Category: Wellness
-
34 Per Cent Of Young Lesbian Gay And Bi People Tried To Commit Suicide Last Year
A new report from LGBT mental health charity PACE shows that 34 per cent of young LGB people have tried to commit suicide in the last year.
-
10 Ways To Wake Up Happy
How we wake up, sets us up for the rest of our day.
Could blue light be keeping you up and creating a bad environment for you? CREDIT: Minerva-Studio-bigstock Sadly most people these days wake up as stressed as they went to bed. This means that we often wake up dreading the day instead of being ready to take it on. It is easy to change this by doing a few simple things in your early morning routine, but a lot of people think this might take too much time.
This is a misconception as in fact: taking a few minutes in the morning to get ready for the day will boost your energy levels and will make you work faster: leaving you with more time by the end of the day to do things you really want to do: like hobbies.
1. Avoid screens (1). Waking up clear headed begins with going to bed clear headed. Stop turning on your computer late at night thinking “I’ll just do that one last thing …” as we all know you’ll still be doing that one last thing at 3.00PM. Instead of pulling all-nighters you’ll be far more productive during the day if you avoid flashing screens altogether for at least half an hour before you go to sleep. Rest your mind with a book or listening to some soft music or a radio play.
Your brain needs to recover from the glare of the computer, followed by the glare of the TV. An overload of images right before going to bed is detrimental to a good nights rest.
2. Get things ready before going to bed. Choose what you’re going to wear the next day early the evening before. After this think about what else you might need and put it out. Getting details in order the evening before saves you precious time and stress in the morning.
3. Wake up at-least half an hour before you have to. It’s a myth to think that it’s that extra half hour of sleep that would help you to wake up feeling refreshed. You’d be surprised to know that this is not the case. Waking up a little earlier means you can start your day slow and relaxed, as you have some time for yourself instead of; jumping out of bed, rushing into the shower, wolfing down your breakfast and dashing out.
4. Do NOT set an alarm. This might sound odd, but there is a very good reason for this: when you use an alarm to stir you in the morning you do not wake up naturally. The sudden beeps of the alarm disrupt your sleep and you jolt awake abruptly, stressed out before you’ve even opened your eyes. Hitting the snooze button after this makes things even worse as dozing off means you will be waking up again ten minutes later at the beginning of the sleep cycle. The worst point to be woken up.
Instead of using your alarm try and exercise mind and body into resetting your biological clock so you’ll wake naturally. I do not advise to start training this during a working week as you may run into trouble.
5. Avoid screens (2). Do not reach out for your phone or laptop the second you wake up. Those e-mails, messages and Tweets can wait. Immediately going for the phone means you’re starting work the moment you wake up causing stress levels to rise abruptly. Reading Twitter does not equal time for yourself. The internet late at night you’ll be on that phone/tablet for the next 40+ minutes, losing precious time and will stressed for the rest of the day.
6. Begin the day with positive affirmations: Find a motivational meditation that speaks to you and play it the moment you wake up. Early in the morning, your mind is very susceptible and the affirmations will remain with you throughout the day.
Alternatively, if you do not like to play recordings early in the morning: reading positive affirmations instead will do just as well.
7. Go over your daily goals: What was it you had planned for the day? What is essential? Remember it and think about how you want to do it.
8. Do some exercise: Some people swear by exercising first thing in the morning: it is easy to see why: it gets done and sets you up for the rest of the day. It is also obvious why many more people feel quite queasy at the thought of doing strenuous exercise first thing in the morning.
Still, even if you don’t like working out first thing in the morning, it is a good idea to at least do something to wake up your body, your metabolism and your mind. Try ten minutes of easy exercise that suit you. A bit of yoga, for example, a few sit-ups a little cardio or pilates, even going up and down the stairs a few times. (Always, always stretch before anything you do though!!) Doing some moves early in the morning is like physical coffee that gets you going.
9. Practice Mindfulness: Take your breakfast and relax. Eat slowly and try to truly taste what you are eating. After you have finished don’t jump up immediately but slowly close your eyes and do a brief body scan. Take a few breaths and pay attention to what you feel and hear around you. This should take no more than two or three minutes: a mini meditation.
10. Talk to your loved ones: Take some time out to talk to your partner/family or live in friend. Give a kiss and a cuddle. The best way to start the day is with love.
-
ADVICE | Why Does My Foreskin Smell?
This month a reader is concerned with a smell coming from under his foreskin. Our experts answer his question.
Dear TGUK
Inside my foreskin. I keep getting a smell from it. Once in the past I was given a cream to sort an area out and it’s that where the smell is coming from.
G, 33Hello G
Thank you for your message. Nobody likes a stinky pinky, so hopefully we can get this sorted for you.
Smells coming from the foreskin are usually created by bacteria. The penis is a fantastic incubation ground for all sorts of bacterias. Warm, moist and if you don’t wash, or aren’t able to wash the area properly it can lead to smells, often from what’s called Smegma. The white, creamy material that you can often find under the foreskin.
You don’t say whether you’ve got a tight foreskin or whether you are able to fully pull back your foreskin. If you’re not able to do this, it could stop you getting rid of the smegma build, which after a while, smell.
The best way to clean the area is with warm water. It’s often advised not to use shower gels or soaps because they may cause irritation.
If you’re not able to fully retract the foreskin you should see your doctor about this.
However you say that you have been given a cream in the past to sort out the smell. Without knowing what the cream is or what it is for, we suggest that you go back to your docs and get to the root of your problem.
If you have an infection or your penis is red and sore or has a rash then you definitely should book in with your GP – or take some time to go to a walk in sexual health clinic.
OTHER QUESTIONS: HIV | WILLY WONDERS | HOLES | DOING IT | STIs | LUMPS & BUMPS | BACK TO SEX CLINIC HOME PAGE
Got a problem you’d like advice on?
-
10 Intimate Health Symptoms Men Should Not Ignore
The human body is a cruel temptress. Even though you are meant to be able to read your own body like a book, sometimes signs and symptoms are just too hard to read, or even find in the first place.
-
REVIEWED: Naked Fitness Training in West London
Yeah, it’s a thing. Exercising and group training in the buff is a relatively new concept (no, those “squats” you’ve been doing do not count as training) and NKD Training’s founder Paul was kind enough to invite me along to try it out. ★★★★
I’ll be honest, this whole endeavour started as an excuse to ogle hot guys working out veiled under the thin disguise of journalism. As the day of my naked group training drew closer I began to have some serious doubts. What if the group was full of creepy fat old men? Or worse, what if it was full of hot young men and that I would actually be the creepy fat old man?!As it turns out, there was a healthy mix of both.
NKD Training is run at the Gym Clinic in West London, a small but well equipped (that’s what they say about me … sorry, too many penis jokes) gym not far from Gunnersbury tube station. The main entrance is closed off during naked training so you have to enter through the back door (not saying a word) into the clean and professional work out space. That just happens to be full of naked men exercising.
The session is divided into two parts: the first is an hour of free gym time in which you are invited to use the facilities as and how you want, dressed in as little as you want – as long as you’re wearing trainers. You can wear shorts during this time, as I did, but you will be silently yet harshly judged by the guys training in the altogether.
The second half of the session is similar to a circuit class, during which Paul takes you through a warm-up – set to your favourite drag queen lip sync music – and then through a solid 45-minute workout. Newcomers are likely to feel strange and probably a bit uncomfortable when first stripping off, but after a while of lunging and crunching and curling, you almost forget that your dick is hanging out while you do it. Almost.
There were some aspects to naked training that were more complicated than I had anticipated. Running on a treadmill was obviously more uncomfortable than I’m used to, but trying to do squats without giving the guy behind you an eyeful of asscrack, that was damn near impossible.
I can certainly see the appeal of naked training and, as Paul explains, the benefits as a personal trainer are significant. “As a trainer there are a lot of benefits. I can see more of the muscles that are working and I can see if there’s an imbalance, say when they’re doing a chest press. You don’t just see the bar moving, you see the muscles that are working, the ones that aren’t and the ones that should be. And it builds a bond, being naked. I don’t know how to explain it.”
It was definitely a unique experience for me, but one that I really wanted try. Not so much to see hot naked guys (again, yes there are plenty of them there) but to come more to terms with my own nakedness. Gay men are often plagued with insecurities about our bodies and the act of stripping off completely in a bold attempt to better yourself takes balls, and not just the ones on display. For most of the men in that room, being naked was the most normal and natural thing in the world. It was the realisation that whether your body is perfect or not, it’s the only one that you’ve got. So learn to love it while you work to make it better. And go on, have a sneak peak at yourself training naked in the mirror. You may be more impressed than you thought.
NKD Training takes place every Sunday in West London and costs £15 per session.
You can also book naked personal training sessions either in your home or Paul’s.
Contact paul@nkdtraining.co.uk or visit nkdtraining.co.uk for more information and to book.Bravely reviewed by Nick Baker
-
ADVICE | Can I Get HIV From Sharing A Bath?
One reader asks our sexual health expert Jose Perez De La Cruz, whether he is at risk of getting HIV from sharing a bath.
Dear TGUK,
I recently stayed at someone’s house in the morning I had a bath before I left. I didn’t know at the time (nor did he), but the lad has since told me that he’s been tested HIV positive and it was likely that he caught it before our meet up.
The hook up we had was pretty safe. We used condoms and I’ve heard that you can’t get HIV from blowjobs, so I’m assuming I’m okay.
I’m worried about the bath. can I catch HIV or any other infection from using the same bathtub as someone else?
I was in there for a good 30 minutes. Plenty of time for an infection to get in me.
Pls, Help.
Hi Tom,
Relax. There is absolutely no chance you can catch HIV from a bath. HIV is a very fragile virus and would be dead within seconds even in normal air so such an environment would probably make this even quicker.
To catch HIV requires exposure to blood, semen, vaginal fluid, prostatic fluid (pre-cum) or contaminated breast milk. Even without allowing for the aforementioned fragility of the virus if one of these fluids, by some unlikely chance, had made its way into the bath water it would be so diluted that it would be unable to infect you.
The same applies to most other infections, bath water is not a very good medium for the growth of sexually transmitted pathogens.
There is a very small risk you can catch HIV from blowjobs, the risk being slightly higher if you are giving the blowjob and the person ejaculates in your mouth.
As standard advice only, if you have any concerns about any sexual contact you have had I would recommend you attend your nearest sexual health clinic for a sexual health screen.
Did you know you can order an at-home HIV test online? Click here to buy one
INFORMATION PROVIDED FOR BY JOSE PEREZ DE LA CRUZ
The advice listed above is not intended to replace or take the place of that of your own doctor, GP or medical professional who knows your full medical history. If in any doubt make an appointment with your doctor as soon as possible.
The advice given in this article is for guidance only and you should always seek your own independent, professional medical advice from your own GP if you are concerned about your health.
OTHER QUESTIONS: HIV | WILLY WONDERS | HOLES | DOING IT | STIs | LUMPS & BUMPS | BACK TO SEX CLINIC HOME PAGE
Got a problem you’d like advice on?
-
LGBT Yoga teacher Josetta Malcolm: “It is not about isolation, but putting yourself back into the world”
Growing up in Brighton, where the lesbian, gay, bi, and transgender (LGBT) communities are big, Josetta Malcolm thought, that starting an LGBT Yoga class was a natural thing to do.
She wanted to create a place, where lesbian gay bisexual and transgender people would be at ease with their bodies and soul, and find calmness. Just using changing rooms can be a barrier to joining a mainstream class for trans people, (there are cases of people being asked to leave changing rooms/gendered toilets and questioned about their gender), so she is teaching in a trans sexual health clinic and gender neutral settings where this is not an issue.
“Day-to-day negative experiences or micro-aggressions can weigh heavy on people from the LGBT community,“ she said, adding that Yoga is a great way to relax and calm down.
PACE, a UK-based LGBT mental health charity, where Josetta worked as a Senior Manager, recently published a report that the suicide rates within young gay or transsexual people are considerably higher than within straight/non trans people of the same age – so she wants to offer support.
Coming from a social and mental health background she strives to reduce isolation and increase physical and mental wellbeing in these communities, to “put them back into the world“.
Everyone – of any age, body shape or background – comes to visit her LGBT and trans Yoga classes.
“I have a problem with the stereotypes that only people from African or Asian communities are being rejected by their families when coming out – many of my white gay friends had very similar experiences,“ said Josetta Malcolm.
After years of practice and teaching in Brighton, Berlin, and now London she has managed to make a living out of her passion even though she generally avoids teaching in mainstream fitness studios.
“Yoga is not only for toned and skinny bodies in fancy fitness studios“
She teaches NHS classes on mental health wards, at LGBT festivals, Black and Asian settings, in community centres and is working with a Women’s Health Project, where she will teach Yoga in female prisons and with former prisoners. Such classes are often free to the students or offered at reduced rates, thanks to a few well-paying private clients or NHS funding.
“Yoga should be affordable for everyone and it shouldn’t be a luxury, because if so, people have forgotten or don’t realise what Yoga is about,“ she said.
Its roots are in Asia and Africa, but in the Western World, Josetta found, it became very mainstream, mainly for white, toned and skinny bodies.
“I love working with any kind of body shape and very often you’d be surprised about the flexibility of a 70-year old or stronger-built person,“ she said.
For now she is very happy and wants to continue the path she’s on. Being a freelance teacher is not always easy, but she wants to make Yoga truly accessible for everyone, especially people who would usually feel in “normal“ lessons alien or out of place.
by Amelie Heuls
I am a Franco-Austrian, aspiring journalist, who is about to finish an International Master program in London. I am very interested in politics and human rights and am naturally very curious about life and the world I live in. I enjoy getting to know new people, who have a story to tell, an interesting point to raise or who make me think differently and push my thoughts
-
The Top 10 Healthy Foods And Drinks You Need In Your Fridge
The market has gone mad for health orientated consumer products, but it’s so often that on closer inspection the product is not designed with our optimum health in mind. The other day I was inspecting a snack bar which had the word “Nature” in it. It’s second highest ingredient was sugar (and not from natural sugars). Akin to snacks, the drinks industry can be just as misleading.
Below are a collection of food and drink products that keep it simple, with carefully selected ingredients, and the majority focusing on helping us to achieve our 5 to 7-a-day. You are sure to see some familiar products here, but also some unique and interesting finds that are going to be big in 2015 and beyond. Let’s start with some drinks…
B.Fresh JuicesDirect and cold pressed from Shropshire, probably the closest product you will get to home juicing. In 8 different varieties, B.Fresh have a great vegetable to fruit ratio (we should try to have whole fruits, and juiced vegetables, remember), and have some really refreshing combinations. One of my favourites being their #leanandgreen – cucumber, kale, ginger, lemon, celery, romaine lettuce and spinach. Each juice is one of your 5 a day and the packaging is simple, clear, and highlights each juices greatest qualities (i.e. high in vitamin K etc.).
£15.00 for 6 bottles, and also available as a recurring order / subscription to provide you with your weekly fix.
Bulk Powders – Complete Fruits
Vegan friendly and GM free, Complete Fruits serves as a supplement for those (like me) that need more fruit in their diet. A unique fruit blend of 10 premium quality freeze-dried fruit powders, with one serving equating to 2 of your 5 a day. Bulk Powders also offer Complete Greens with one serving that equates to more than 5 of your 5-a-day! These products should be used in line with a healthy diet, not as a substitute. £31.99 for 100 servings (100 days if taken daily).
Coco Mojo
I would probably be considered crazy not to include some form of coconut water within my top picks of healthy drinks. Coco Mojo is my favourite of all brands out there. Deemed more beneficial than sports drinks filled with electrolytes, coconuts are everywhere right now. I like Coco Mojo’s “Soul” and “Passion” varieties as they are blended with other fruits and best of all, botanical herbs. Check their website for stockists in your area. RRP £.1.79-£1.99p each.
Leader Natural Foods – Detox Smoothie
Vegan friendly smoothie sachets also available in a Balance and an Energy variety. Full of vitamins and vegan-friendly proteins (pea, hemp etc). I concoct my own supplement shakes at home every day, which isn’t viable if I am travelling so usually have a few of these stashed in my bag for a convenient pick me up. They taste pretty lovely too- the Detox smoothie comprising mainly of pineapple, banana, and apple powders. Power foods such as spirulina, nettle leaf, and barley grass also feature in this “superfood” smoothie. Add to coconut water for an extra boost.
£1.99p each. Available at Superdrug.
Arctic Power Berries
Enjoy added to smoothies or home made juices, or alternatively sprinkled atop salads, breakfast or healthy desserts. Available in Blueberry, Cranberry, or Sea Buckthorn. Just a teaspoon of these equates to the goodness of a handful of fresh berries. Dried and powdered with nothing added. Peels and seeds included. Created by two Finnish ladies with backgrounds in nutrition, I have a feeling Arctic Power Berries will be a hit this year. I add the Blueberry to my shake at home.
£7.50 (50g). Available direct. Check their website for other stockists.
Whitworths
Perfect pick me ups with clear information on the packaging- highlighting if they are one of your five a day on the front with their 30g Snack Packs (dried; apple, apricots, raisins, dates, kiwi, mango and many more). How many calories each pack contains are also boldy boasted on each pack. Their range of “Shots” are also scrummy! With a huge pack of dates in front of me I find it hard to self limit with portion, but with these Snack Packs you know exactly how much you’ve had.
£0.45p Snack Packs (30g). Available from most supermarkets and online
The Primal Pantry
Founded and created by a nutritionist in her own kitchen. Primal Pantry cleverly offer the first convenience snack of it’s kind, aimed at people on the popular Paleo diet. Using organic ingredients where they can, and only 4-5 ingredients used per bar, and then cold pressed. Simplicity at it’s very best. Great packaging too. Varieties include; Almond & Cashew, Brazil Nut & Cherry, Coconut & Macadamia (my favourite), and Hazelnut & Cocoa.
£1.49p per bar- Available from Superdrug & others.Boxes of 18 available direct.Bounce Energy Balls
Founded by a personal fitness trainer and a life coach, aiming to inspire positive change in the way people eat. I like these purely because I find them rather odd. They make a change from the traditional bar shaped product. I particularly like the Spirulina & Ginseng ball as it’s an interesting and tasty ingredient combo. All gluten free and often packed with protein power.
RRP £1.79p per ball. Stocked in most supermarkets and Holland & Barrett and online
Trek & Nakd Bars
Natural Balance Foods offer many varieties of their delicious Trek & Nakd bars. I’m pretty certain all of you reading this would have heard of either of these bars and will agree they are all delicious. Again, another product providing us with 1 of our 5 a day. Doesn’t mean you can eat five a day though! Tempting as it may be. I’ve switched to Trek recently for their higher protein content. Are there any other protein bars out there that also equate to one of your 5 a day? Nope.
Check their website directly for special offers and big boxes. http://www.naturalbalancefoods.co.uk/
£0.75p-£0.90p per bar. Available at supermarkets.
USN Diet Whey BarsWarning. These are dangerously good. More suited to those looking for a sport snack, so if you have recently taken up an exercise regime in the new year, give these a go for a protein packed guilt free snack, with only 5g of sugar per bar. The peanut butter brownie flavour is a proper sweet tooth fix. £35.99p (Box of 18).
-
ADVICE | He Has HIV, Should I Call It Off?
This week, sexual health expert Jose Perez de la Cruz, answers a reader’s question about a potential new boyfriend, who is HIV positive and is worried about having a sexual relationship with him.
Hey there,
I’ve met a really cute guy recently at a bar and we made out and he’s incredibly sexy and we had a great connection.
We didn’t have sex, but the next day he texted me to say he was HIV+.
Now I’m really nervous, I want to see him again, but I’m worried I might catch HIV if we have sex. Also long term, I like having sex unprotected, (only in a long-term) but that’s not going to be possible ever is it?
Should I call it off?
Hello,
There is certainly no need to call off what could potentially be a very satisfying relationship, solely based on the fact that he is HIV positive.
The risk of contracting HIV from someone during unprotected sex is determined by a number of factors. If an HIV positive individual is on medication, and his viral load is undetectable then there is very little chance of catching HIV from them, though, we cannot say it is impossible. An undetectable viral load means that the quantity of active HIV in a person’s bloodstream is so low that it is in fact almost zero. Conversely, the higher the viral load the more likely and indeed the easier it is to catch HIV.
Therefore, I think the best thing to do prior to engaging in any sexual intercourse of any kind is to establish whether he is undetectable or not.
Even if he isn’t there is always the option of using condoms. I understand that many people don’t like them, but if you choose to have unprotected sex with anyone, at least use a good water based lubricant.
To a degree lube also reduces the risk of catching HIV as it reduces the internal trauma which commonly occurs during sex.
Hope this helps.
Jose Perez de la Cruz, BPubHtlth,
Public Health Practitioner
Did you know you can order an at-home HIV test online? Click here to buy one
The advice given in this article is for guidance only and you should always seek your own independent, professional medical advice from your own GP if you are concerned about your health.
OTHER QUESTIONS: HIV | WILLY WONDERS | HOLES | DOING IT | STIs | LUMPS & BUMPS | BACK TO SEX CLINIC HOME PAGE
Got a problem you’d like advice on?
-
REVIEW: Hypoxi, How I Lost Inches Of My Body and Half A Stone In Weight
Low slung jeans and vest tops, that’s all I’m rocking this summer and it’s all because of a wetsuit, some piping and a lot of science. Okay, it’s a lot more complicated than that…
The before and after….
When the press release about Hypoxi hit my inbox my cynical journo brain kicked in. What was presented seemed yet another weight loss system that promised the world but probably would deliver nothing, but with celebrity fans such as Victoria Beckham and Katie Price and a wealth of science and research committed to the system, who am I to ignore the call of snake hips? So off I popped into their South Woodford branch where the ultra friendly Sylwia and her team greeted me.
Essentially, you step into a suit, take a 30-minute walk and lose weight without trying. Sounds too good to be true, but within just 6 sessions I could tell it was working.
I have to say as you’re squeezed into the neoprene patented Hypoxi suit and step on to the treadmill that weight loss is the furthest thing from your mind. My first thought was ‘okay, where is the camera?’ I felt I was going to turn up on Candid Camera or You’ve Been Framed, but when the suit is hooked up to the vacuum system, your thoughts turn from Candid Camera to Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea, as around 125 compression cups suck and massage at your abdomen, lower stomach and love handles – all those problematic areas which tend to be the most difficult areas to shift fat from.
It’s not that unpleasant, but it’s certainly a strange feeling as you take a stroll at a leisurely pace on the treadmill hooked up to a machine that breathes life in and out of the vacusuit suit.
The suit causes a vacuum to draw out the fatty acids from your body. It makes you sweat. A lot. There is relief as you’re peeled from the suit, looking a little sweaty, but the technicians at Hypoxi have seen it all before and you can take a shower on site if you need.
After the session you may be left with red marks over your body – this is completely normal Sylwia tells me and shows where the compression cups have massaged your body. The therapy, created and developed by Dr. Egger in Austria, promises to combat cellulite and “stubborn fat deposits and poor connective tissue” resulting in a targeted body shaping experience.
The next morning after my first session I woke to find I actually felt thinner. Could this actually be working?
After six sessions I’m definitely thinner and my butt has all but disappeared, my Levis are now low slung. Bravo. At my sixth session weigh in I’ve lost weight.
My halfway results show that my hip bones have made a welcome return and I have lost nearly half a stone and I’m told I’ve lost 13.5cms around my upper body.
I’m hooked. Along with my normal health regime (with cheat days) I have managed to achieve something that months of normal gym visits would have accomplished but in under 3 weeks.
It’s a little pricey, around £50 per session or around £500 for 12, but if you look around you can get a good deal and it’s well worth considering if you, like me, have tried and failed at losing those last few pounds or that pad of fat that just doesn’t seem to want to shift.
Find out more at Http://www.hypoxiwls.co.uk or call 02089892700.