Search Results

When you lose a loved one there is no 'normal' way to grieve and we all experience grief in different ways. Linda Magistris CEO and Founder of The Good Grief Trust gave us some wise words when we chatted with her for our podcast 'Good Grief'.There is no timeline for grief, what you might need one day might be totally different a week or even an hour later. People need compassion, patience and understanding. The Good Grief Trust is the UK’s leading bereavement network, bringing over 900 charities and support services together under one umbrella, and offering a choice of tailored local, regional, and national support, for both the bereaved and those working with them. The charity was founded by Linda Magistris, after her partner Graham died of a rare cancer and she struggled to find the right support for her. Back in 2014 when Graham died, she realised that the health professionals lacked a central signposting resource to support their work in helping their bereaved families. Linda realised that there was a need to create an online database to bring all services together and having researched the sector she launched the charity in her voluntary role as CEO in 2016. Over the past 6 years the trust has pioneered a number of national initiatives to improve services for the bereaved and are Secretariat to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Bereavement Support. Linda co-founded this cross-party group, with Carolyn Harris, MP in 2017, to work with Government, and influence improvements in bereavement care across the UK. The APPG is now a thriving, active group of charities, individuals affected by grief, and many MPs and Peers, working together to support those bereaved across the UK. With Linda’s background in events, and in particularly running tea rooms, Linda knew the benefits of sitting down with a cup of tea and a piece of cake, and connecting with others. She wanted to create a simple initiative that would help those grieving find a place to open up with others who understood their grief. The first Good Grief Pop Up Café launched in 2018, to bring those bereaved together in their local area, offering peer support and friendship with others who are grieving and during the Covid19 pandemic, these groups were adapted to online Virtual Cafés. These groups have now been running over two years, and regularly open twice a week, on a Wednesday and Sunday. They are a peer-to-peer session for anyone struggling to pop online via Zoom and meet others who are bereaved and understand and have become a lifeline for many needing to share their grief and to know they are not alone. Alongside the website, Linda was passionate to develop one central signposting resource which would combine both a condolence card and signposting tool. She wanted to ensure that anyone bereaved, under any circumstance was given early signposting to a choice of support services from day one. She didn’t want anyone walking out of a hospital having been bereaved, or after the police have knocked on the door with news of a sudden death, without knowing where to turn for help. The Good Grief card ensures that health professionals are fully equipped to offer a comprehensive early signposting service to their bereaved families. Linda and her team are proud that these cards are now used in every NHS Hospital Trust in England and over 3000 GP practices, as well as in schools, universities, crematoriums, HR departments and many community services. This Christmas between the 2nd to the 8th of December, the charity is spearheading National Grief Awareness Week for the 4th year, campaigning to raise awareness of the impact of grief on a national platform and ensure those needing help are aware of the breadth of support services available across the UK. This annual event aims to ensure all charities offering help to the bereaved are given a national platform to promote their services and unite with one voice to help those grieving. At 6pm on the 8th of December, the final day of the week, UK buildings and landmarks, including Blackpool Tower, will light up orange to show support for those grieving and remember those who have died. This is a wonderful sight and one we know will help those missing someone they love, at such a difficult time of the year. The Good Grief Trust’s vision is to continue to help improve access to the right help at the right time for anyone affected by bereavement. ‘Grief can be complicated, but access to support should never be’ For more information on National Grief Awareness Week and links to services, please visit The Good Grief Trust Things I wish I had known - from those who have been through it. That I wish I'd written more thoughts down so I could remember the journey I've been on and how our tragedy is leading to positive achievements. That the only recording I may have of my partner is on a voicemail, on my phone or on my answer machine which may automatically get deleted. (Please save them now if you are concerned, this can be devastating for some people). That someone had told me that I didn't have to rush the funeral and that I could have had a memorial service, several months later, instead of planning an event just after my husband died. That you don't have to listen to the uneducated. Everyone thinks they know about loss and they want to tell you. You do not have to listen, just tell them you are not ready. That I should have said yes to any practical help offered. Grief can be exhausting and I would have appreciated jobs being done around the house, that my children were looked after for a while and that paperwork was dealt with for me. That I could do what I wanted when I was ready to do it. I didn't need to explain or justify why. That you will receive many offers of help and, initially you may want to decline a lot of them - try not to. Let people help you because the sad reality is that will fall away - if you constantly say no, people will stop asking. That friends can often be the greatest source of strength and understanding - they are invaluable. That I could say ‘yes’ to any offers of help – you can always change your mind later. That it was okay to say I feel crap, when people asked how I was rather than oh you know I'm okay. When I did start telling people how I really felt, I got a lot of support, but by saying I was okay it gave them an excuse not to dig deeper so I felt swamped by my grief. That people will want to express sympathy – I had to learn to say ‘thank you’ and not waffle a load of inanities I couldn’t believe I could hear myself saying. That you will be given lots of advice from friends and family. Whatever their thoughts - go with your gut instinct. That it is ok to stop people if you don't want to hear what they're saying. That I shouldn't be afraid to ask for help - it's not a sign of weakness. That it's okay to do whatever I need or want to do!! That all the horrific emotions I was feeling were very normal and part of the grieving process. That I had known that I would go over everything that happened from diagnosis to death over and over and over in my head every time I am alone. That in those early days I wish I'd spent more time looking after me - magnesium salt baths, scented candles, reiki sessions and long walks listening to soothing music or audio books. Listen to our podcast 'Good Grief' where we chat with Linda Magistris. Did you find this article helpful? Why not join the Two Women Chatting mailing list for regular updates. Visit our resources page which has a collection of useful links from 3rd party websites and content.

Hannah & Jo of Jolly Festive are two sisters who are both completely and utterly obsessed with Christmas. Ten years apart in age and living on either side of the Atlantic, they are on a year-round treasure hunt for fabulous festive ideas to make your Christmas less stressful and more fun. We chatted with Hannah for our Jolly Festive episode about how adult kids still really want to be kids again when they come home for Christmas and she gives some tips and advice on how to enjoy those precious days when everyone is together again. Christmas with older kids and young adults With 11.5 months of the year spent navigating the adult world, you may find your returning children more eager than ever for home comforts and childhood traditions. Are you ever too old for a little stocking of treats and ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas on Christmas Eve? That being said, the days of 5am wake-ups and a day spent building toys and hunting for batteries can be happily waved goodbye! So what to do instead? We share a few ideas below. Tempting as it is to cram everything in during these precious days, don’t forget it’s the laughter and time together that’s most important. With more patience for time at the dinner table, crackers can start to come into their own. Make your own with personalised treats for each person. Or enjoy a set of activity crackers – from a shared escape room challenge to balloon modelling and quizzes, there’s something for every group. Cocktail Taskmaster! Use up the leftovers of spirit bottles rather than buying new and try your hand at creating a new signature drink. Play games! Quizzes, Taskmaster challenges, Movie Bingo and Would You Rather conundrums all work brilliantly. Get more inspiration and download free printable copies from the Jolly Festive website. Winter walks with a stop at the local pub are so much easier with an older group than young ones desperate to return to their toys. As the children get older, it becomes easier to help out in your local community at Christmas time too. Deliver meals, invite others over or simply go and support events run by local groups. Gift ideas for young adults In need of a little inspiration for what to put under the tree this year? Let’s face it -cash, gift card and subscriptions are where it’s at for most of our older kids. But these generous gifts get the least kudos under the tree. Make them more enticing by hiding them in a recycled jam jar of their favourite sweets. Or spread out a handful of smaller value gift cards or bank notes as slices in a pizza box. Anything that creates a physical present to open and raise a smile does the trick perfectly. As we all look to combat the higher energy costs this year, anything snuggly will be appreciated! Cosy slippers, chunky knits, wool socks and soft blankets are all bound to be winners. Those looking to live more sustainably will appreciate the Charity Shop Gift Card, vouchers for clothing rental services, reusable storage containers and beautiful plant holders. With borders finally reopening, clever travel products will go down well. Beautifully patterned travel towels, thoughtfully designed bags, air tags, power banks, scarves with concealed pockets, and so on. With wellbeing rightly front and centre of daily life for this newly emerging adult generation, anything that supports a little me-time is perfect. We particularly want to highlight The Positive Planner’s Positive Student Planner which has been created in conjunction with The Samaritans – a fabulous gift to encourage all university students to take a breath and re-centre. And how can we forget the tech! From the latest Meta Quest 2 VR set to portable speakers and coffee machines (with coffee pod subscriptions), there’s sure to be a gadget for everyone. A few money-saving ideas for Christmas We all know Christmas can be an expensive time. And this year more than most, many of us are watching the spend very closely. So here’s 10 ideas for managing Christmas costs without compromising the fun. Pot Luck Parties – spread the workload and the cost by asking guests to bring a contribution with them. No one likes to turn up empty-handed this way you’ll end up with a table full of signature dishes! Rent Glassware – make use of rental services for extra supplies over Christmas to minimise cost or need for single-use products. Places like Majestic offer a free glassware rental (you just pay for any breakages). Shrink The Turkey – cook a chicken on the side. Controversial we know but we hazard a guess that with all those sides and sauces, few people will be able to tell the difference! Ditch The Crackers – ask everyone to bring a silly (makeshift!) hat with a handwritten joke and a couple of charades inside instead. Meet-up Outdoors – switch restaurant meet-ups for walks in the park with flasks of hot chocolate and mulled wine. Get some fresh air and exercise whilst you catch up! Switch Cards For Digital Comms – pose a daily joke or festive riddle, do a recipe swap or simply record a short video to share online with friends and family and encourage them to reply in kind. It’s all about staying in touch after all. Give Family Gifts – rather than gifting to individuals, gift hampers for the family. Fill a crate of your choice with a mixture of homemade treats and carefully selected preloved treasures. Then top up with just a few purchases if you’d like. It’s far easier to give unpackaged items when they are part of a hamper collection. Get Creative With Wrapping – use paper shopping bags, newspapers, magazines and even old sheets as gift wrap. Use free online tutorials to learn furoshiki wrapping techniques. Dress Your Cushions For Christmas. Put old Christmas jumpers to use! With just three pins and no sewing you can dress a cushion for Christmas. Then come January, put the jumper away and there’s no Christmas cushion to store! Make Your Décor Work Harder For You – re-purpose your existing décor for Christmas rather than buying new. A string of fairy lights makes almost anything festive. And simply replacing photos in frames with offcuts of Christmas wrapping paper can be amazingly effective. Or fill bowls and vases with leftover baubles, foraged pinecones or seasonal fruits. We could go on forever! Head to Jolly Festive for our complete list of 101 ideas. And just remember – a perfect Christmas doesn’t have to be perfect! It just has to be yours. And please do help yourself to the Jolly Festive free Spotify List Christmas playlists – from carols to classical, the No.1s to Motown and much more … there’s a playlist for every occasion! Merry Christmas everyone! Did you enjoy this article? Why not join the Two Women Chatting mailing list for regular updates. Visit our resources page which has a collection of useful links from 3rd party websites and content.

Gia Mills, celebrity makeup artist and founder of the Skin in Motion the UK’s number one active and mid-life beauty brand tells us how we can improve our midlife skin. Skin in Motion the UK’s number one active and mid-life beauty brand is changing the way beauty looks and feels. Founded by celebrity makeup artist and fitness lover Gia Mills, Skin in Motion’s purpose is to empower women with the confidence-boosting beauty products that work for all life stages so they feel positive about our appearance. From long lasting sheer tinted moisturiser, panda-eye proof mascara to sweat-proof concealer, cooling hydrating mists and sweat-dissolving wipes, say hello to the vegan and cruelty-free range that you can trust and love. As our skin never stays the same, Skin In Motion’s multi-purpose solutions match the needs of different life stages such as the menopause or different environment conditions such as exercising, commuting or summer heat. Menopause-Friendly + Active-Lives-Friendly + Exercise-Friendly + Teen-Skin-Friendly. Featured in top national beauty magazines, including The Times, Elle, Red, Grazia, Glamour, Stylist and Woman’s Health. Loved by celebrity makeup-artists and beauty journalists, pro-athletes, actresses, dancers, mothers, grandmothers, Skin in Motion formulas are specifically designed for life in motion! Trialled on women of all ages during the most intense workouts, hot flushes and commuting, Skin in Motion guarantees your make-up will stay put all day long, providing you with the confidence to tackle life head-on knowing you look great! All products use non-toxic ingredients, are vegan / cruelty free and are manufactured in the UK. Midlife and menopause skin issues solves: So many of the pre and menopausal symptoms are due to the dip in oestrogen. Our levels begin to drop well before you officially hit the menopause (one year after your period stops), causing a myriad of skin imbalances. Similar to puberty in that the skin is reacting to the change in hormones and can take on many different guises and for differing periods of time and intensity. There are oestrogen receptors in every cell, e.g. those that produce collagen and elastin, cells that fight inflammation and immune function and cells that control pigmentation of the skin. Which can result in: Ability to fend off pollution, bacteria and toxins, thus skin flare ups / adult acne Reduction in collagen so skin starts to sag, is less vibrant skin, more lines and dryness as well as redness and pigmentation Sweating / hot flushes The hot flushes and the resulting over sweating are thought to be more than just falling oestrogen. It is suggested that the normal balanced level of oestrogen primes the body to react to temperature change and control ones response, thus fluctuating levels can cause the body to become sensitive to the slightest rise – hello sweating and hot flushes! The Skin In Motion solution Let me interject before I get into the solutions and say that not only are there the above physiological results of the peri/menopause, but also the psychological ones. And confidence is the stand out psychological one…feeling good about how you look is paramount to most women’s confidence and that’s one of the reasons Skin In Motion exists. Our skin is always evolving and always in motion, and I set up the brand to offer multi-purpose confidence boosting formulas match the needs of different life stages such as the menopause and teen-skin or different environment conditions such as exercising, commuting or summer heat. Skin In Motion sweat-proof solutions: Hot-flush-proof tinted moisturiser: Our hero product, Work It Tinted Moisturiser, was created to be sweat-proof, non-comedogenic and hydrating (argan oil). It is a very light formula so it doesn’t look or feel heavy on the skin, so when a hot flush arrives it will stay put, reduce redness but not clog pores (minimising any potential adult acne). Using a patented technology that mixes the formulas at a very high speed means the hydrating argan oil won’t separate and makes the formula glide on even dry skin and gives is a fresh / dewy glow. Panda-eye-proof mascara: Lift It Waterproof Mascara won’t cause under eye smudging when the body heats up. Marathon runners as last weeks London Marathon wore it and it reported back with reviews saying it stayed the course. So if good after 26.2 miles, great for excessive sweating (but don’t worry, it is super easy to remove and lash nourishing). Water-resistant coverage: Heavy foundation that masks the skin is possibly not the best solution to cover menopausal skin and will likely melt when you sweat. So a concealer that hides just the bits you need it to, is water-resistant, creamy AND nourishing (with Vitamin E) - Blend It Concealer to the rescue. Skin In Motion cooling solutions: Hot flush / night sweat cooler: As our internal thermostat goes bonkers and makes us over heat, having something you can grab to cool you down would be nice. Oh and if it can reduce redness and hydrate the menopausal skin…that would be the dream! Hello Cool It Mist, mint to cool, liquorice extract to reduce redness and lots of hydrolysed hyaluronic acid to deeply hydrate… Skin In Motion sweat-removing / adult acne solutions: The multi-purpose solution come in the guise of Clear It Wipes. Hot flushes can happen anywhere and anytime, these biodegradable wipes are designed specifically for on the go sweat removing – half % salicylic acid, pomegranate enzyme and aloe vera. Not only that, they work for adult acne, as dermatologist recommend not to use teen adult acne treatments as they are designed for oily teen skin, instead it is recommend to use a more gentle formula which has salicylic acid to dry out spots, reduce swelling and clear blocked pores, so the three key ingredients in Clear It Wipes are perfectly balanced to help here too. Use code TWC20 to receive 20% off any Skin In Motion products. Listen to our podcast where we chat with Gia Mills about Make up in Midlife. Visit our Beauty resources page which has a collection of useful links from 3rd party websites and content. Did you enjoy this article? Why not join the Two Women Chatting mailing list for regular updates. Note: This post contains some affiliate links. This means that we may earn a small commission when you click on such links, at no additional cost to you. purchases. We only share links to products we would use ourselves and all opinions are our own. You can read the full disclaimer here.