My bipolar makes post-lockdown socialising scary – go easy on me and others struggling
Spare a thought for the few of us that got used to quarantine and found hiding away a protective space.
Many new dads like me can’t afford to stay home – shared leave for parents is flawed
As a biological dad, why wasn’t I entitled to the same pay as biological mothers, and adoptive mothers and fathers?
Why I’m finally trying to embrace getting older
I still haven’t quite made peace with ageing but I am trying now, because I’m fully aware it’s rather futile to resist.
I’m open about my eating disorder – but it doesn’t mean you can ask me for medical advice
People send me their weight, their BMI, the number of kgs they’ve lost - it's dangerous for me.
I lost touch with the gay scene but, as the world opens up, I can’t wait to go back
Once the final Covid-19 restrictions are lifted, I’ll be ready to fully re-engage with the gay scene.
I’m a queer bra fitter and I’m tired of customers’ homophobic ‘jokes’
'Oh, of course you can look at my bra - as long as you’re not a lesbian!' the customer chuckled.
I was told to decide whether I was Black or a lesbian
We got to the door of the gay club, and the bouncer looked at us and said: ‘It’s not Soul Night, you know?’
My name is my identity – so make an effort to spell it right
I have received 37 incorrectly spelled pieces of correspondence since last October alone.
Caravan snobs can bore off, it’s the best way to holiday in the UK
The sun didn’t always shine and Mickey Mouse wasn’t present - but it was enough.
When you say working for the NHS is a ‘calling’ it allows its staff to be taken advantage of
Describing someone’s job as a calling implies that no personal sacrifice is too great, no hardship too hard, no pressure too much.
I lost my grandad to Covid – Matt Hancock shouldn’t have resigned, he should have been fired
By flouting the protections in place, I can’t understand how they expect us to follow them.
I realised I was gay after watching Schitt’s Creek
As I binge-watched Schitt's Creek, I appreciated it as a life-affirming show but there were other thoughts. Other feelings.
It’s never too late to dye your hair a bright colour or give it a wacky cut
Thinking that you need to be brave before you dye or cut your hair is the wrong way around.
I experienced a second coming of age when I came out as bisexual
Coming out is one thing; growing into your sexuality is another.
Justice comes in different forms – my rapist died in jail
The violence with which he had attacked me was not a one off. I was convinced I wasn’t the first or the last of his victims.
I’d never struggled with my mental health until being diagnosed with cancer at 22
A third of young people with cancer don't have access to a psychologist - I don't know what I would've done without one.
I was told dancing would put me in a wheelchair – I signed up for burlesque classes the next day
I thought my dancing days were over. But my incredible friends convinced me otherwise.
I do people’s hair for a living – so my self esteem dived when I started losing mine
Work was hard. I’d get really jealous of clients who came in with amazing, thick hair and would feel so much worse about my own.
My mum apologised for giving me the same name as Chris Evans
Imagine my bewilderment when I discovered there was a new Chris Evans on the block.
I’ve lived in the UK for 20 years, waiting for the day I can go home
I was hoping that by the time my medical study was finished in the UK, things would be better in my home country.
The Home Office ripped my family apart when they deported my son
My other son still lives under the threat of being detained and deported every day.
Newlywed life isn’t what I expected – I’m living with my husband’s nan
She’s happy to sit and watch Birds of a Feather all day and doesn’t understand why we don’t, too.
I was made to wear a mask while giving birth to twins
I was shocked – it hadn’t even occurred to me that I’d have to go through the physical exertion of labour with my nose and mouth covered.
I was a photojournalist for seven years in a war zone
Often, I’d take my camera to a place like a local market and I’d be forced to leave because people did not like that I was taking photos – and because I am a woman.
After losing Dad to Covid, this is my first Father’s Day without him
We used to sit on the garden swing at his house in the summer chatting about everything and nothing. He would always say, ‘You alright, my friend?’
