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I took a relatively long break and i think the perfect comeback is a lovely collation of all the people that have contributed to this blog thus far. The catalyst in me is more than an individual effort . It started as a deep feeling within myself of inadequacy, i didn't know where my degree would take me and was completely lost . My visual representation of a scientist and careers after a life science degree was very skewed and its something i wanted to change . There was also a huge gap in the level of information i felt needed to be out there . Through my journey i have thought of so many careers that interest me. Sometimes a few Google searches of pages isn't enough . You need to see peoples failures to make the journey seem more attainable. A strong message i wanted to to put out is that rejection is part of the process and it does not automatically equal to failure . Below i have linked all the people that have contributed to the growth of the page. I can't wait to see what the next half of the year holds for me and especially this page . I have a vision and again i am very grateful for everyone that has contributed, followed and shared this blog. Share with friends and family and if you would like to contribute email :thecatalystinme@gmail.com Medical Physiology -> https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/student-profile-medical-physiology Neuroscience ->https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/professional-profile-neuroscience-widening-participation Medical genetics and Masters in Cancer research - >https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/career-profile-medical-genetics-msc-cancer-research-and-molecular-biomedicine Pharmacy >https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/student-profile-pharmacy Biomedical science and plant physiology-->https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/student-profile-mres-advanced-biological-sciences Immunology Phd >https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/professional-profile-phd-immunology Medicne ->https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/student-profile-medicine Medicine https://www.thecatalystinme.com/post/student-profile-medicine-1 Biotechnology >https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/student-profile-biology-and-biotehnology Biochemistry/pre-med/phd - -->https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/student-profile-biochem-major-pre-md-phd Medical Laboratory science ->https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/student-profile-medical-laboratory-science-usa Biology >https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/professional-profile-laboratory-technician Biology - >https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/professional-profile-pharmacy-advisor Biology with Neuroscience masters -->https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/student-profile-msc-neuroscience-bsc-biology Bioinformatics and phd in malaria research >https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/professional-profile-phd-sequencing-the-genome-of-malaria-from-south-east-asia Tropical diseases >https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/career-profile-msc-tropical-disease-biology Geneticist - >https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/career-profile-principal-investigator phd malaria research - >https://www.thecatalystinme.com/blog/career-profile-phd-genetics-malaria-vector-control

I’ve had the idea of writing this post since my blog started. It’s taken some time to figure out how i wanted to present it. Poly Cystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) is something personal to me and also something i think not enough women are educated on. After reading a good amount of papers and seeing what information is out there, I've decided to make this post slightly longer than my usual ones. LET’S BEGIN… Firstly , what is PCOS ? PCOS = polycystic ovary syndrome - In simple terms, PCOS can be described as a reproductive disorder found in women. It’s exact cause is something that is still being researched. It is said to be caused by a combination of environmental and genetic factors . There is no current cure for PCOS, this may be due to the complexity of the disease or lack of research done in the field. Maybe a little bit of both. PCOS is not very easy to diagnose as it is based on a range of symptoms. From what i have read, diagnosis of PCOS is one of the difficult aspects of the syndrome and also the differences in how it manifests in women at different stages of their lives. What are the symptoms? Diagnosis of PCOS is usually determined when a woman shows ⅔ of the main symptoms. The main symptoms being: Hyperandrogenism: production of androgen hormones Poly cystic ovaries - the presence of poly cystic ovaries which can be detected using ultrasound. A positive test has more than 12 follicles per ovary with a diameter of 2-9mm Irregular periods So now the science PCOS is said to affect 5-10% of women of reproductive age. PCOS is a heterogeneous disorder that leads to the production of androgens. This means PCOS is caused by a range of factors which makes it difficult to model the disease. Androgens are a group of hormones that are responsible for the developments of male characteristics. For the context of PCOS it leads to the increased production of testosterone. The increased production of the androgens is what causes the symptoms of PCOS. There is still a lot of research to be done into understanding the exact mechanism of PCOS Current research suggests that PCOS results due to an increase in Lutienisng hormone(LH). The role of LH in the normal menstrual cycle leads to the development of the ovarian follicle and ovulation( release of the egg ).Excess LH leads to the premature stopping of follicle development, leading to many underdeveloped follicles. Imbalance of LH can lead to the stimulation of the production of testosterone.Increase in LH increases the production of androgens from theca cells in the ovaries. A lot of places link PCOS to an increased risk of developing type-2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes occurs due to decreased insulin sesitivity in the body. Insulin is the hormone that regulates the level of blood glucose. Women with PCOS are said to be less sensitive to insulin in their muscle and adipose tissue, this causes the body to overcompensate and produce more insulin. Decreased sensitivity to insulin leads to higher blood glucose and hence type-2 diabetes. The decreased insulin sensitivity means that insulin's post- receptor activity is decreased which leads to defects such as the stimulation/suspension of different metabolic pathways. Defects such as an increased production of LH due to more insulin being presnet can increase the level of androgens in the ovary; the cause of hyperandrogenism. Many women are diagnosed with PCOS at around their late teens to early twenties .It is important to note everybody is different and a combination of different factors determine how the syndrome is expressed. Let’s get a bit personal … How did i find out i have PCOS ?... I was already late to the period party when i was in secondary school, that may have been the first sign. Fast forward a few years into regular periods. Around 16/17 things began to change. Months went by and no mother nature scratching at my uterus. At first this was kind of a good thing. I didn’t have to worry about tummy pains. But once the months start rolling by you do get a bit worried. My periods were irregular to the point when they actually arrived it was like pay back. The worst i remember lasting for 2 and a half weeks with heavy bleeding. To put things into perspective most periods last 7 days max. Mine was double and then some. Finally my mum got fed up and we went to the GP. I explained everything, did an ultrasound and voila i now had PCOS. I do not show any of the symptoms of hyperandrogenism( maybe oily skin counts) but i did have irregular periods and polycystic ovaries. As mentioned above you need to have 2/3 of the main symptoms to be diagnosed. My GP explained that it’s what caused my irregular periods and not to worry. 1 in 10 women are usually affected by it. She offered birth control to regulate my periods but i really wasn’t ready for all the side effects. She did explain that it could lead to complications if i wanted kids. Is this something i have thought about? Yes; but i’m only 21 and i'll cross that bridge when i get there. I hope I've been able to educate you a bit more on PCOS. Feel free to message me on any of my social media platforms to explain anything in more detail. I wan’t to encourage discussion around this topic. Do share with your friends and family. Other sources that further explain PCOS and the hormones mentioned https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/polycystic-ovary-syndrome-pcos/ http://www.yourhormones.info/endocrine-conditions/polycystic-ovary-syndrome/ https://www.londonwomenscentre.co.uk/conditions/polycystic-ovarian-syndrome https://www.conceptfertility.co.uk/2018/06/13/possible-treatment-for-polycystic-ovary-syndrome-pcos/ References Moore, A. M. & Campbell, R. E., 2017. Polycystic ovary syndrome: Understanding the role of the brain. Fronteirs in Neuroendocrinology , 46(1), pp. 1-14. Patel, S., 2018. Polycystic Ovary syndrome ( PCOS), an inflammatory, systemic, lifestyle endocrinopathy. The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology , 182(1), pp. 27-36. Pfeifer, S. M. & Kives, S., 2009. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome in the Adolescent. Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinics of North America, 36(1), pp. 129-152.

If you look at life as a jigsaw puzzle. In the literal sense, when we complete a puzzle we already have the pieces and the challenge is to just putting everything together. When i look back at my journey into science and biology , where i am now is nowhere close to what i thought it would be. Gcse is when I was very sure I wanted a future in something to do with biology. As a kid it was very medicine focused. I was stubborn and knew i loved learning about the human body. No other subject topped how i felt when i was learning about how our bodies functioned. I just wanted to know how we worked. The concept of cells, tissues, organs stuck with me and till now it still amazes me how organised and perfectly different parts of our body work together. I started of as a teen wanting to study medicine with the mentality of being a DR or else . This led me to stay very passionate and hardworking towards my grades. My desire to be a doctor led to me volunteering in a hospital, it was there i knew i loved human interaction and saw hospitals in a different light. I also started to question my motives for being a Dr, were they genuine or was it because of lack of knowledge of other fields. Fast forward to university, studying medical physiology, completely changed my outlook . It confirmed i have a strong need to help and teach the younger generation. It also showed me that helping others and giving back is one of the core things i want to do. My journey has taken many turns but everything i have done has widened my perspective into what i really like doing. Doing new things hasn't always helped me, it sometimes brought about a strong sense of confusion and led me to think into a bit too many career paths. So think of this bit as picking up a puzzle piece and thinking it will fit perfectly only for it to be the wrong one. This lead to frustration and a heavy sense of self doubt.I wasn’t exposed to the different paths biology could lead you early on, in the space of 2 years i was bombarded with so many options. I was like a kid in a candy store and just wanted to try everything. One thing i have learnt is to never ignore that burning feeling of purpose you get when you do something. If you can't stop thinking about an idea/ career, then surely it is no coincidence. We live in a generation where opportunities are literally just a google away. Maybe many google searches or emails but nonetheless, they are much closer than they used to be. In life, we don’t actually have all the pieces with us. Maybe we start with a handful and as time goes by and with experience we find these new puzzle pieces. Sometimes the pieces we find may not make sense until we find another one and they fit perfectly together ( the "aha moment").

Following on from my post 2 weeks into my internship I’ve finally wrapped my head around the science of my project. I can now better answer the why of what i am doing. If you haven’t read that post, click here and then come back. My Topic: Neurochemical consequences of histamine dysfunction studied in a histamine-knockout zebrafish Now that you’re all caught up, lets recap a little Neurochemical = chemicals usually found in the the nervous system. The nervous system is made up of the brain and spinal cord. For my project, i am focusing on the zebrafish brain. Histamine is a neurotransmitter in the brain. It is not one of the main neurotransmitters but there have been studies that link histamine and aggression in animals. So my project looks at histamine knockout zebrafish, meaning the gene that is responsible for the production of histamine has been removed. What is aggression and why study it ? Aggression in animals can be described as an adaptive behavior which animals display in everyday life for survival, assertion of dominance and even mating. Aggression in animals can also be detrimental to their survival. Aggression in humans can simply be defined as feelings of anger or antipathy resulting in hostile or violent behaviour; readiness to attack or confront. Studying aggressive behavior in animals can help better understand disorders that result in aggressive behaviour in humans such as ADHD and schizophrenia. Aggression in humans occur due to a multitude of factors (genetic factors, environmental and the effect of neurotransmitters). Why use a fish to study something that affects humans? Firstly, we can’t use human subjects for obvious ethical reasons. Zebrafish are used as the genes and neurotransmitters that control aggression in humans can also be found in zebrafish. 69% of zebrafish genes have evolved from the same ancestral gene as humans. Zebrafish are used due to their short generation time and they are ideal to measure under laboratory procedures. They become adults in a short period of time and they show changes in behaviour that are easy to measure. My project did not involve the behavioral aspect of modelling aggression however, i dealt with the neurochemistry ie the stuff that goes on in our brains. So the brain stuff !!! I was testing a model of histamine dysfunction (mutant) vs the normal ( wild-type). The mutant had the gene that produced histamine removed and the wild-type could still produce histamine. The zebrafish brain is dissected and cut into the four brain regions. The sections of the brain are then broken up, centrifuged and the liquid extracted contains the different neurotransmitters. The levels of the neurotransmitters are then measured using a HPLC( high- performance liquid chromatography machine). HPLC machine is a fancy way of separating out the neurotransmitters according to their retention times. Think back to primary/ gcse experiments where you did paper chromatography and separated out a dot of black ink. For the experiment, the zebrafish have to be killed. The use and killing of animals in science is heavily regulated and is never done in a wasteful manner or if it wasn't absolutely necessary. Measures are taken to make sure the animal is killed in a humane fashion. Since working in the lab i have had a greater appreciation for the safety measures and regulation made to ensure experiments are all ethically correct. SO what does histamine have to do with aggression ? Not many studies have been done on histamine hence my project lol . So we are yet to find out its exact links to aggression. Histamine has been found to control other behaviours in zebrafish . Its link to aggression has been proposed to blocking the 5HT receptors. 5HT is a neurotransmitter and is more commonly known as serotonin, the happy hormone .Serotonin is thought to have an inhibitory role in aggression . In simpler terms, the presence of serotonin decreases the level of aggressive behaviour. Therefore if histamine blocks the signalling of 5HT an increased level of aggression is expected. It's been a very interesting four weeks and now almost 6 weeks into my internship i am appreciating all the little details that go into research. My supervisor has been very inspirational and encouraging. Its easy to forget or take for granted how much time and effort it takes to host a student in a lab. This is an opportunity i will not forget and the lessons learnt thus far will stay with me and help me immensely in my professional journey as a scientist. References 1. Filby, A. L., Paull, G. C., Hickmore, T. F. & Tyler, C. R., 2010. Unraveling the neurophysiological basis of aggression in a fish model. BMC Genomics , 11(1), p. 1. 2. Jones, L. J. & Norton, W. H. J., 2015. Using Zebrafish to uncover the genetic and neural basis of aggression, a frequent comorbid symptom of psychiatric disorders. Behavourial Brain research , 276(1), pp. 171-180.

Name: Rachel What do you currently study: PhD in Cancer Studies and Molecular Medicine What a levels did you study : Biology, Chemistry and Maths plus AS Level French Describe your journey to date in 3 words : Challenging,varied and fun. Brief description of your role:-My PhD involves my own research project developing a new method to detect lung cancer earlier. I also help supervise undergraduate and MSc students during their lab projects as well as analysing samples for some other projects and collaborations not directly related to my PhD. This gives me more experience and the potential for extra publications. What motivated you to pursue a career in science: I wanted to do medicine but without the blood and gore and I’ve always been interested in how things work What drives you to stay motivated: The exciting, ground-breaking research I’m involved in or hear about which has the potential to change lives. And when things aren’t going so well, the knowledge that I am learning and developing, and improving my career prospects by completing my PhD What advice would you give to someone wanting to follow a similar career path to yours : Take advantage of any opportunities that come your way. You never know where it might lead. Attend conferences and network as much as possible and try to be positive! Describe how you manage your work life balance : It’s easy to get carried away and spend all your time working so I work a standard 9-5 day during the week. Occasionally lab work might require some weekend working (especially those pesky cells!) but I always take extra time off in the week to make up for it. Having set hours means I don’t ‘burn out’ and I’m more focused when I’m at work. Tips on applying for internships: Always send applications to a named person if it’s a speculative application, and tailor your application and CV for each role. You will get some rejections but learn from them. It usually works out for the best.

Name: Karen What do you currently study: 2nd Year PhD in Cardiovascular sciences, my research focuses on blood pressure variability in acute ischaemic stroke Journey in 3 words what would they be: Nevertheless, she persisted! A levels : Chemistry, Biology and Maths Brief description of your role: My project investigates the natural history of Blood pressure variability (BPV); I will be exploring and identifying the appropriate methodologies of defining BPV in ischaemic stroke patients and subsequently determine the prognostic significance of BPV in this cohort of patients. This will be completed via a prospective multi-centre observational study to determine the natural history and prognostic significance of BPV. As a PhD student, my role involves collecting some data, uploading and preparing it for statistical use and with some guidance, interpreting the findings. What motivated you to pursue a career in science: I’ve always loved science, and have been determined from a young age to be a scientist. I enjoy science and I find it very thrilling. It’s the awareness of the many problems we face, and the infinite number of solutions available for such problems. I’ve always wanted to contribute to the problem solving aspect, even if it’s on a small scale. Science allows you to think, explore any crazy ideas and determine how useful it is for the masses. I like that throughout my progression in science, it has given me both personal and professional attributes, and every skill acquired is always transferable. A career in science has allowed me to approach every situation in a pragmatic way, and always seek to gain understanding in everything that I come across. What advice would you give to someone wanting to follow a similar career path to yours: Do this because you want to. Don’t let your teachers, friends, parents and anyone else other than yourself convince to follow this career path. The science route comes with so many demands, and unless you are determined, you may find yourself short of motivation and drive. But if you do choose to follow this path, just know that everyone around you actually wants to help you. We all have the same common goal (to solve problems, cure diseases etc.), and so everyone is actually rooting for you. What drives you to stay motivated: Reflections! This is honestly so true because it is only when I look back and witness how far I’ve come, that I become more motivated to keep going. Describe how you manage your work life balance: This is difficult and there actually isn’t a neat trick to having that balance 100%. The only way I manage it is by being intentional with my time. I have to make conscious decisions daily about what I’m going to do to contribute towards my work, and how I’m going to take a break and get some rest. It can be easy for lines to blur, especially when you have a lot on your plate. Guilt is a big thing in this field when you first start out, because there is so much to do, you end up always feel guilty in some sense if you’re not doing any work but instead you’re sitting in a field somewhere enjoying the weather. This guilt will have you convincing yourself that taking a break from your work should involve doing something equally productive, such as sorting out your references, catching up on newly published work in the field and even restructuring work plans. But work life balance is very important, otherwise you’ll burn yourself out. So, it’s all about being intentional with your time, and being purposeful with what you do with that time.

SO it's been TWO weeks and what have I learnt ? If this is your first time coming across my blog, I am currently undertaking an 8 week lab project at my university to understand the neurochemical consequences of histamine dysfunction studied in a histamine knockout zebrafish. The title is a bit of a mouthful, but if you are already a science undergraduate, you will be used to this now. My title broken down: Neurochemical = chemicals usually found in the the nervous system. The nervous system is made up of the brain and spinal cord. For my project, i am focusing on the zebrafish brain. Histamine is a neurotransmitter in the brain. It is not one of the main neurotransmitters but there have been studies that link histamine and aggression in animals. So my project will be looking at histamine knockout zebrafish, meaning the gene that is responsible for the production of histamine has been removed. What did i do in my first week? I was super excited and nervous all in one, but by the end of the week, i finally began to find my feet in the lab and its exciting. My first week didn’t involve much of doing my own project but, as like any job that you start , it involved a lot of shadowing and I am very grateful I wasn’t just thrown into the deep end. My supervisor is very laid back and I am appreciative of how much time he has spent to make sure I understand the theory of the machines i'll be using and underlying ideas that led to the project he set out for me. What did i do in my second week ? After a fairly simple first week. Week 2 just like how the weather changed in the UK from burning heat to rain decided to show me that working in a lab wasn’t all cookies and cream. Monday morning...the control experiments i ran to get a standard measurement to base all my data off wasn’t very clear and to further the issues, after thinking it was fixed another mistake was made. It can get frustrating but making these mistakes got me to think. I didn't have my supervisor behind my shoulder each time telling me where things were going wrong. My brain was in overdrive and although they were only small problems, it got me to really understand my project and the machine i had just only learnt how to use 5 days ago. With 6 weeks left, there is so much more i am going to learn and once i fully wrap my head my head around the project, i'll do a science explained post …EXCITING!!!

Melanin comes from the Greek word “melas” which means “black, dark” Everyone screams melanin from the rooftops but how many of us actually know what it is ? . It is common knowledge that melanin is what makes people darker than “white”. I think it’s time we dig a little deeper into what melanin actually is and how our skins produce it. Today we explore the relationship between the sun, the skin and melanin. THE SUN AND SKIN The sun has been a strong influence to life on earth, living organisms have adapted characteristics in response to the sun. The skin being the largest organ, its function is quite important. The main roles of the skin involve providing a barrier against environmental stress and regulates the loss of water from the body through sweating. Sunlight once absorbed by the skin does not only cause the skin to darken but also influences the production of vitamin D and human sleep cycles. Exposure of the skin to sunlight is a form of environmental stress. Humans adaptations to the sun is intertwined with the regulation of the melanin pigment. Radiation from the sun reaches the earth at different wavelengths and these wavelengths can have different effects on melanin production. The main two being UV-A(320-400nm ) and UV-B (280-320nm). UV-A can usually penetrate through normal glass but UV-B cannot. Both forms of UV exposure to the skin can cause a multitude of responses. The rate of response depends on the intensity and type of UV light . A response can occur in just a couple of hours which involves the oxidation and polymerisation of melanin already present on the skin surface that causes the skin to darken. MELANIN EXPLAINED Melanin pigments are produced from cells known as melanocytes. Melanocytes can be found in the basal epidermal layer of the skin. They produce melanin in organelles known as melanosomes. The melanosomes are then transferred to neighbouring keratinocytes to carry out their protective function against the sun. Keratinocytes are other cells that are also a part of the skins epidermis. Mel-an-o-genesis is the process by which melanin is made. Melanogenesis is initiated by the exposure of the skin to UV radiation from the sun. The exposure of the skin to UV light is the most triggering effect that causes the movement of melanosomes to the epidermis for skin protection. The expression of these melanosomes on the epidermis which is the outermost layer of the skin is what causes the darker appearance in the skin. This is a short introduction to the basics of the tanning process, next weeks post will explain the actual process of tanning under the different wavelengths of UV radiation. References Costin, G. E. & Hearing, V. J., 2007. Human skin pigmentation: melanocytes modulation color in response to stress. The FASEB Journal, Volume 21, pp. 977-994. Kaidbey, K. H., Poh Agin, P., Sayre, R. M. & Kligman, A. M., 1979. Photoprotection by melanin—a comparison of black and Caucasian skin. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology , 1(3), pp. 249-260. Natarajan, V. T. et al., 2014. Multifaceted pathways protect human skin from UV radiation. nature:chemical biology, 10(1552-4469), pp. 542-551. Slominsky, A., Tobin, D. J., Shibahara, S. & Wortsman, J., 2004. Melanin Pigmentation in Mammalian Skin and Its Hormonal Regulation. American Physiological Society , 84(4), pp. 1155-1228. Tadokoro, T. et al., 2003. UV-induced DNA damage and melanin content in human skin differing in racial/ethnic origin. FASEB journal, 17(9).

Name: Anonymous :) Course: Medical Biochemistry (2nd year) A levels:Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics Journey in 3 words: Tearful, hard and fun Brief description of your course? I was stunned with this question and I was not sure, how to eloquently explain what biochemistry is and how to describe my course so I have decided to pinch the definition of biochemistry from the Biochemistry society’s website. ‘Biochemistry is the branch of science that explores the chemical processes within and related to living organisms.’ It is mainly laboratory based and focuses a lot on the molecular level of how processes work in living organisms. In my specific course, there is a focus towards the human body. Specifically looking at how processes in the body work. What motivated you to pursue a degree in science? Growing up I had wonderful role models. Which include many of family members and many of my teachers. They challenged me and at an early age, I discovered my love of science. Understanding how things in this world work being able to further my understanding in higher education was an inevitable outcome towards my love of science. What drives you to stay motivated? Staying motivated can be quite challenging. Especially with the sometimes gruelling life in university. What I often do to remain motivated and not burn out is leave myself a guilty free day. Where I am allowed to relax and just do whatever I want. If that thing may involve watching trash tv for an entire day or do activities that don’t involve my studies. I enjoy doing my extracurricular activities that I try very hard not to miss otherwise I would go crazy. I think it is very important to let yourself have some time where your brain can just switch off and recover for a bit. In that time I try to read papers and remind myself why I chose this subject and what I love so much about it. What advice would you give someone wanting to follow a similar career path to yours? It might sound cheesy but do something you enjoy doing. Choose something that challenges you and just thinking about doing it scares you. Get yourself out of your comfort zone. Do not be afraid to look like an idiot sometimes. Describe how you manage your work- life balance Not very well. Ha-ha. I tend to commit too much to either my work or my life. What has recently helped me was to organise my time. I started using calendar apps on my phone not to forget about my plans and I organised a revision timetable. According to what I wished to accomplish in a day. I found that making my revision timetable more goal oriented rather than allocating specific times has worked for me. If I tell myself that, I wanted to review lecture 1 and 2 in 2 hours but by the end of the second hour, I only completed one lecture. I would start to panic realising that I am behind and that panic will translate into my work and revision. Instead if in a day I tell myself I tell myself I would like to review X, Y, Z It allows me to be a bit more flexible.

Being on summer holiday, I’ve had a lot of time to just sit and be at one with my thoughts … The social media age has cursed us with an abundance of information. Our lives have been made easier but how often do we take time to protect the information we take in both consciously and subconsciously. We are exposed to so much daily and I don’t think its spoken about enough on how we fail to realise how draining it can be. Social media has brought about a new wave of comparison and negativity. A lot of us are striving for greatness and it’s a beautiful thing to watch and celebrate the success of our peers at such a young age. But as humans we need to check our hearts ensuring envy doesn’t build up. It’s so much easier to get lost in the image being shown but we need to remember we only see what people want us to see. In this age it has also been made a thing where pursuing your 9-5 goal in life is being painted as a negative .Everyone seems to have a side hustle and entrepreneur in their bio . You “ aren’t grinding hard enough to get your money up “ ABSOLUTELY STUPID!!! . It’s okay to want to just live your life how YOU want it. If you decide to solely focus on pursuing a 9-5 there is nothing wrong with that and you can still end up being successful . Success being whatever definition that fits for you. Social Media I believe has also glamorised struggle . You don’t have to have gone through a battle against all odds for your struggles in life to seem valid. The point I’m trying to make is, part of protecting your space is acknowledging that your ups and downs are personal to you. Every failure even if it may not seem massive in the grand scheme of things to others, it is something to you. You have to allow yourself the time YOU need to get back up. Also no accomplishment is too small. You don’t have to have signed a multi-million deal or be making heaps of money. Maybe you woke up happy in the morning after a really bad week. That is an accomplishment worth celebrating. Protect your space digitally and mentally as the only thing that matters is that YOU are okay.