This will be one of our last posts of 2021. We’re shutting up shop to rest and recharge our batteries because after all, we did just survive another year of a pandemic! We learned a lot about ourselves this year though. We realised how important it is to look after yourself and how to communicate
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Making friends can be hard, especially making friends in a big school packed full of strangers. You might think you are sticking out like a sore thumb because you are shy and don’t really know how to approach people. Maybe you’ve moved on from your last friend group as you’ve simply grown apart, or maybe
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Diet culture, something we are all too familiar with. Skinny teas, appetite suppressant lollipops, protein shakes, zero-calorie noodles… aka money-making strategies of corporations who benefit from our insecurities. It needs to stop. It saddens me to hear people talk about diets. I’m not shaming people who do, but I think they should be made aware
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Having recently attended my first personal therapy session, I wanted to share with all you lovely ladies and let anyone know who is struggling that it’s ok not to be ok (cliché) and that reaching out for help is really brave! This post isn’t going to be about me and my first therapy session. It’s
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Photo Credit: Gavin Browne You may have heard lots of chat recently about “Spiking”, or may even know someone who has experienced it. UCC’s Bystander Intervention Group have been doing great work to raise awareness and advise us on how we can empower ourselves against it. We are so grateful to them for providing information
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Back in May, we ran a writing competition where we asked secondary school girls across Ireland to submit a piece on either: A lived experience they have overcome, and what they learned. A profile of a woman they admire. An opinion piece with a positive and empowering message. Here at SHONA, we believe in
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A large part of the LGBTQ* community but one that is often silenced is the ever-growing transgender community or trans for short. Trans people often face more oppression than other members of the community with threats of sexual assault and physical violence looming over the very existence of these people. The often unaccepting social atmosphere
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We are huge supporters of the amazing work done by Women’s Aid, and their Too Into You Campaign. We will do anything to help spread the word about healthy relationships and potential red flags. Here’s a helpful post they wrote just for us and our followers… Intimate relationship abuse against young people is prevalent
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It’s almost that time again!! Coming to the end of the term and the dreaded Christmas exams are looming. Bedrooms all over Ireland are covered in study timetables, highlighter pens and index cards and pretty soon churches will be full of Grannies saying Novenas and health shops will be sold out of rescue remedy. But
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Hi there! Chances are you are here because you have a teenage girl in your life that you want to support. They might be struggling and you just don’t know how to help. Well, that’s where we come in. Our Survival Guide Handbook is a handy little tool that will help the girl in your
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On Sunday, November 29th, Tammy Darcy – Our Founder and CEO and members of the Shona team attended a small gathering of the 4th annual Irish Red Cross Humanitarian Awards. We nominated for three awards. The nominations included Innovation for Change Award, Digital Influence Award and the prestigious Humanitarian of the Year Award
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The word “Crazy” has been used to undermine and discredit women since the dawn of time. “She’s nuts, a psycho, way too emotional”. We’ve all heard it, but we’re too quick to believe it. In fact, it says way more about the person who said it than the person they’re referring to, and it’s a
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We all think that everyone else has the perfect family and that ours are the only ones who are completely dysfunctional. When we visit our friends’ homes, their parents are sweet and light, the house is always clean, and they are loving to each other. NEWSFLASH: ITS A FACADE! Every family has its ups and
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When we are small, our parents read us fairytales. Stories about people from faraway lands, living in kingdoms dominated by dragons, unicorns, witches, warlocks, giants and fairies, just to name a few. A common trope in a fairy story is the romance between a prince and a princess. Perhaps he’s a tall, dark, handsome stranger
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Dear Reader, I don’t care who you are. For all I know, you’re a 44-year-old man trying to figure out what’s going on in his daughter’s head. Or perhaps you’ve just finished an exam and you’re anxious about your results. As I said before, I don’t care. Because that’s not what’s important. What’s important, is
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Back in May, we ran a writing competition where we asked secondary school girls across Ireland to submit a piece on either: A lived experience they have overcome, and what they learned. A profile of a woman they admire. An opinion piece with a positive and empowering message. Here at SHONA, we believe in
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When I first started skipping meals, I thought it was what you were supposed to do to lose weight. I wasn’t the only person I knew doing it, so naturally, I didn’t see a problem. When I stopped eating completely for days at a time, excuses were given and the ‘oh I ate earlier’ line
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Steph, our wonderfully talented Psychotherapy and valued Shona team member, has something a little different for everyone this week. It’s a tough one, so mind yourself while reading it. But sometimes important messages are tough to hear. It’s not her typical Ask Steph piece. This is especially for when it all gets too much. She’s
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