Facing our fears
July 12, 2026
How I found out about having neurological illness. … More Facing our fears
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Giving up the Ghost
August 10, 2025
One of the worst things about long-term illness can be feeling you’re on your own, despite all attempts by well-meaning friends and family to persuade you otherwise. Hilary Mantel understands the isolation only too well, as she shows in Giving up the Ghost. Bodily failure Zoom and social media are, of course, helping; they connect … More Giving up the Ghost
Getting our balance?
July 11, 2021
I have not received payment of any kind for this review. It’s hard not to get all metaphorical about vibroplates, the exercise equipment that help people like us recover or at least improve our balance. The one I’ve invested in after my last MS attack looks a bit intergalactic. Like something Buzz Rogers might use. But … More Getting our balance?
Finding pleasure in the detail
June 6, 2021
Victim of lock-down hair? My tree identification course is finally bearing fruit. The beginnings weren’t that promising, scrutinising lots of twigs at weekly evening classes one winter, more than ten years ago now, at the local Botanical Gardens. But gazing at the sticks eventually taught me to tell the differences between aspen, wych elm, hazel, … More Finding pleasure in the detail
About the great railings cull…
May 9, 2021
Is it just me, or is birdsong more jubilant post lockdown?Maybe it’s because I haven’t been outdoors much, any birdsong at all feels jubilant, almost triumphant, after surviving the winter. … More About the great railings cull…
Helen Fowler Writer 