Happy new month friends! May your head attract blessings and your life attract favour.

Sickle cell is a disorder of the haemoglobin in the red blood cells. Haemoglobin is the substance in red blood cells that is responsible for the colour of the cell and for carrying oxygen around the body. 

People with sickle cell disorder are born with the condition, it is not contagious. It can only be inherited from both parents each having passed on the gene for sickle cell. The main symptoms of sickle cell disorder are anaemia and episodes of severe pain. The pain occurs when the cells change shape after oxygen has been released. The red blood cells then stick together, causing blockages in the small blood vessels. These painful episodes are referred to as Sickle Cell crisis. They are treated with strong painkillers such as morphine to control the pain.

Sickle Cell Trait is when you are born with sickle cell trait. It is inherited when only one of your parents has passed on the sickle gene and will never develop in to sickle cell disorder. You do not have symptoms from sickle cell trait, so it is a good idea to have a blood test to see if you have sickle cell trait. Most people who have sickle cell trait are healthy. However, anaesthetics can cause problems. If you have sickle cell trait, always notify your dentist and doctor before treatment commences to be on the safe side.

SCD mainly affects people of African, Caribbean, Middle Eastern, Eastern Mediterranean and Asian origin. If you want to know about your sickle cell status, you can ask your doctor for a blood test.

Check out this link (https://www.sicklecellsociety.org/about-sickle-cell/) to learn more about Sickle Cell.

Always remember;

In every situation, there is a choice and you choose how you react to situations”

I celebrate an amazing woman today. A woman who has inspired so many. Clarion Chukwura is an actress, producer, scriptwriter and also a philanthropist.

Clarion had her nursery and primary school in Lagos and later pursued her secondary education at the Queen of the Rosary College, Onitsha then proceeded to study Acting and Speech at the Department of Dramatic Arts of Obafemi Awolowo University. She was recognised as a United Nations Peace Ambassador for her charity work across Africa. She began her career in acting in 1980 but became popular when she featured in a soap opera title “Mirror in the Sun”. She was the first Nigerian to win the Best Actress category at the 1982 FESPACO Film Festival in Burkina Faso.

“The empowered woman is powerful beyond measure and beautiful beyond description”- Steve Maraboli

Please drop your comments below or send an email if you have inspiring stories to share with us here. Thanks.

Have a lovely weekend guys

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common condition that affects how a woman’s ovaries work.

The 3 main features of PCOS are:

• Irregular periods – which means your ovaries do not regularly release eggs (ovulation)
• Excess androgen – high levels of “male” hormones in your body, which may cause physical signs such as excess facial or body hair.
• Polycystic ovaries – your ovaries become enlarged and contain many fluid-filled sacs (follicles) that surround the eggs (but despite the name, you do not actually have cysts if you have PCOS)

If you have at least 2 of these features, you may be diagnosed with PCOS.

Polycystic ovaries contain a large number of harmless follicles. The follicles are underdeveloped sacs in which eggs develop. In PCOS, these sacs are often unable to release an egg, which means ovulation does not take place. It’s difficult to know exactly how many women have PCOS, but it’s thought to be very common, affecting about 1 in every 5 women in the UK.

Check out this link (https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/polycystic-ovary-syndrome-pcos/) to read more about the symptoms of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), causes of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and the treatments.

I celebrate an amazing woman today. A woman who has inspired so many. Helen Paul is a comedian, singer and actress. She recently graduated with a doctorate in Theatre Arts from the University of Lagos.

Helen has worked as a freelance and full-time presenter at several media houses in Nigeria. These include Lagos Television (LTV 8), Continental Broadcasting Service (CBS), and MNet (where she currently co-presents JARA on Africa Magic). Helen broke out as a naughty comic character on the radio program Wetin Dey on Radio Continental 102.3FM, Lagos. She is known on the programme as “Tatafo”, a witty kid who addresses and lampoons societal issues in a satirical manner. She also presented programmes on TV Continental and Naija FM 102.7

In July 2012, Helen released her debut album ‘Welcome Party’ which contains Afro-Pop songs such as ‘Boju Boju’, an Afro RnB song titled ‘Children of the World’, and ‘Use Calculator’, an enlightenment song about the menace of the HIV-AIDs epidemic. In 2018, she released the audio and visuals of her single titled “Never Knew”, an inspiring song about her developmental years and career progress thus far.

Helen opened a bridal and fabric boutique in Lagos in 2012, called Massive Fabrics and Bridals. She has since proceeded to open three other outlets of the boutique in different parts of Lagos. In 2014, she opened a film and theatre academy, the Helen Paul Theatre and Film Academy. It consists of a dance studio, a makeup studio, a recording studio, a rehearsal studio, a photo studio, a mainly digital library, an editing studio, and a hostel for students.

“The empowered woman is powerful beyond measure and beautiful beyond description”- Steve Maraboli

Please drop your comments below or send an email if you have inspiring stories to share with us here. Thanks.

Have a lovely weekend guys

Suicide is a final act of behaviour that is the result of a range of factors, difficulties and distress. Across the globe, the highest rates of suicide were associated with depressive disorders.

Some of the factors that can show that someone is at risk of feeling suicidal are:

• Feeling depressed, withdrawn and anxious
• Loss of interest in hobbies, work, socialising or even in their appearance
• Expressing feelings of hopelessness or purposelessness
• Acting impulsively or in a reckless way and not caring what happens to them
• Talking about suicide, death or dying or wanting it to all end

You never really know what another person is dealing with so be kind. Just listening to what someone has to say and taking it seriously can be very helpful. I encourage anyone with suicidal thoughts to reach out for help. Let your family or friends know what’s going on. Life will throw many obstacles in our life’s path that will make us sad or disappointed at times. But dealing positively with these obstacles is what makes the difference! You’re stronger than you think and you’re going to get through the tough times. You never know what tomorrow may bring so don’t ever give up on life.

Please check out this links (https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/a-to-z/s/suicide), (https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/suicide/), (https://www.nami.org/Get-Involved/Awareness-Events/Suicide-Prevention-Awareness-Month), (https://www.suicideispreventable.org/)