egg talks to

Welcome back to egg talks to!

After a bit of a break I am delighted to be back, and with a conversation that means a huge amount to me. After losing my parents I've been on a mission to talk about death, about grief, to support others going through the same. I believe that we are further united by our shared losses, and that by discussing the journey, we help ourselves, and others too.

In this episode I chat to widows Doug and Alison about their grief journey, speaking to children about death, learning to live after loss, and a book.

An emotional conversation, I am so grateful to Doug and Ali for trusting me with their stories. We all hope that by opening up, we can help others, that there will be a ripple effect.

Richmonds Hope support bereaved families: https://www.richmondshope.org.uk

Elke Barber books on explaining death to children: http://www.elkethompson.com/books/is-daddy-coming-back-in-a-minute/

During lockdown my friend Kirsty set up the wonderful Boozy Book Club; pairing books with bespoke cocktails and thoughtfully curated gifts and packaging them up in a beautiful box, recipients would meet on-line at the end of the month to discuss the book with the author! We both adored The Midnight Library and wanted it to be in the box, but knew it would be a tricky mission to persuade Matt. But we did, and it truly was a team effort - thank you Sarah E for the introduction and to Matt's wife Andrea, for being so kind and saying yes.

Matt was, as expected, an amazing guest. The Midnight Library is his 20th book, and he talked us through the process, the characters, and the dreaded editing. He spoke about the good in reframing uncertainty (this was recorded during the 3rd lockdown so particularly poignant), discussed some of his favourite books and quotes, and talked about chatting to us again when his book The Christmasaurus launched (must follow that up!).

Matt made us laugh, brought joy to a pretty joyless time, and helped us raise £500 for his nominated Charity Papyrus.

I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed recording it.

http://www.matthaig.com/

https://www.theboozybookclub.co.uk/

I was initially going to chat to Dr Terrina on the Menopause but after reading about her areas of specialism, and realising I'd been to see her earlier this year for a mole check, I decided there was lots more to chat about! So in this episode we cover skin health and the importance of checking your moles, we talk about Well-Women Health checks, a comprehensive full body MOT, and then on to the Menopause and HRT. I wish Dr Terrina had been the first person I'd seen when I went to the docs about the peri-menopause, cool and calm and brimming with knowledge and good advice, my path would have been a little clearer. I'm delighted to help impart that knowledge to you and hope you enjoy!

Dr Terrina practices out of Cosmedicare at Edinburgh Park.

In February 2019 Leighanne's wife Gill was diagnosed with Stage 4 melanoma. For the next 14 months Gill was relatively stable as she received treatment, and the pair lived life to the full, ticking off much of Gill's bucket list wishes. In April 2020 her tablets stopped working, and she passed away in May 2020. In this emotional conversation Leighanne and I discuss life after loss, the importance of knowing your own body, of making every day count and of raising awareness of melanoma, "not just skin cancer". It sounds like a really sad episode, and it is in parts, but there is humour and lightness and fun, a reflection of the woman we are discussing; this episode is dedicated to the memory of Gillian Baird-Sangster.

After almost a full year of eating and drinking like it's Christmas, I decided enough was enough, and that I had to salvage something from 2020, and end on a healthy(ish) high. With motivation and will-power low, I knew I needed a pro to help me - and you don't get much more pro than Amanda Hamilton! Four best selling books and a t.v career dedicated to feeding the nation healthy grub, I loved listening to Amanda's advice, a no nonsense approach that gave me a firm kick up the bum. If you want to know where to find me, it's likely I'm in the kitchen making slaw! Want to eat better, feel better and take control? Have a listen!

This episode is kindly sponsored by Edinburgh Cycle Hire, who are sponsored by Just Eat. With over 110 bike stations across Edinburgh it's never been easier to get on your bike! Discover Edinburgh for less with our exclusive link https://edinburghcyclehire.com/buy/egg which gets you a 4 month pass for just £10, a saving of £40! You must redeem by end Dec 2020! Edinburgh Cycle Hire is on a mission to help Edinburgh become carbon neutral by 2030.

Hannah Buchan - Speaking once again to my pal, and Business/Life/everythinginbetween coach Hannah Buchan, to discuss the power of a morning routine and when put together with journaling and powerful visualisation can change your life.

https://www.hannahbuchancoaching.com

Recommended reading Hal Elrod: The Miracle Morning

Angie Cameron - It was our shared experiences of Grief that brought Angie and I together last year, when she spoke, so bloody brilliantly, at our Grief event. Angie is no stranger to grief, has suffered more than most, but all I ever see is warmth, compassion and a bright smile. When I decided to give more space to talks on Co-ercive control, it was Angie I turned to, having heard her speak on this subject too. We veered off to talk about sweet almond oil and masturbation, bringing light and humour to a serious subject.

Angie is an Accredited Psychotherapist and Managing Director at Direction
https://www.direction.org.uk/

An open, honest and empowering conversation with Journalist, Host and Founder of the very brilliant The Flock, a digital space for women, Jen Crichton. Discussing the pandemic effect on Jen's business pipeline and how it led to the acceleration of her digital dream, we talk too about women's health and in particular the endometriosis and adenomyosis diagnosis that led to Jen's recent hysterectomy.

Go read and support https://flockmag.com/

@join.the.flock

With calls to divorce lawyers increasing significantly over the last few months, I knew it was time to chat all things Divorce, to help empower those going through it, thinking about it, even those who are in healthy relationships but who want to safeguard their future. Danielle is a Senior Associate at law firm Anderson Strathern, I met her a long time ago and knew that she'd be the perfect person to cover this subject, with no judgement and lots of empathy.

There is some really really helpful advice in this episode which I hope will educate, empower and support.

[email protected]

If you think you know all there is to know about lasering then think again! In days gone by lasering was just another means of removing unwanted hair. But in the last 10 years, lasering technology has advanced in more ways than you can imagine, and Amanda has more experience than most.

Purchasing her first laser in 1999, Amanda has continued to invest in the most advanced laser technology, and I was blown away to learn of the many areas of female health that can now be improved with this technology; bladder and incontinence problems, pelvic floor relaxation problems caused by childbirth or menopause and painful intercourse to name just a few! I was excited to hear Amanda talk, knowing that this conversation will help many women who are currently suffering in silence. Amanda can be found at Cosmedicare clinics in Edinburgh and Glasgow.

www.cosmedicare.uk
@cosmedicare_uk