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…

Minding our mental health. This week, my latest article for Dr. Hazel Wallace’s The Food Medic website went live – titled ‘Minding Your Mental Health – Whilst Living Through A Pandemic. In this article, I shared five tips I’ve been finding helpful to use to look after my mental health during the challenging times we are facing. One thing we know for sure about the COVID-19 pandemic is that we’re in it for something of a long-haul, and that means we need to take care of ourselves, our physical and mental health. I talk about the importance of connection (off and online), of staying informed (but not overwhelmed), of setting boundaries for yourself, of regular routines and healthy habits, and of saying no to stigma around mental health. If you’d like to have a read of the article in full, you can do so on Hazel’s website www.thefoodmedic.co.uk.

What I’m reading…

I recently finished How To Stop Time by Matt Haig, and I really enjoyed it. It’s the second book by Matt Haig that I’ve read (The Midnight Library, his most recently published book, is the first). I didn’t love it as much as I loved The Midnight Library, but all the same, it’s one I’d recommend. The main character is a man called Tom Hazard, who has a condition whereby he ages much, much slower than a regular human – every fifteen years of his life counts for just one human year. It’s a really interesting concept for a book – the story flits back and forth between the centuries Tom has lived through, and focuses on the people he meets along the way who change the course of his life – including some romance in there too! I will be looking out for more books by Matt Haig for sure – he has quite an absorbing style of writing and so far the plots of his books that I’ve read have been very thought-provoking.

As always, let me know what you’re reading in the comments below! Currently I’m reading The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes and I am hooked on it!

What I’m listening to…

This week, I tuned into the last episode of the first series (I hope there will be a second!) of The Michelle Obama Podcast. It’s a conversation between Michelle, her brother Craig and her mother Marian Robinson. It is, as is every episode of this podcast, a funny, engaging and heart-warmining listen. If you haven’t tuned into this podcast yet, you’re in for a treat!

I also really enjoyed the Where Is My Mind podcast by Niall Breslin (Bressie). This podcast in general is about psychology and mental health, taking deep dives into different topics with expert and guest interviews, and it’s a really awesome listen. I’ve been catching up on this podcast and this weekend, I listened to an episode called Ironmind. For anyone who has ever taken exercise and training a step to far in terms of intensity and obsession, this is a great one to tune into.

Recipe of the Week

The recipe I’m loving this week is my Turkey and KidneyBean Chili – 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