The Not-So-Secret Diary of an Anxious Millennial

Story time!! Just over a year ago I was diagnosed with something called Coeliac’s Disease. Coeliac’s is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system reacts abnormally to gluten causing damage to the bowel. If left undiagnosed, and untreated, this disease can lead to chronic systemic inflammation, malnutrition and even bowel cancer. The only treatment currently available is to maintain a 100% gluten free diet with absolutely 0 cross contamination at all times. For those who don’t know, gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, oats, barley and triticale. So basically, everything that tastes good is off limits. This means that a cheat day consists of eating a food item that “may contain traces of gluten” or eating at a restaurant that cannot guarantee there is no cross contamination. This diagnosis didn’t come straight away. It was the result of a 4-year period of different doctors and hospital visits, misdiagnoses, and way too much money spent of specialist visits. I wa...

“It’s alright to be scared, but don’t let that fear overpower and control you” Winter of 2017, when all of good American television shows were on their summer break, I found myself scrolling through Netflix. For months, a show called “The Good Place” kept coming up in my suggested items. After reading the description, and knowing the way my brain operated, I decided that a show about the afterlife was potentially not the best choice for someone with a serious fear of death. But there was nothing else that even remotely appealed to me on this night, so I clicked play and settled into the couch with a blanket and way too much chocolate. Over the span of the next week, I binge watched my way through two full seasons! I became so engrossed with the storyline that I just couldn’t stop. I would watch episodes in the morning, at night and while getting ready for work. It consumed my life for that short period, and when I finally finished, I went back and watched the whole thing again. I...

“We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided” When Dorothea Mackellar said, “I love a sun burnt country” this was not what she meant. As I write this, much of Northern New South Wales and Queensland is on fire. Our country has become so dry that these fires are beyond our control. With no end in sight, families are being forced to flee their homes, leave their memories, their loved ones and their livelihoods behind to save themselves. In some areas, it is too late to leave and home owners are left to defend themselves on the front line against a raging beast – a battle many will not win. As at 10:30am on Sunday 10 th November, 70 fires are burning across New South Wales, with half yet to be contained. 150+ homes have been destroyed, 3 people have died and it is estimated that over 75% of the Koala population in the area has been lost. Firefighters and Rural Fire Service volunteers are working tirelessly to contain these fires and brin...