlds. To raise awareness of these and the use of technology to facilitate abuse and control, the University of Suffolk is holding a Virtual Violence
conference on the 10th May. The conference speakers include Laura Higgins from the Revenge Porn Helpline and many more. This free conference is open to multi-agency practitioners, university staff and academics but most importantly students, with an aim to advance understanding around the digitalisation of abusive relationships and to discuss how people can keep themselves safe. If you are unsure as to what constitutes an act of revenge porn or want to know more about how to report content online, the Revenge Porn Helpline has some great resources and FAQs on their website. If you have had intimate images posted online without your consent, get in contact with the Revenge Porn Helpline: Telephone: 0345 600 0459. Email: help@revengepornhelpline.org.uk Website: www.revengepornhelpline.org.uk/ If you are under the age of 18 and have had a naked image shared of you online without your consent, the ‘so you got naked online’ resource produced by South West Grid for Learning provides in-depth information as to what to do. Images can also be reported anonymously to the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF).
31 • M AY S TUDENT 2018 •SAFET S TUDENT Y LIFE
STUDENT Safety
WRITTEN BY KATIE TYRRELL
Consent really does matter Consent, the term is usually used in the context of sex. Most of you probably will have seen the ‘Tea Consent’ video on YouTube, and if you haven’t, watch it, because it really simply puts consent into perspective. Long story short, if someone was unsure if they wanted a cup of tea, or decided ‘actually you know what, I was considering that cuppa, but I don’t fancy tea right now’, you wouldn’t force them to drink it would you? The same applies online. If someone doesn’t want to share intimate images, it would be completely unreasonable to make them feel bad, or force them to in any way. Similarly, if you were to receive a nude picture from a partner or even someone you don’t know, would you think about the individual in the image before passing this on to someone else, what if the individual did not consent to have the image taken in the first place, let alone passed on to others to view. Having nude images leaked online and spread like wildfire across friendship groups and beyond has devastating effects upon the individual in the image, so you can see where the importance of consent comes in here can’t you?
As part of the Digital Civility project funded by HEFCE, the University of Suffolk will be providing Consent Matters training to students, to promote positive change and awareness around sexual consent. Remember consent matters, not only offline, but in online contexts too. If you have ever had private or intimate content shared online without your consent, The Revenge Porn Helpline provides some really useful information and steps about what to do… 1. KEEP CALM, KEEP EVIDENCE
Understandably, first reactions are typically to delete the content, but try to collate as much evidence as you can, screenshots, URLs and messages. 2. CONTACT THE POLICE
Inform the police, although it may seem daunting, revenge pornography is a criminal offence. 3. REPORT AND REQUEST REMOVAL
After collecting your evidence, use the reporting tools on the host website or social media site or alternatively contact them directly.
32 32 • •M MAY AY 2018 2018 • • SSTUDENT TUDENT LIFE LIFE
- A firm handshake - Maintaining eye contact when you speak to someone - Sitting still and upright (not fidgeting or slouching) These may be easy for some but harder for others, and sometimes hard to do when answering different or difficult questions. WRITTEN BY SIAN ROBERTSON
PREPARING FOR AN INTERVIEW 1. Research the company that will be interviewing you online. Try to gain knowledge and a better understanding of the following; - The companies values and/or mission statement - Challenges the company may be facing - Recent successes - Where the company may look to grow/ develop in the next 5-10 years - Recent news stories You don’t need in-depth knowledge, just a general overview as many of the above may be intertwined in the interview questions. 2. What you wear, your body language and what you say will all be factored in when determining if you are a professional person. It’s important to dress well for an interview in smart, formal clothes. Even if you are going for a role in an informal company, formal dress will show professionalism. Smart, clean shoes are a must for both men and women. 3. Consider your body language; it is a key part of how you communicate. You need to exude confidence and this is something that you may need to practice. Practice the following to strengthen your performance at interview;
4. Think in advance what you might be asked and consider potential answers. Try to avoid practicing answers word for word as you may be thrown if a question is phrased differently, isn’t asked, or is something you haven’t prepared for. In addition consider your tone of voice and try to speak clearly. 5. Preparation on the actual day of the interview is also vital. Ensure you have/do the following to set yourself up for a successful interview: - Get up with plenty of time to get ready, have something to eat and re-read your CV/letter of application - Ensure you have good travel arrangements in place – double check them - Check the news to see if your company has any recent articles published - Aim to arrive 15 mins prior to the start of your interview and use this time to re-read that letter of application. If you arrive earlier – go and grab a coffee 6. Relax. If you are prepared and relaxed you will feel confident and this will come across to the employer. YOU CAN CONTACT US AS FOLLOWS:
Career Ready UK National Office 25 Canada Square Canary Wharf, London E14 5LB Tel: 020 7986 5494 www.careerready.org.uk https://twitter.com/CareerReadyUK https://www.facebook.com/CareerReadyUK https://www.linkedin.com/school/954160/
33 • M AYS TUDENT 2018 • SLIFE TUDENT LIFE
WHAT’S ON? WRITTEN BY REV. TOM ROUT
In this issue I’d like to tell our readers about some new ways the Waterfront Churches are connecting with the local community. We’ve got three things starting up this month. Perhaps one of them would interest you? There’s FOOD FOR THOUGHT, a free meal on Thursday evenings at St Helen’s Church on St Helen’s Street, which is for anyone in the community who wants to meet others and spend a few minutes pondering some of life’s questions.
If the daytime suits you better, then why not try MUNCH AND MAKE, every Monday in the church hall at Holy Trinity, Back Hamlet, starting 21st May. The idea is making friendships over a two-course lunch (the ‘Munch’ bit) served from 12:30-1:30pm and, if you want to stay for it, a craft activity (the ‘Make’ bit) from about 2-3pm. To Munch costs £3, to Make costs £1. We’re also starting a short lunchtime service on Thursdays called TIME WITH GOD, which is from 11:45am-12:05pm at St Luke’s, Cliff Lane, and may suit people who want to find a quiet moment in the middle of their week. Talking of services, please note that until December our Sunday services will be at the same time and place each week: 10:30am at Holy Trinity, Back Hamlet.
Full details of these and other activities on our new website: www.ipswichwaterfrontchurches.co.uk
34 34 • •M MAY AY 2018 2018 • • SSTUDENT TUDENT LIFE LIFE
Water Safety April/May each year sees the launch of National Fire Chiefs Council Water Safety campaign. This year the focus is on young adults who may find themselves at risk by walking home near water perhaps after consuming alcohol. •
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89% male fatalities who went missing on a night out were found dead in bodies of water Between 2012-16 there were 366 accidental drownings involving alcohol and/or drugs Of the 366 nearly 50% accidentally fell in after walking home after drinking alcohol 40% were taking part in water-based activities after drinking and the remaining 10% it was unclear what they were doing when they ended up in the water 2016 statistics show that Saturday (54) and Sundays (59) were the days most drownings occurred Alcohol reduces inhibitions and can mean you take more risks Alcohol will impair judgment and control
Please enjoy the summer ahead and any activity or near in the water but stay safe and never underestimate the risks of UK inland and coastal water. www.respectthewater.com/how-to-float
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WHAT TO DO IF YOU SEE SOMEONE IN DIFFICULTY? Call 999 or 112 - straightaway. If you don't have a phone shout for help you may have to look for help but do not enter the water. If you are near the coast ask for the coastguard, if you are inland ask for fire service and ambulance. The emergency services will need to know where you are. Accurate information can save precious minutes. Look around for any landmarks or signs – for example bridges will often have numbers on them which can identify their location. Don’t hang up – stay on the line but try and continue to try to help the person by talking to them.
Encourage them to try and float on their back - if there is rescue equipment nearby throw it to them. M AY S TUDENT 2018 •SAFET S TUDENT Y LIFE
WRITTEN BY PAULINE THROWER
BEREAVEMENT & MENTAL HEALTH What does Bereavement mean? The Collins dictionary describes it as ‘the condition of having been deprived of someone or something valued through death’. It is not a subject that we like to think or speak about but it is something we all experience at some time or another. There are no age limits for when someone dies, we can lose a child, sister, brother, husband, wife, parent or grandparent at any stage of life. Bereavement can have a huge affect on us mentally. Our feelings and emotions can vary, deep shock, sadness, anger, feeling depressed and lonely. We feel the ‘hole’ that has been left in our lives by the absence of that special someone, however it has come about. These feelings can seem confusing and unacceptable, but they are quite normal. At R Gwinnell & Son Funeral Directors in Ipswich we care deeply about those who have died and loved ones they leave behind. We understand the process of bereavement and do all we can to help those who come to us for guidance through the funeral process.
We believe it helps to talk with others who have been bereaved so we have a coffee morning in The Old Bell, 1 Stoke Street, Wednesday mornings 10.30-12 noon – come along if you feel it will help.
36 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
MENTAL Health SUPPLEMENT
Mental health difficulties are like weeds in your garden. We can spend so much time ignoring the issue that the root spreads. Digging deeper identifies the root; removing the root, removes the problem. 37 • M AY 2018 • S TUDENT LIFE
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Editor’s
Last month Student Life launched officially!! We held our first mental health project event and had some great feedback for this. April was also a month of exciting movements forward, including the introduction of myself as Director of Mental Health – so you all best get used to me!
We are so proud here at Student Life with what we are achieving with our mental health work, and it is super important to recognise that we wouldn’t be doing it without our fantastic student writers. It humbles us to see just how many students are willing to open-up about their experiences with mental health in the hope to inspire and encourage others to do the same. May falls host to the most important event of the year (I am obviously biased): Mental health awareness week. This runs from 14th to 20th May and is yet another excuse (not that we need it!) to share our personal and/or secondary experiences of mental health. I would encourage all of you to head on over to mentalhealth.org where you can purchase the Green Ribbon badge in support of mental health, as well as spreading the word via social media adopting the hashtags #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek and #BreakTheStigma. As always, enjoy this Month’s edition. Take care of yourselves, guys! Appreciate you! Best wishes, Leanne Arnold, Mental Health Co-editor
Contents... STUDYING SELF CARE EATING DISORDERS PREGNANCY SLEEP HYGIENE
39 40 41-43 44 46-47
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CONTACT US 01473 35 35 12 leanne@student-life.co www.student-life.co FB: @studentlifeips Instagram: @studentlifeips Twitter: @studentlifeips
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Hello again!
Q&A 48-49 50-51 RELATIONSHIPS ACHIEVEMENT 52-53 WORKPLACE 56-57 58-59 LGBTQ+
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MENTAL Health
P IS FOR PERFECTION Perfectionism & Your Workload: The Perfectionist Scale WRITTEN BY AYLA BLOOM
Ayla is 21-years-old and is studying Screenwriting and Film Studies. Her favourite poet is Sylvia Plath. Ayla decided to get involved with Student Life to share her thoughts in a hope that they will inspire others. Nowadays, everything you do is measured in quantities especially workloads, revision, and exam results. Everyone talks about how much they’ve done, or how little they’ve done. This whole prospect can feel worse than the actual exam or coursework, or even the end result itself. For someone with perfectionist tendencies, this can ring true. In this month’s article, I want to stress why we shouldn’t get caught up on measuring ourselves against the ‘perfectionist scale’ and other people. As humans, we define ourselves by our capabilities. We will either say we are categorically ‘good’ or ‘bad’ at something. There is no in-between or leeway. A scale goes from 0%-100%. But for a perfectionist, 100% is never the end goal. Neither is 110%, or even 150%. We might see it as a good thing that someone is striving to do so well but, when you take a step back, it is extremely damaging.
Speaking from personal experience, I was one of those people who saw the perfectionist scale as infinite. I would get 100% on a test, but I never felt satisfied. I know I’m an intelligent and logical woman, so why could I not accept that this was, categorically, the best I could achieve? There was absolutely no possibility I could’ve got higher than this result, so why did my brain think I could? I was obsessed with flaws. If I got 100%, I would find something else to criticise about myself. I would point out how bad my handwriting was on the paper or how my punctuation was slightly off. Insignificant things that made no jot of difference to the grade I had received. It was feeding into my lack of self-worth. What I am trying to say is that we should not measure ourselves against a scale. We should not compare ourselves to others. We should not define our self-worth by our capabilities. There will always be things we are great at, and not so great at.
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MENTAL Health
SELF CARE MUSIC WRITTEN BY RACHEL GILBEY Music can be one of the easiest ways to relax, chill out and take some time for self care. Music comes in all varieties and there’s music for all occasions, moods and seasons. Some people choose to relax by listening to their favourite artist or band. Resonating with particular lyrics, songs or albums. You often find that certain songs relate and bring back memories of a certain time in your life- sometimes this might not conjure up good memories but on the whole, music can transport you to a positive place or help you to relive a good time! Music allows you to express yourself and acts as a form of release. Other types of music that people choose to relax to include peaceful instrumentals or
the sound of particular soundscapes. This could be the sound of waves, crashing along the shore, or birds chirping in a tree. You could find that sounds like this help you to relax and even help you to sleep. Music is portable, you can literally take it anywhere. You can listen through your phone or music player and it becomes something very personal. Or you can share it with those around you- whether that’s through a radio or by hooking up your device to a Bluetooth speaker. There are a number of apps that allow you to listen to music through your phone or alternative decide- a lot of them being free to download too. It’s worth giving it a go if you need cheering up, or are gearing up for an exciting event or outing.
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Talking about
EATING
DISORDERS The ‘One-Size-Fits-All’ Approach to Eating Disorders WRITTEN BY ABBIE GELLATLY
Speaking as someone who has been diagnosed with a range of eating disorders, including Anorexia, Bulimia, and Binge Eating Disorder, I can attest to the fact that, if your symptoms fail to fit neatly into an eating disorder ‘box,’ your chances of being deemed eligible for treatment are highly unlikely. This generalised approach to eating disorders is attributed to both a lack of funding and a lack of understanding. This is symptomatic of the fact that, as a society, we are reluctant to offer help to those whose condition does not match the oversimplified images circulating the media in relation to eating disorders. Despite an increasing awareness surrounding mental illness, owing to the efforts made by mental health advocates, huge numbers of individuals are being turned away due to our inability to let
go of an antiquated one-size-fits-all approach to eating disorders. The ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach, to which I am referring, can be felt by numerous individuals who, upon meeting a mental health professional, are told that they are “not skinny enough” to receive treatment. Either that, or their Body Mass Index (BMI) does not qualify them for therapy. Herein lies the crux of the matter. For too long, we have regarded eating disorders as a skinny white girl disease. Likewise, we have been fed the idea that you can tell, simply by looking at a person, or by inspecting the weight on the scales, whether he or she is in the midst of a chronic illness such as anorexia. The reality is, a person does not have to be emaciated in order to be suffering from an eating disorder. I myself am not emaciated and yet, there is no denying that my bulimia is as prevalent as it was 4 years ago, a time when I did fit the ideal eating disorder ‘profile’.
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CONTINUED... In short, by way of denying treatment, often as a result of a heavy reliance on an outdated system of measuring health (BMI), mental health professionals actions can validate feelings of self-loathing on the part of the patient. No matter how regretful a physician may be, when delivering the news that an individual is ineligible for therapy, the string of words “you are not skinny enough” should never be voiced.
Orthorexia Nervosa: When Healthy Eating Goes Too Far WRITTEN BY AYLA BLOOM
Ayla is 21-years-old and is studying Screenwriting & Film Studies. Her favourite poet is Sylvia Plath. Ayla decided to get involved in ‘Student Life’ to share her experiences in a hope that it will help and inspire others. From childhood, it is drilled into us that we must eat our greens. That water is good for us. And, that we should get a sufficient amount of exercise to reduce our chances of obesity. But, what happens when this manifests itself too far? Recognised in the 1990s, Orthorexia is not a topic that is often discussed; most people haven’t heard of it. To put it simply, Orthorexia is an eating disorder which is fuelled by an obsession to eat ‘cleanly’. Like any eating disorder, it does not necessarily
manifest from an dissatisfaction with body image, but it can be about reigning back control. Orthorexia is all around us. Insta snaps of healthy food, diets on magazine covers, and ‘What I Eat In a Day’ videos that have become a trend in the YouTube community. I became aware what Orthorexia was back in sixth-form. My friend started visiting the gym. I just thought she was adopting a healthy lifestyle. When you’re juggling school, doing something you can enjoy can be a great way to clear your head. But it got out of control. She would take days off school to go to the gym. She would do laps around the school during lesson hours. I think the moment it hit was when we were all having a night eating copious amounts of pizza. Instead, she brought along a fruit smoothie and Instagrammed it on the kitchen counter. When everyone left, I approached the subject sensitively. My friend told me how she had been feeling, and said she knew she had a problem. She wanted to stop, but didn’t know how. It all made sense. The
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excessive exercising. The taking pictures of food whenever we went out to eat. Ordering the healthiest thing on the menu. Adding calories together on a calculator. Luckily, she got the help she needed, but it has taken a long time. Years later, I asked her why she felt the need to do those things. She said it was like her brain was screaming at her, telling her that if she ate something unhealthy she would make her body ‘impure ’. She urged anyone to not suffer in silence, and recognise when a habit is becoming an obsession.
“It never occurred to me that I had an actual problem.” WRITTEN BY ANONYMOUS
What comes to mind when you hear the term ‘eating disorder’? Probably bulimia or anorexia nervosa; the two most common types of EDs in the UK. It was this reason exactly why it never occurred to me that I had an actual problem with my eating habits. I wasn’t overweight, underweight, or binge eating in secret. I just figured I was really, really into eating ‘clean’. But when it started taking over my life, I knew something wasn’t quite right. I’d always been a bit out of shape, and when I joined a gym and started seeing the positive changes eating healthily and working out had on my body, I grew more and more attached – and more and more obsessed – with it. When I started having stomach troubles, I saw a doctor and underwent several tests
which eventually confirmed I was lactose intolerant. At that point, I cut dairy products out of my diet and I even started losing a bit more weight, which led me to thinking: what else can I do? I started cutting other food groups out of my diet: first gluten/wheat, then sugar, then carbs. I was at the point where my diet mainly consisted of chicken, rice cakes and vegetables. Every item of food I picked up, I would check the nutritional information of. I wouldn’t eat in a restaurant or takeaway without first finding the nutritional information online – and if it wasn’t available, I would sit staring at the menu wondering “what can I eat that won’t be ‘bad’ for me?” I avoided social events if they involved alcohol, fast food or buffets; my willpower was so low that I knew I would end up consuming something ‘bad’ and feeling guilty about it for hours, even days. Each day became a contest against myself with how much ‘better’ I could eat compared to the previous day, and any ‘slip up’ would make me feel low. I eventually realised how it had taken control of my life and saw my GP who educated me on the term ‘orthorexia’. Orthorexia – although not clinically recognised as an ‘eating disorder’ in its definition – is treated as a form of anorexia or obsessivecompulsive disorder. I realised that my mental wellbeing was worth more than how I looked, and slowly my eating habits improved, to the point where today I am much more relaxed about what’s on the menu!
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Antenatal
ANXIETY Feeling anxious about certain situations is normal, especially throughout pregnancy, when many aspects of the body change. Alongside this, having a baby means changes to the family, which may induce some anxiety. However, if the worry significantly affects day-to-day activities and is excessive on most days then it could be an anxiety disorder that is being experienced. Antenatal anxiety is basically anxiety during pregnancy, but it is important to know that anxiety can occur before pregnancy and after the baby is born. Symptoms include recurring worrying thoughts, panic attacks, feeling restless/irritable and feeling tense. Previous anxiety disorders may return or become worse during pregnancy, which is why any historical mental health disorders should be discussed with a healthcare professional, so they can provide support. These symptoms can often be overlooked as general symptoms of pregnancy; however, this is not the case if the anxious thoughts
WRITTEN BY SUZANNE BROWN are hindering normal day-to-day activities. Sleep can be difficult to catch up on once having a baby, but it is always important to ensure that a healthy amount of sleep is maintained. Lack of sleep can antagonise the symptoms of anxiety, so any naps when the baby is sleeping will be much appreciated by your body! Importantly, there are effective treatments available for antenatal anxiety, including cognitive behavioural therapy, more commonly known as CBT. This type of talking treatment can teach individuals coping skills for dealing with different problems, encompassing thoughts, beliefs and attitudes that can affect feelings and behaviours. Taking a moment to stop and challenge negative thinking patterns could enable future experiences to be less anxietyprovoking. Other treatments are available depending on the severity of the anxiety, but healthcare professionals are able to assess and suggest appropriate treatments/ groups that could help. Antenatal classes can provide a space for expectant parents to get together and ask questions, as well as interacting with other parents-to-be where they can share any anxieties that may be felt. Often reaching out for help or advice can be the first step towards improving mental health, and you will be surprised at how many people want to help. Remember, you are not alone.
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SPRING TIME WRITTEN BY ROSIE STEWART
For some, waking up one morning in April/May with the sun shining down and the warmth in the air would be a breath of fresh air. For others, like me, it is a trigger for the start of my anxiety. My anxiety goes fairly dormant in the Winter like most things, I’d like to think it’s a type of hibernation! However when Spring/Summer time comes around, it can be a major trigger for my anxiety and panic attacks. Whilst others are waking up to the sun and warmth and feeling extremely happy, I wake up and get a sudden takeover of anxiety on my body, right from the second my eyes open. Of course for a lot of mental health sufferers, the change of season can be positive in helping their mood and irrational thoughts, however for me it has the opposite effect. It is rather frustrating in my eyes because I love the Summer time! However when the new season presents itself and it (literally) springs onto us one morning, my anxiety does not coordinate well with it. I wake up feeling anxious and almost as if I’ve woken up mid-panic attack. It’s not a nice feeling to wake up to! Personally, rain is my favourite weather at is is very soothing for my anxiety. One technique I’ve found that helps with this is jumping straight into a cold shower. One of the main causes of these feelings can be due to overheating during the night, causing a raise in my breathing and then waking up feeling as if I’m having a panic attack. This is why, for me, jumping straight into a cold
shower will help combat this issue straight away. Another thing I like to do is sit outside. Once the realisation sets in that we’re in England and even though the sun is beaming down it is still cold outside, I start to feel a lot better. Stepping into the hotter months shouldn’t be something we have to fear because of our mental health. Have a cold shower or bath, stick some summer clothes on and try and make the best out of it! It definitely won’t last forever, especially in this country!
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MENTAL Health
SLEEP HYGIENE
WRITTEN BY RACHEL GILBEY
Sleep hygiene is an accumulative variation of different techniques and practices which all aid towards having necessary night-time sleep quality and full daytime alertness. Practicing good sleep hygiene is extremely beneficial for our bodies, both mentally and physically. In fact, good sleep hygiene can improve our overall quality of life. It is often that life gets in the way of having a good sleep routine, that may be due to nights out, shift work, busy schedules, and even binging those all-important TV shows! However, to fully function, enjoy, and benefit from our life events we need to be appropriately rested.
1. Do not have too much or too little sleep! The Sleep Foundation suggest that a teenager (14-17 years) should have on average 8-10 hours per night, whereas a young adult (1825 years) and adult (26-52 years) should have on average 7-9 hours per night. Getting these sleep hours allow our body to be truly rested, but when we don’t achieve these hours we fall into ‘sleep debt’. Sleep debt is often where we go wrong when trying to achieve good sleep hygiene.
2. Napping does not make up for inadequate
night-time sleep. Some of us may have shorter sleep hours during the week to accommodate our busy schedules and therefore sleep in on the weekends to pay off our sleep debt balance. However, our accumulative balance by the weekend is often 5+ hours, catching up on these hours whilst achieving our daily recommended hours will have a domino effect on our Sunday night’s sleep. Which therefore puts us back into a poor sleep hygiene routine of trying to repay our sleep debts. A way to combat this is to repay our debt slowly. Going to bed even just 15 minutes earlier can benefit us and adds up eventually, plus it doesn’t impact on the next night’s sleep.
3. When we are awake a chemical called adenosine builds up in our blood. When we sleep, our body breaks it down. When we don’t get enough sleep our adenosine levels build up in our bloodstream which
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SO HERE ARE A FEW SIMPLE TIPS TO HELP YOU GET BET TER SLEEP: • Avoid stimulants for 3-6 hours before you go to bed – caffeine, alcohol and nicotine all help to keep the body awake, so cutting them out before bed helps your body relax and wind down • Develop a bedtime routine – start an hour before bed doing something relaxing to switch off. Whatever you do to relax, make it a pre-sleep ritual so your body learns when it is time to switch off. This can help when we work shifts and are unable to have a set bedtime
causes us to feel more desperate for sleep. This influences our reaction times, our concentration levels, and our mood! So, how can we maximise our chances of achieving the all-important recommended hours of sleep a day? Kate Blackford has a PhD in Quality of Working Life and is part of the Compliance team at ABP. Kate has experience of working long hours, unsociable shifts, and shift-work and therefore has written down her thoughts and advice on sleep-hygiene alongside working life. WHY GETTING GOOD SLEEP IS IMPORTANT
• Take a warm bath before bed – the warm water lowers your body temperature which helps to trigger sleep • Avoid looking at your mobile phone or computer for at least an hour before bed – the blue light they emit stimulates your brain and can keep you awake. It is also helpful to switch off from social media for one day a week as this has been shown to improve mood • If you wake up in the night - have a note book and pen by the bed to jot down your thoughts as this helps you let them go and allows you to get back to sleep
Getting good quality sleep is vital to our health and wellbeing. Sleep allows the body to repair and replenish itself and has a number of other benefits including: Improved memory; Reduced inflammation; Sharpened attention; Helps maintain healthy weight; Lowers stress; Reduces symptoms of depression; Helps to keep you safe and alert.
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Tips & Advice
YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED Got a burning question about mental health difficulties? Want non-professional, peer-to-peer advice? Look no further, this feature will appear every month and invites readers to send in questions regarding mental health for tips and advice*. My name is Leanne and I have both specialist training and personal experience in mental health and will aim to provide user-friendly, non-professional advice to anyone who asks for it!
Q. HOW CAN I BEST LOOK AFTER MY
OWN MENTAL HEALTH WHEN, FOR SO LONG, I HAVE PRIORITISED THE NEEDS OF FAMILY MEMBERS (DAD AND BROTHER), WHO ALSO SUFFER FROM DEBILITATING MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEMS?
A: I would advise you to seek your own support whether this be through friends, other family members, or professional avenues. It is important to prioritise yourself sometimes. Recognising when your own mental health needs attending to is the first step in managing it healthily. It may also make you feel better to discuss your thoughts and emotions regarding your brother and
Dad’s mental health. If you are unsure of who to contact, check out our contacts list at the back of this section – there is always someone you can talk to.
Q.
HOW DO YOU KNOW YOU HAVE A MENTAL HEALTH ISSUE AND THAT IT’S NOT JUST A TYPICAL TEENAGE LIFE STRUGGLE? A: You don’t always! I think the length of time that a specific problem is around for is a good indicator of whether you have more than a “passing” problem. Discussing your thoughts and emotions with others who are around you can also help identify whether they have noticed any changes within you
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and whether they feel concerned about any of it. When in doubt, book in to see your student counsellor and if you’re really worried, book in to see you GP.
Q.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE BEST WAYS TO AVOID DEVELOPING A MENTAL HEALTH ISSUE THAT IS NOT TYPICALLY BIOLOGICAL SUCH AS DEPRESSION? A: This question is really difficult to answer… the best way to avoid any health-related issue is to take care of number one! I believe that by working on your own wellbeing and the upkeep of your own health (both physical and mental) you reduce the risk of falling into a state of unease and ill-health. Awareness is another important factor, by being aware of our mental needs allows us to stay that little bit more in control which helps us maintain good mental health.
Q.
HOW CAN I CARE FOR SOMEONE WHO HAS A MENTAL HEALTH ISSUE, BUT SAYS THEY DON’T WANT MY HELP? A: This is a common question that I have often encountered within practice as a student mental health nurse. I believe that offering the person your support and relaying the fact that you are there for them allows them to keep control of when they accept this help. Sometimes the best way to help someone is to get the help for them (when things are very bad) and sometimes the best way is to let them be (we all need our own time sometimes). If you’re concerned then speak to the appropriate person; school tutor, head of year, parent, school counsellor etc.
How to ask: PLEASE SEND YOUR QUESTIONS TO: LEANNE@STUDENT-LIFE.CO
*Please note not all questions will be answered, and all will be posted anonymously. If you are seeking urgent or professional advice, please see our contact list at the end of this sub-section.
Q.
IS IT BEST TO SEE MY MENTAL HEALTH AS “A PART OF ME” AND EMBRACE IT, OR SEE IT AS SOMETHING SERIOUS AS OPPOSED TO EMBRACING SOMETHING I SHOULD TRY TO TREAT? A: I believe 100% that this is a personal preference. Some people find that having a label/diagnosis is actually a burden and can cause ill-feeling and negative emotions, whereas others find this as a form of categorising and understanding their own mental health. Like anything, if you deny to yourself that you are unwell it can often lead to making things harder for yourself with respects to accepting treatment and intervention. But that doesn’t mean to say you have to walk around with a label attached to your body. Explore both routes, find what makes YOU feel more comfortable – we are all different at the end of the day!
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MENTAL Health
REL ATIONSHIPS Welcome back to our regular feature offering advice to students on aspects of family/friend/personal relationships. In the hot-seat is Rosie, a current 6th former at Kesgrave High School and a founder member of the Student Life steering group.
Teachers; they’re just our teachers, right? Their job is to teach us about things we haven’t the slightest clue about, educate us on how to apply our new found knowledge in an exam, then send us on our way. But is that really all teachers are to us? If you are currently doing GCSEs or lower, it is likely that your teachers change every year, term, or in the case of subjects like science, with every topic! In these cases, it is likely that a teacher is very much just this. However, for our A Level teachers, Head of Year, and our form tutors, in lower school especially, our relationship with teachers is much more than just pupil-teachers. We all remember the days of lower school when something would upset us, a friend would tell you “Oh go on, just tell a teacher,” and it was quite possibly the most unappealing thought ever. After all, when we have our mates to gossip and natter with, why would we want to tell some bossy adult about our troubles?
WRITTEN BY ROSIE WEDGE Many of us take for granted what our teachers can be for us. They don’t just teach you, they care for your wellbeing, want you to do well, emotionally and in terms of your life, not just academically. This is most common with form tutors, the one teacher who between year 7 and year 11 is the only constant. They meet you every morning in form time, and watch you grow across the duration of five years, and believe me, they grow to become someone you trust and look to for support. Often, we are very shut off about confiding in teachers, and don’t see it as something we want to do, as instead we opt to tell our mates about all our worries. However, and I truly stand by this, if you want a truthful, honest opinion – go to a teacher. You don’t have to go into all the details of your
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will give you the honesty and insight that you truly need.
personal troubles, but I guarantee they will listen and understand whatever you do tell them. Don’t get me wrong, your mates are likely to be loyal and supportive, however because they are loyal to you, their opinions on how to handle situations may have you too much in their best interests, leading to biased, unconstructive advice that will only makes things worse. However, your form tutor or head of year is someone who has, from somewhat of a distance, watched how you have grown and matured over the years, without being in the know of all the subjective matters that come with it. Their best interest is purely in your wellbeing; it won’t be revengeful against whoever was gossiping about you, it won’t be one that agrees about how evil your parents have been, and it won’t be one that agrees you should totally make your ex jealous. They
Of course, I know there will be some form tutors and teachers who may not be as successful as others at supporting you like that, but often if you are willing to open up to them and trust them as your mentor, they will openly accept this and try their hardest to support you. I myself was truly BLESSED in terms of my form tutor and Head of Year both in lower school and sixth form. During my first few weeks of year 7, sure my HOY and form tutor were funny and kind, but I really took for granted who they were; to me, they were just a teacher. However, when it really came down to the hard stuff, and my friends didn’t have my back like I expected and hoped for them to, my form tutor was the one main person that did. After that, I felt comfortable telling them anything that was on my mind, and they often became my top choice of guidance over my friends, because I knew I would get an honest response. This little speech isn’t one against friendship; I know your friends are kind, they are supportive, and they adore you. What this is supposed to be is a call to you, for when it feels like there is no one on your side; that person seems to never run out of homework tasks for you, witters on for hours in the classroom, and overtly rolls their eyes when you are seconds late to class is there for you. Seriously people, don’t ever take your teachers for granted, especially those angelic sorts who stay with you throughout your whole high school and sixth form journey!
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MENTAL Health
ACHIEVEMENT: Are you stretched or stressed?
WRITTEN BY EZRA HEWING, HEAD OF MENTAL HEALTH EDUCATION, SUFFOLK MIND
Suffolk Mind and its unique Ipswich wellbeing centre, Quay Place, focus on need for achievement. Are you feeling like you need more of a challenge in life? Do you have personal goals and aspirations which really get you motivated to do more? Is there a skill or a talent that you’ve always wanted to nurture and develop? This is what your emotional need for achievement is all about. When we are learning and stretching ourselves to master skills, we feel competent and able to handle life’s challenges. These skills could be professional competencies, skills related to parenting and raising a family, arts and crafts, sports and physical activity, or learning mental skills like learning a language. When we master skills we are gaining in self-mastery, and have the sense that we are alive and growing.
STRETCH VERSUS STRESS There is still a widely held belief that stress is a good thing, which motivates people by keeping them ‘on their toes’ – this is not helpful, as stress contributes to mental and physical ill health. A much more useful distinction to draw is between stress and stretch. Stress is always overwhelming, uncomfortable and offers little of the pleasure which comes from learning. Stretch by comparison, arises when challenges, which may be initially frustrating, give us opportunities to improve on what we already know how to do. Importantly, stretching
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ourselves gives us the sense that life is meaningful and has a purpose to it. NATURE’S PERSONAL TRAINER The rewards we get for stretching ourselves are part of nature’s motivational system. When we complete a task, improve on past accomplishments and meet personal goals, nature gives us reward in the form of endorphins, the brain’s buzzy pleasure chemicals. These encourage us to challenge ourselves to achieve even more. And when we aren’t stretching ourselves nature sends us withdrawal in the form of boredom to remind us that we need to be doing more. But nature doesn’t want us to stand still
either, so each time we complete an activity it turns down the amount of endorphin reward we receive, to push us to do more, switch things up and get even better. THE ANTIDOTE TO LOW SELF-ESTEEM Stretching ourselves is also the antidote to feelings of low self-esteem. Nothing gives us a lift quite like the feeling that we are mastering new skills. So set yourself small achievable goals, and keep growing for wellbeing!
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Quay Place brings together wellbeing and heritage by offering a range of therapies, classes and trainings. The venue is also available for room hire and wedding receptions. Events in May 2018
Regular Groups at Quay Place
Huddl Ups with Suffolk Mind: Social Media & Internet Safety Saturday 12th May, 4pm – 6pm Learn from our experts, together with your child, how to navigate safely through social media and the internet. Visit www.huddl.uk to book.
Poppy Craft – free Mondays, 10am – 12pm
Achievement and Emotional Wellbeing Talk Thursday 24th May, 6pm – 7.30pm Our monthly information session with Ezra Hewing will explore why achievement is the antidote to feelings of low self-worth and helps give us balanced self-esteem. Book your free place by calling 01394 333199.
Craft Group – free Wednesdays, 1pm – 3pm
Meet the Quay Place Resident Artist Bon Collins will be getting creative at Quay Place every Friday between 9am and 2pm.
Sporting Memories – free Mondays, 10.30am – 12pm Colouring Group – free Mondays, 2pm – 4pm
Weddings at Quay Place Looking for a great venue to hold your wedding reception? We have a dedicated team & some wonderful wedding packages. For more details email weddings@quayplace.co.uk.
Quay Place Key Street, Ipswich, IP4 1BZ • quayplace.co.uk • 01473 569696
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Mental health charity, Suffolk Mind, has a range of opportunities to get involved; from fundraising, becoming a friend or volunteering. Visit www.suffolkmind.org.uk Volunteering Opportunities
Get Fundraising
Night Owls’ Telephone Support This role is based in Felixstowe and will include listening, emotionally supporting and assisting service users who ring the helpline in crisis for support.
Are you organising an event or taking part in a sponsored challenge and would like to raise money for Suffolk Mind? If so, we would love to hear from you - email carole. thain@suffolkmind.org.uk or call us on 01394 330823.
Ecotherapy Allotment Volunteer You will attend weekly sessions to organise an allotment project across Suffolk helping people to improve their mental wellbeing. Fundraising Events Volunteer Based in Felixstowe, you could be part of our fundraising team helping with event planning and preparation and support at fundraising events across Suffolk. Quay Place Steward We are looking for a friendly face to welcome visitors to Quay Place and help with enquires and other daily administrative tasks.
Become a Friend of Suffolk Mind Join our free network and receive information, help and support to make your own mental health a priority, and create a life that meets your needs. For more information visit Suffolkmind.org.uk To apply for a volunteering role, or for more information, contact Corrina Hanley on 0300 111 6000 or email Corrina.hanley@suffolkmind.org.uk
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MENTAL Health
Making the shift from
STUDENT to EMPLOYEE Whilst starting your career and that first full time job out of university can be exciting, it can also be a daunting prospect. Gone are the safety nets of fellow students and shared experiences, and a flexible schedule to do your work at a time that suits you and in come more standard working hours, new colleagues and the desire to establish yourself and your career. It can sometimes feel as though you are thrown in at the deep end as you try to figure out the scope of the business you join, the key players, the ways things are done and how you fit into all of this. In addition is the shock to the system as your body works to acclimatise to different times and ways of working, your brain is trying to take in all of the new information and experiences you are being exposed to and all of this can be quite exhausting. In my early thirties I left full time employment to go back to university and get my Ph.D. Even though I had worked hard (and often long hours) while I was studying, also doing consultancy work and a few shifts in a local pub to make ends meet,
WRITTEN BY KATE BLACKFORD it still took a long while to get used to full time working when I resumed my career. I remember feeling so tired I could hardly bear to get out of bed in the morning, with the weeks feeling interminably long as I waited for that prized weekend lie-in. My concentration span was short and I felt overwhelmed at trying to get my head around all the complexity of the business and who I needed to engage with for what. I felt a huge weight of responsibility to prove myself in my new role and show that I was managing and this added to my exhaustion. I felt quite alone and as if I was the only person in the business struggling with this and that there surely must be something wrong with me. The thought of surviving the rest of my career in this state of exhaustion only made me feel worse and I resented the early starts, late finishes and constant barrage of emails. So here are a few tips on acclimatising to your new job:
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for a walk at lunch-time? Even if you can only fit in 15 minutes in the morning that will help immensely. Many businesses now offer reduced rate gym memberships to staff which can help, but getting outside is the ultimate especially if you can find a walking or running route through a park or green space, so try to build this in too. 3. KEEP UP HOBBIES – when you are feeling tired often hobbies are the first thing to go. Try to keep them up so you maintain interests and social connection outside of work. Engaging in active or creative activities is a great way to give your brain a break from work and engage the creative pleasure centres of the brain. 1. BOUNDARIES – in an increasing technological age it is vital to have boundaries that allow you to switch off from work. It is all too easy to sit of an evening and check your work email. Get into the practice of switching off your mobile data at least two hours before bed and appreciating your off time. The same goes for weekends (assuming you work Monday – Friday, but if not, whenever your off days are). Getting this psychological break from work is essential in allowing our body to relax and repair, manage stress and enhance well-being. 2. KEEP ACTIVE – Joining the world of full-time work can often mean more time sat at a desk and sedentary. Whilst you may feel like exercise is the last thing you want to do, it is important to keep it up as it will improve your energy levels, sense of well-being and concentration. With spring having arrived walking is a great way to relax and get some exercise. Is there a way you can walk to work, or even a part of the way? Can you get out
4. TALK TO SOMEONE – Often we can feel like we should instantly know everything (especially if we are trying to prove ourselves in the early stages of our career) and so we avoid asking questions for fear of looking like we don’t know what we are doing. This can lead to lots of anxiety as we try to ‘muddle through’. Find colleagues who are willing to support you in your new role, talk to them, ask their opinions and advice and you will soon be feeling a lot more comfortable and producing good work. 5. GET GOOD SLEEP (see article on fatigue) – getting good quality sleep is vital in staying healthy and well in body and mind. Establishing a bedtime routine, having regular sleep hours where possible and creating a cool, comfortable, tech and TV-free sleep zone will all help.
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MENTAL Health
WRITTEN BY LEANNE ARNOLD
This is a monthly feature that will focus on all aspects of identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning, as well as other ways of defining our gender/sexuality. We aim to cover a variety of topics; some relating to mental health, positive and negative experiences, the reality of today’s society in accepting the LGBTQ+ community, dayto-day life, and many more. As always, we invite anyone who has a passion for writing, or who wants their voice heard, to contact us about writing an article for Student Life. I believe it is important to talk about the things that society can sometimes find uncomfortable. Hiding away encourages this behaviour, and I personally think that we are all different and there is no right or wrong. I say: “be who you truly are, be yourself, embrace yourself, and don’t let anyone get you down” – how boring would it be if we were all the same, eh? Please see our first LGBTQ+ articles which focus on the relationship between mental health and identifying within the LGBTQ+ community. If anyone has any questions regarding this topic, please feel free to contact me at Leanne@student-life.co
+ Q T LGB THE MALE GAZE & LGBTQ+ WOMEN WRITTEN BY ABBIE GELL ATLY Last month, we tackled the subject of the male gaze within the realm of on-screen LGBTQ+ female representation; this month, I shall be conducting a more personal exploration into how the male gaze affects real-life LGBTQ+ women. From an increasingly young age, men are fed the idea, through monetised objectification, that women, both heterosexual and homosexual, exist for their gratification. This sort of objectification, which exists primarily within the media, has filtered down into everyday life, engendering street harassment - catcalling, for instance - and sexual assault. This reality has left large numbers of women fearing public spaces, lest they fall victim to such harassment. The consequences that manifest from this form of objectification are particularly prevalent amongst LGBTQ+ women. Similar to their heterosexual counterparts, gay women are all too familiar with the sting of sexism. After all, the LGBTQ+ community
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does not exist in a vacuum; its members are no less exempt from misogyny than anyone else. That being said, gay women are equally as accustomed to an altogether separate form of objectification. The male gaze, in conjunction with a pop-cultural fascination with lesbianism, has provided heterosexual men with an added element of entitlement that exceeds their pre-existing male privilege. Not only is it deemed permissible in their eyes to jeer at gay women, but because of their sense of entitlement, men are given the run to harass gay women in such a way that completely undermines their sexuality. Comments ranging from “you haven’t found the right man,” to “I can be the one to convert you” reek of said entitlement and, more importantly, reek of a heteronormative society that sexualises gay women in the name of aggrandising male pleasure. Members of the LGBTQ+ community have grown to almost expect anti-homosexual hostility upon leaving the house - for some, it is a part of their day-to-day existence however, when coupled together, gay women are now finding that it is commonplace for heterosexual men to leer after them in pursuit of a threesome. Either that, or they are propositioned by men who want to watch them have sex. This flags up the historical issue surrounding societal double standards. As pointed out, men often act as if it is socially acceptable to approach gay women with the desire to “join in” on their sexual relationship. To the best of my knowledge, this is an experience shared almost exclusively by gay women and straight men. That is to say, few heterosexual men would dare approach a straight couple and ask them to put on a sex show. Moreover, there is a tendency amongst straight men
to only abandon their pursuit of a woman - or two women, in the case of gay female relationships - when another man steps forward and intervenes. This is indicative of the fact that these men do not respect the women that they are pursuing, but rather in keeping with the male gaze theory, view them as sexual objects. Many lesbian and gay respondents report that this sort of behaviour acts to delegitimise, and makes a mockery of their relationship. Arguably, the most toxic issue that has come from the male gaze is the idea that female sexuality is for men. Queer femme women, in particular, are all too familiar with their sexuality being co-opted by men, many of whom act as if gay women exist for the sole purpose of giving life to their lesbian fantasies. Not only is this ludicrous thinking, on the part of men, given that lesbians are the only group of women who will categorically never be interested in them, but it is particularly degrading for the women involved. Lesbians are lesbians for each other, not for men. Owing to straight privilege, ignorance, and an over-inflated ego, straight men, for the most part, seem to completely overlook the importance of sexual orientation when engaging gay women. Admittedly, sexuality can be fluid, but it is rarely the case for women who strictly identify as gay, that their sexual orientation is so overwhelmingly fluid, that upon being propositioned by a straight man, they will renounce all ties to the LGBTQ+ community and exclusively start dating men.
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MENTAL Health
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