Manisha Kooner

" This is not a men vs women issue. It's about people vs prejudice."  -  Laura bates - 'Everyday Sexism' Disclaimer - this is not a criticism of men. This blog post intends to relay the struggles that women have faced for a long time, it is a criticism of the system that has allowed the horrific treatment of women.  Sarah Everard, Sabina Nessa, Ashling Murphy. That's only three women who have been murdered in the last year who have made it to national news . In the year to March 2020, 207 killings were women. ( BBC ) Women in Solidarity - @Pinterest Recent Press coverage has demonstrated how women are represented poorly by the media. There are examples of this daily in global media. For instance, how much of last week's news made striking, front-page headlines about the devastating act of injustice that happened to Ashling Murphy? In the UK, the media was dominated by Boris and #Partygate - do we really need to hear more about the continuous lies and the i

My Experience Burnout is something that almost everyone experiences, sometimes people don't realise that they are going through it. I unknowingly experienced burnout around May/June 2021. At the time, I was incredibly confused, I had no idea what caused it to happen. In hindsight, 6 months later, I think of it as a combination of different things: adjusting to life after a 3-month lockdown, saying yes to too many things (Yes, I'm a people pleaser) and possibly overworking myself in the run-up to (pre-public) exam season. When I did eventually realise what was happening, I took a week off all responsibilities during the May half-term. This was the worst thing I could have done. It led to an increased amount of stress, and I fell quite ill at the end of June. Since then, I have consciously been trying to make little adaptions in daily tasks. I have realised that to combat this feeling, you need to incorporate strategies alongside your daily life and make time for what works for y

 Welcome back! Today's blog post is an extra special one, dedicated to Sita Brahmachari's new book, 'When Shadows Fall'.  Aside, from its stunning cover, and the book focuses on the poignant tale of Kai, Orla, Zak and Omid, 4 friends who are in their youths. Sita takes you on a tale through their troublesome teenage years ending at the age of eighteen, post-A-Level Results Day.  The novel is illustrated beautifully by the talented Natalie Sirett , a great friend of Sita's.  The novel follows the lives of this friendship group, 13, 14, 15-year-olds with no place to go, who are outsiders from the rest of society. Sita's aim was to document the children she saw over a period of many years, being outsiders, having no place in the world. This is strongly seen through the character of Kai. Having become friends with Natalie over 25 years ago, when their children were young, this is Sita and Natalie's first book together. Sita described it as 'This book is the

 I love reading fiction. More specifically, romantic fiction and chick-lit. I know, I know it's not the most exciting to read and can be very mundane and cliche. That's why this summer I decided to widen my literature range. I discovered new and exciting authors and I definitely won't be going back to chick-lit for the time being (even if it is easy-reading and heartwarming).  DISCLAIMER: This blog post includes spoilers! Below, are five books (not chick-lit, you shall be pleased to know) that I thought were truly remarkable. They have all been published fairly recently, maybe one day I will give myself the challenge of branching out to classical novels!  Image: @pinterest 1) The Beekeeper of Aleppo - Christy Lefteri Powerful. Poignant. Perceptive. Follow the journey of Nuri and Afra, a Syrian husband and wife duo who travel across many borders, oceans and lands on their journey to the UK as migrants. From witnessing the death of their son, Sami in Syria, to deliveries for

Why is a morning routine important? How will it benefit me? These are commonly asked questions by people who wake up 10 minutes before they are supposed to work or get on with their day. By following a routine that works for you, you can improve efficiency and productivity in your day significantly, as well as improving your overall mood. Anyone can develop a healthy morning routine that works specifically for them, regardless of whether or not you are a morning person. It will take time, finding your ideal morning activities and goals, which is why lockdown is perfect for experimenting with this.  What to include in a morning routine: - Wake up and go to sleep at the same time daily. Having a simple routine such as this will give you stability throughout the week, as well as making it easier to get up in the morning as you are structuring your day around your body clock. - ' If you snooze, you lose'. Harsh right? Well, admittedly, it's true. Snoozing alarms can convince

New year, same lockdown habits. Although, I am not quite sure how it has taken me over a month of being in lockdown to bake banana bread?! Here is my favourite recipe, that I have adapted over time. Best enjoyed warm with a cup of tea (or two!). Preparation time = 20 minutes Cooking time = 50 minutes Servings = 8  Ingredients: 2 Ripe (mashed) bananas 140g Caster sugar 140g Self-raising flour 140g (softened) butter 1tsp Vanilla extract 1tsp Baking powder 2 eggs 50g Chocolate chips  Equipment: Weighing scales A large mixing bowl A small mixing bowl A mixing spoon A loaf tin  Method: 1) Preheat your oven to 180/160 for fan or 4 for gas oven. 2) Apply greaseproof parchment paper to your loaf tin.  3) Mix the butter and sugar together until smooth. 4) Break the eggs and mix well in the separate bowl. 5) Slowly add half (70g) of the flour and mix well. 6) Add the remaining half of the flour along with the mashed bananas, vanilla extract and baking powder.  7) Mix until everything is combined