The other day I found myself standing on the side of a busy road in front of an empty space where my car had been parked with a hungry, crying baby in my arms. My car had just been towed away because I had parked in a bus zone. As I write these words, I have blood shot eyes, unwashed hair and have yet to make it out of what is now my daily uniform of yoga pants and a t-shirt. I’ve recently had to start writing notes to myself on my phone because my short-term memory is failing me.... Read full article »

I felt a light tap as the delicate needle went into my ankle. Within moments my racing thoughts settled and I felt my awareness shift to the present moment. My breath. My body. My baby.   I’m now 41 weeks pregnant, a week past the expected date of arrival for my second child. I’m hoping to go into labour naturally without needing to be medically induced, and with some evidence to show that acupuncture can be effective in encouraging a natural start to labour, I’ve had a series of appointments with Amrit Dean, a registered Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioner... Read full article »

A couple of weeks ago I noticed my Dad was looking particularly trim. Knowing that he works out regularly I asked him what else he had been doing to get such a dramatic result. “I quit sugar,” he proudly announced as he described how the extra pounds he couldn’t shake had practically flown off him.   In this day and age where sugar is hidden in almost everything, quitting the ever-temping saccharine ingredient is no small thing. I was impressed. And, as I’ve written about previously, based on the evidence, I’m in favour of any diet that encourages a diet... Read full article »

I’ve got a dilemma and have to make a very important health related decision. I’m expecting my second child to arrive any day now. I have a wonderful doctor, but I’ve just been told he has to unexpectedly go away next week for five days. He’s suggested that if my baby hasn’t come by next Tuesday, in order to ensure he will be there for the baby’s birth, we artificially induce labour before he goes away. The decision I have to make (if baby doesn’t come in the next five days) is whether letting things take their own course is... Read full article »

I was making breakfast in my kitchen this morning when I heard the stirrings of my three-year-old son waking up. My husband walked into his bedroom and gathered him up into his arms for a good morning cuddle. As my son slowly made the transition from the Land of Nod and into the day ahead, the two of them sat together for at least 10 minutes, still in their embrace, watching me as I pottered around in the kitchen.   It wasn’t an unusual occurrence in our home, but it was a heartwarming moment between father and son, and I... Read full article »

In 2009 I found myself in the South Pacific island nation of Samoa the day after a 3.5 metre tsunami rolled through and killed more than one hundred people. I was there as a video journalist — a one-man band traveling with a light camera and editing kit in order to get to people and places conventional crews cannot. At the heart of my story were the remarkable people from the Australian Federal Police Disaster Victim Identification team who worked tirelessly to find and identify the missing tsunami victims so their families could get closure.   I felt that the... Read full article »