We are SO excited to finally share our latest news. Are you ready! For the past few months we’ve been working on the cutest little book called “The Survival Handbook for Girls”. This book is has been lovingly put together by our entire team and beautifully illustrated by our friends at Vitamin Creative. The book
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As young people, we seem to be struggling with our mental health at the moment. So many of us are battling anxiety, stress, depression, lack of self-confidence or disordered eating. Schools feel like they are full of tension, with many of us operating in survival mode, doing our best just to get through the day.
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So I have this friend. She is kind, quirky, super smart and really really funny. We have never met in person. My friend doesn’t feel comfortable going out, and instead is her true self online, where people can’t see her, or judge her, or be cruel to her. My friend is transexual, andstruggles because her
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It was a Thursday evening. I was scrolling through Instagram, seeing posts about detainment centres holding children in America and a magic appetite supressing tea that would make me lose five pounds every time I blinked. I had just got home after a long day in school, I’m in the Leaving Cert programme which everyone
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October 10th was a very important day for the women of Ireland. Since we walked into our jobs this morning in offices, salons, schools, labs, courtrooms, surgeries and shops all over Ireland this morning, we are effectively working for free until New Year’s Day 2020. This is due to the Gender Pay Gap. The women
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Girls and women are often told that we’re being “too emotional” and it’s not meant in a nice way. It’s meant to stop us giving out about something or it’s meant to make us “calm down” because we’re being so bloody emotional. And recently I’ve been thinking about what that word really means – emotional.
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Does the thought of a public event bring you out in a rash? Do you spend all day talking yourself into going out, only to cancel at the last minute to hang out with your cat? Relax, you’re not weird, you probably have social anxiety, and that is a legit thing that affects 16.8% of
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I was part of a loving and stable family. I was lucky to experience no trauma in my life. I was the captain of my school, club, and county. I was the leader of the Senior Concert Band. I was a young coach and referee. I handed in all my homework. (Well, most of it.)
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Dyslexia is a learning difference affecting the way the brain processes written and spoken language. It is not laziness, disruptive behavior, or a general lack of comprehension. To see for yourself how some people struggle to read, have a look at this website and you’ll understand. Siobhan works in finance in London. She manages huge portfolios worth
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Society encourages young girls to imagine meeting the man of their dreams. We promote fairy tales where falling in love and getting married is the end goal. However, we don’t really talk about actual relationships very much at all. We don’t prepare young girls for what they should and should not expect from a romantic
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On Friday, 20th of September, thousands upon thousands of young people, across Ireland and the world, answered Climate Change activist Greta Thunberg’s call and proceeded to march the streets of their cities in protest of Global Warming and the Climate Crisis. I was one of those young people. If you are not already aware, the world
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Need a pep talk? Prepare for some tough love from the one and only Libby….. Get over yourself……..Seriously! You’re behaving in the same way you did when you were a child. Where did all of that beautiful growth go? You’re crying alone, looking for attention, simultaneously worrying and annoying your friends. You’re room is a
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What a day…… Yesterday, to celebrate International Day of the Girl, we threw a little party for 1,000 of our closest friends. These beautiful girls came from all over the south east to laugh, cry, sing and dance like no one was watching. Our speakers Razan Ibraheem, Sarah Doyle, and Niamh Fitzpatrick opened their hearts
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The BEST thing you can ever do for yourself, is start saying yes. Listen, I know it sounds so incredibly simple, too simple almost, but honestly, this is the best advice I could give anyone. Ever. Now, I’m not telling you to start saying yes to things you really really don’t want to do- that would be
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There are two types of people in this world. Those who are huggers, and those who aren’t. Which are you??? Its completely up to you which camp you fall into, there’s no judgement here. However, according to science, hugging is really really good for your health. Virginia Satir once said… We need four hugs a
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This week has been a busy one here at Shona, but next week going to be even bigger! Next Friday, October 11th, we will welcome 1,000 girls from across the South East to ‘SHINE 19: A Celebration of International Day of the Girl.’ We’re thrilled to be working with Beat102103 again to bring these girls
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LGBTQAI+ – It’s all in the plus 😄 As someone who works in the area of sexuality, I sometimes forget that all of the letters can look like a crazy confusing bowl of alphabetti spaghetti to someone who isn’t so familiar – and that’s OK! As terms evolve and people discover more ways to express themselves,
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For so long the fast fashion industry has made people feel like they’re not enough, have to look a certain way and they have to dress a certain way. The fast fashion industry has made us feel like we have to keep up with the latest “trends” that they change every two weeks, they make
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