Turning Red – A Review By Aoife

“Turning Red” is a heart-warming coming-of-age movie from Pixar Animation. It follows the story of Mei, a 13-year-old Chinese-Canadian girl who (inconveniently!) transforms into a giant red panda whenever she experiences strong emotions. Throughout the course of the film, we see Mei navigate the difficulties of growing up and balancing her parent’s wishes for her

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EDAW: Moments of Freedom – By Megan

It’s Eating Disorder Awareness Week, and once again, Megan wanted to write something about where she stands now in relation to her recovery from anorexia. This is something Megan has been writing about for Shona for the past 5 years. Eating Disorder Awareness Week is here again!! It can be quite an overwhelming week for

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Why Water Is Your Best Friend

Okay, can we all agree that we are constantly being told to drink water and why it is so important to stay hydrated? Why does anyone need to be told to drink more water? It’s obvious, right? Well, this may seem boring to you, but let’s explore why it’s so important. It will wake up

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Turns Out The Gym Is Not So Scary

This isn’t going to be another one of those preachy articles or Insta posts that guilt you into going to the gym or make you feel terrible that you don’t go. Trust me, I’ve been there and only recently I’ve begun to find my feet in the gym. For as long as I can remember,

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5 Ways To Get More Sleep

Ah, bed. Everyone’s favourite place to be. We sometimes forget how important a decent nights sleep is in order for us to get through the day; mentally, physically and emotionally. Lack of sleep has a direct effect on your hormone levels, moods, weight, concentration, and ability to deal with it all. And yet, the struggle

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Why Should You Be Dancing? Here’s 6 Reasons!

Whether it’s a beautifully controlled rendition of Swan Lake in front of an audience or a good old twerk to a bit of Nikki Minaj in your bedroom, there are so many reasons why Dance is good for you. You don’t have to be good at it to reap the benefits. You just have to

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Recovery Is Not Linear – by Megan

Recovering from the physical side of anorexia is a horrible, uncomfortable time. And it takes many, many cries and tantrums to get through it. It’s definitely not a straight road and sometimes when you feel you’ve made it, you stumble back to square one and have to start all over. But when eventually you get

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diet culture - The Shona Project

Diet Culture can go and Suck It – By Megan

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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Spiking Explained – Everything You Need To Know

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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A Chat Through Transition With Alexandra

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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Shona handbook

The Survival Handbook for Girls

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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We Need To Talk About Disordered Eating – By A

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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Celebrating Hijabi Women In Sport – By Eiman

Inspired by a post on social media, Eiman decided to write this article for us, highlight some of the unsung heroes, paving the way for the younger generation of hijabi women in sport.    For every well-known woman fighting to break barriers every day, there are about 10 quiet heroes, who don’t even know they’re

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Active* Consent – An Ambassador’s POV

Consent culture is developing at a rapid pace in Ireland, but what is it like to be a consent workshop facilitator? Amy, Naomi, Caoimhe, and Saorla tell us about their experiences of recently acting as consent ambassadors at The National College of Art and Design (NCAD) in Dublin. Caoimhe is the Vice President for Welfare

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Our Back To School Daily Checklist

Going to secondary school is very exciting – there is a new building, uniform, new friends, teachers and lots of opportunities to try new subjects and activities. But it can also be a bit daunting, even to those who aren’t heading into first year. This year it’s even more confusing, after months off and new

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heartbreak - feature image

How To Fix A Broken Heart

Ah, heartbreak. If Monday’s could be a feeling, we think this would be it. Whether you finally plucked up enough courage to tell them you liked them, like really like like them, and were shot down with the “I just want to be friends“. Or, you’ve been together for years, have your whole summer mapped

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Anna Geary’s “Why Girls Quit Sport”

Whether you know her for wearing a red jersey for Cork, as a coach on Ireland’s Fittest Family or bopping her way across the dance floor on Dancing With the Stars, over the last few years, Anna Geary has become a name we all know and love. Just like us here at SHONA, Anna aims

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