That moment when you know you are going to sneeze ... when you have to prepare by crossing your legs and hoping for the best ... also known as stress incontinence, it is something we are often too embarrassed to talk about but it is estimated that it affects 9.6 million women in the UK, it is twice as common in women than men and it affects women of any age, although is more prevalent after childbirth and it does become more pronounced as we reach midlife and our peri-menopause and postmenopause years.

I noticed some stress incontinence after having my two babies, both were vaginal births and my son was a ventouse delivery, putting me at slightly higher risk of urinary incontinence. However, despite being told to do my kegel exercises (pelvic floor exercises) by my midwife and at my NCT classes, I wasn't as committed as I knew I should have been. Even though I did try to remember 'in the queue at Sainsbury's' which seemed to be the general advice, the reality was I was too busy thinking of other things, like keeping my baby happy! The other prompt I seem to remember was 'can you stop a wee mid-flow?' Then along came menopause and I initially escaped any worsening of my symptoms until early in 2022 when my HRT stopped working and my menopause symptoms returned, or in the case of my intimate health, seemed to start.

This is a gifted blog post.

​​In October I went away on a Writer's Retreat and made some really lovely new friends, one of which was Becca who set up and runs a fabulous sustainable initiative called Tentshare, plus the retreat was held at a fantastic glamping site near Tintern in Wales. Hill Farm aims to incorporate as many sustainable practices as possible into their business - and it is often the simple things that make a big difference - I learnt it is possible to live in a more sustainable way without overthinking it all. From making sure food waste was separated and reused, without any plastic water bottles in sight, they use as many natural resources as possible, including a composting toilet and recycled toilet paper! Their use of second hand furniture and recycled materials was inspirational and rather than being too basic, it all just added to the charm and enjoyment of the experience. They aim to reduce their negative impact with using local foods, organic food where possible, fresh produce, and delicious vegetarian dishes! They have a recycling bin for everything and I soon got used to the many simple ways to be more mindful of our over consumption.

Of course it got me thinking about my everyday life and how I can make improvements. I really enjoyed chatting to Becca and learning easy tips for how I can improve my environmental footprint! So I asked Becca to share some her own sustainability tips in a guest post on my blog .... I hope you enjoy!

Collaborative Post​​ | Valentine's Day is a special occasion to show your love and appreciation for the special man in your life. Shopping for gifts can often be challenging, so it's important to find something that will make him feel appreciated and put a smile on his face. Here are some unique Valentine's Day gifts for him that are sure to impress:​