Hey gang! Another week, another Weekly Balance. Let’s have a look back at the past seven days in my life and what I’ve learnt from it.

What went on in my doctor life…

While the COVID-19 pandemic continues, I’m going to leave out this section of The Weekly Balance for now. I can’t share the specifics of my day to day work – its not appropriate for many reasons, but confidentiality is the main one. I would also guess that many of you, like me, enjoy taking time to switch off from all things pandemic, and I hope these weekly posts might help with that a little. I hope you guys can understand that, and thank you! I am continuing to share COVID-19 update posts on my Instagram at least once per week – you can check those out here.

What I’m thinking about…

Hope. It can be hard to find it these days, as we continue to live through the COVID-19 pandemic. What gives us hope will be different for each person, but it’s important to cling on to it. This has been a rough year for everyone, some more than others, and it can be hard to see the silver lining, or the greener grass. But we’ve made it this far, and I bet a lot of us wouldn’t have thought we could do that this time last year – yet here we are. Try to find something that makes you smile and maybe gives you a little bit of hope each day – perhaps its a beautiful view on a walk, a special moment shared with family or a friend, or a hobby you love. We deserve to have laughter, love and light in our lives now more than ever, and although we might have to look a bit harder to find it these days, it’s worth the effort.

A view that gives me hope – The Long Walk (Galway City)

What I’m reading…

I’m currently reading City Of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert, and I’m nearly finished, so I’ll have a book review for you guys in next weekend’s Weekly Balance, which I’m already excited to share. This book has been such a fun read, total escapism and what I needed in a book at the moment. I have just this weekend picked up a new book – The Midnight Library by Matt Haig, and I can’t wait to read it!

As always, let me know what you’re reading in the comments below!

What I’m listening to…

This week, I loved the latest episode of the Michelle Obama Podcast. If you haven’t checked out this podcast yet, you are in for a treat – there are three episodes so far, one with Michelle herself, one with Michelle and Barack, and the latest is with her friend Michele Norris, on protests and the pandemic. The latter two are my favourites, and they are very powerful and inspiring conversations.

Recipe of the Week

The recipe I’m loving this week is my Lentil Pasta Bake – a quick and easy recipe to whip up, and ideal for a new week ahead! You can find the recipe here. 

And that’s a wrap for this week gang! If you want to get in touch, you can find me @theirishbalance on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. I hope you have a lovely week ahead folks – remember, stay informed with the advice from your local health authority, stay safe, wash your hands, keep your distance and be kind!

Ciara 🙂 x