Fatigue can be fatal. Like grief, it hits every one of us in different ways. The best we can do is work the process by way of exercise, rest, and diet, in order to manage a way through it. While maintaining a healthy lifestyle adds another chore to the dad-list, being healthy-minded not only builds energy — it relieves stress, clears the head, and opens the door to more family activities. ...

It might seem harmless — a quick drive-through on the run home to pick up a cheap meal that satisfies hordes of hungry tummies and delays dirty dishes for another night. Yes, it might be fast and convenient — but the truth is, takeaway food can come at a huge cost to our health. What should be a rare treat is fast becoming a frequent meal — with many Queenslanders consuming ...

Dads set the tone and build the context for relationships in their home. Father’s Day is a good opportunity to reflect this tone back by making the day one for food, family, and festivity. Report after report, study after study, and testimony after testimony, repeatedly tell society that dads live out an indispensable role in the life, health, and evolution of the man for woman, woman for man family unit. (See ...

Our culture pressures us to keep working and consuming. It takes a conscious effort to step back, take a breather and re-prioritise, but doing so is really worth it for good health and peace of mind. “We have more ‘things per person’ than any other nation in history. Closets are full, storage space is used up, and cars can’t fit into garages, having first imprisoned us with debt. Possessions then take ...

As someone who has been through the very difficult travails of divorce and undertaken various versions of shared care over the past 15 years, I understand all too well the confusion, stress and sadness these difficult travails bring with them. I have, however, learned a few things along the way that I hope might be of benefit to those fellow travellers who are about to, or are, experiencing similar life experiences. ...

Whether it fizzes, gives you wings or opens happiness — the truth is, it’s packed with sugar and it could be causing serious health problems in children. Figures show 1 in 6 Queensland kids are drinking at least one sugar-sweetened beverage daily. That’s not limited to soft drink either — it includes energy drinks, fruit drinks, cordial and sports drinks too. The 2012 Queensland Chief Health Officer’s Report revealed 16 per ...

It’s the middle of Winter. It’s cold. The TV is jampacked full of all your favourite shows. It’s cold. The aroma of lasagne or hot chocolate wafts through the house. Did I mention it’s cold? This is when you have to make a choice: dressing gown and comfort food… or workout. It’s especially hard tonight because every other member of Fit Club has pulled out. Getting motivated to exercise alone is ...

Who remembers the days of youthful enthusiasm, going to the gym with your mates, endless levels of energy bursting at the seams? Perhaps for the fortunate ones, those days still abound. I recall as a young teenager heading off to the gym, board shorts and singlet — the singlet was a pre-requisite: showed off the muscle definition (or lack thereof in my case) — and water bottle in hand, ready for ...

All right, all right… I admit it… I’m a perfectionist. I take pride in a job well done. I’m a mum, I’m a wife, I’m a worker, a house cleaner, a seamstress, a medic, a teacher — the list is a mile long. And somewhere in amongst all of these roles, I need to find the one that magically helps me to find balance… and then I need to excel at ...

Shield your children from the malign effects of tobacco smoke, which can infiltrate all corners of a family home. The stats are shocking. Almost one Queenslander a day will die from inhaling tobacco smoke this year, without ever having smoked a cigarette in their life. The effects of secondhand smoke are so often understated — and so alarming. Around 3,000 Queenslanders will die from a tobacco-related disease this year. The World ...

It started with an alarm I forgot to set the night before. That meant I was awoken unceremoniously by my little boy precisely half an hour late. Of course, this was the day I had a 9 am deadline and an 8.45 am start at playgroup (where I help set up). Flinging clothes in the general direction of two wriggling bodies, I managed to get the boys dressed between ‘computer stops,’ ...

During the first year of my daughter’s life, I found motherhood quite difficult. I felt swamped by my new role, and somewhere along the way, I lost myself. I felt I had been transformed into a breastfeeding, nappy-changing, baby-burping robot. I had put on about 30 kilos while pregnant and although I lost 15 kilos in the first 8 months post-birth, the other 15 didn’t look like it was ever going ...

Life is full of situations that cause stress! However, stress isn’t always a bad thing. It can be the motivation to get us moving — to write that report, make the ballet costume, perform in the play or make that important speech, etc. But when you are constantly functioning with your foot on the stress pedal, your mind and body will eventually feel the effects. Stress Signals When we’re facing something ...

Behind every behaviour or decision that you make, is a value — something that you hold in high esteem and is advanced in some way by the action. For example, making the choice to work back late, may reflect any one of a number of values, such as: having pride in doing a job well, reducing financial debt, avoiding anticipated conflict at home, or being appreciated by colleagues All of these ...

Making the time and effort to establish regular healthy eating patterns for your family will go a long way in creating quality bonding time and a lifetime of nourishing habits for your children. Food is fundamental in forging a healthy family. There’s something to be said about making the effort to gather the family around a hot meal as regularly as possible. I also find there’s a lot of clout in ...

When you’re feeling low, exercise is often far from your imagination. But, if you can get yourself started — maybe ask a friend, family member or your partner to join you, the benefits are amazing! Like: You’ll feel better about yourself. Meeting small goals along the way and watching your body become strong will surely give your self-confidence a terrific boost; Doing exercise can take your mind off the issues that ...

When you analyse the social science about the importance of dads, it is unequivocal. Dads are vitally important to their children’s success in a myriad of ways. As George Herbert said, “One father is more than a hundred schoolmasters.” This is not speculation — it is reality. Joshua A Krisch puts the case well for this in an article titled “The Science of Dad and the ‘Father Effect’“. The subtitle says ...

Good sleep is required for good mental health, but it can be very difficult for a parent of young children to get enough of it to function properly. Having family support in the parenting journey can make all the difference in the world! Feeling blue? The scientific cure may also be my favourite thing in the whole world… sleep. According to this New York Times article, if you get less than ...

Children are in the process of learning how to coordinate their bodies and they are naturally curious about exploring the world around them, hence accident-prone. Their immune systems are developing, and they can become very ill. Knowing how to do first aid on your child — or his friends — can save a life. Whenever I hear about a tragic accident involving a baby or child on the news, my heart ...

Life with a baby turns regular activities into entirely new and wonderful experiences. It’s hard to believe so much time has passed. My son, Seth, is now ten weeks old, and so intelligent he’s bound to make a future Prime Minister. (Not that I’m biased!) Recently, I reflected on my experiences during Seth’s birth. A heap has happened since then. He’s grown, developed skills, changed appearance, and I’ve learned there is ...