Lady Lee, Author at 1Africa

Mental Health Month: Shocking S.A Stats

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July 7, 2015

This month of July is Mental Health Awareness Month.

An investigation into the mental health status of South Africans has found that one third of the nation suffers from mental illness and about 75% of them will not get help.

More than 17 million people in the country are dealing with mental health issues including depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, schizophrenia and substance abuse.

However, the Department of Health spends only 4% – or R9.3bn – of its budget on addressing mental health illnesses.

SA has world’s 8th highest suicide rate with 23 deaths a day. Suicide is South Africa’s third biggest cause of unnatural deaths after murder and motor vehicle accidents, according to experts.

SADAG has decided to kickstart this mental health with the “I AM” campaign. For more info on this organization and what they do, go to www.sadag.org

David Masondo Dies

Lady Lee

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July 6, 2015

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The South African music lovers have expressed their sorrow at the death of Soul Brothers lead singer David Masondo.

The nation has lost the hero, his family has lost the husband and a father and the youth has lost an idol who proved the longest staying power in the music industry since the formation of the Soul Brothers in 1974.

Masondo’s death was announced by his band on their Facebook group.

“It is very sad to announce that the main man, the anchor man, the lead singer of our band, has passed on today at the age of 67,” they wrote.

“Rest in peace Mdavu mfo ka Masondo.”

In May, Masondo had been rushed to hospital after suffering from fatigue and exhaustion during a live performance.

According to Drum Magazine, the 67-year-old Soul Brothers member was rushed to hospital after an energetic performance in Port Elizabeth.

“Age is not on his side, running around a lot during a performance is not good for him,” the band’s management had said.

“After the performances he was weak and tired so we took him to hospital.”

Soul Brothers have recorded over 30 albums since their formation in 1974.

The Soul Brothers album was released in 1980 and this is the tittle track called “Nilindeni” (what are you waiting for).

We as 1Africa offer our condolences and we praying for the family and his loved ones.

Fearless Confidence

Lady Lee

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July 6, 2015

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“Do not, therefore, fling away your fearless confidence, for it carries a great and glorious compensation of reward”. – Hebrews 10:35

Every time I talk about fear and shyness, I think back to my first encounter with business people at a gala dinner/ networking session. I was asked by a friend to tag along as she didn’t feel like going there alone. I cancelled all my plans for the day as I knew that going there will do me good, I will actually meet people who are in the same industry as I am and we will share ideas and I will learn a thing or two from them. I knew that God was opening a door of opportunity and I gladly took it with no questions asked. I got to network and ask strangers a few questions about what they do, what kind of business they’re into etc.

On the night, we all mingled outside before the actual event started. We later got into the atrium and were seated with all the good food they served us (3 course meal). We had the starters while the speakers were taking turns on stage to give speeches.

The devil was screaming in my ears, “What are you doing here? Why don’t you go back to where you come from? This gala is not for people like you. You’re not in business. Who will listen to you anyway? You are going to make a fool of yourself!” Well, I listened so much to what the devil was telling me that when it was time for me to introduce myself formally to the people I was seated with at the table, I got highly nervous as the palms of my hands started sweating; I was scared. I allowed the fearful thoughts to affect me negatively.

Think about how much calmer you can be by just stopping your negative thoughts before they affect you. If you believe you’re doing what God wants you to do, then just do it. Since then, I knew that I cannot let fear ruin things for me, I cannot let it take charge of me. Now, I just show up to all these events and introduce myself with confidence and trust God to do the rest.

Trust me, it gets easier when you start trusting God; there is no doubt about that.

I often think about how many people out there have so much to give, so much potential and gifts, but yet they let fear get in the way and end up not trying things out.

So my encouragement to you today is to learn to conquer your fear by trusting God and doing what He tells you to do, even if you have to do it over and over again before you succeed.

Do you remember a time when fear got in the way? Not being able to do things you’re passionate about? Chat with us by clicking on the banner below.

Celebrating 60 Years Of Marriage

Lady Lee

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July 3, 2015

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Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu and his wife Leah said the secret to their six-decade long marriage has been laughter.

Today the couple celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary and renewed their vows at the St George’s Cathedral in Cape Town.

The couple joked and laughed as they told people about their secret to keep a happy, lasting marriage.

When asked how they’ve been able to stay together for so long, Leah replied that they always laugh at and with each other.

St George Cathedral was packed with family and friends who witnessed the special occasion.

Tutu has on numerous occasions expressed his gratitude to his wife for her constant support, especially during apartheid when they both faced enormous political pressure.

Their Legacy Foundation proclaims Leah as the glue that holds it all together.

The foundation describes her as a wise guide with her feet on the ground who brooks no nonsense.

The couple has four children and seven grandchildren together.

Strolling down the aisle arm in arm towards the altar, the arch stopped to greet friends.

His wife of 60 years pulls him away and jokes her husband always makes her late.

Their granddaughters, Mungi Ngomane and Nyaniso Burris say this sense of humour has kept them together for so long.

“They are very silly; trying to be comical. They are striving to be cool. My grandmother is trying to get a onesie”

On Saturday, another special service will be conducted in honour of the couple at the Holy Cross Anglican Church in Soweto.

Content by www.ewn.co.za

Leaders Should Never Keep Secrets

Lady Lee

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July 3, 2015

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This post isn’t about leaders keeping secrets about sexual affairs, mismanaged money, or harassment. That’s bad enough. But this is about leaders who use secrets to control people and expand their power. Early in my career I worked for a leader who used secrecy to consolidate his authority. By withholding information from certain staff members, it became necessary to run everything through him – which made it obvious he was the guy in charge. But here’s why that’s a disaster waiting to happen:

1) Withholding information creates roadblocks to operating well. Certain people know things, and others don’t. That gets your team out of sync, and damages your ability to execute and deliver.

2) Withholding information creates resentment. It keeps people from reaching their potential and helping your organization succeed. It creates frustration, anger, and resentment that will eventually boil over.

3) Keeping secrets forces people to ask questions. People need to know the right information to do their job, and if you refuse to share information, they’ll ask other people. This creates falsehoods, inaccuracies, and gossip.

4) Finally, keeping secrets will eventually destroy you. Think of it for a second: How long can you keep remembering what you told each person? Tell a few employees some facts, others different facts, still others something else. You’ll always be looking over your shoulder, trying to remember what you told everyone. That will wear anyone out.

The bottom line is that while every organization has private information that shouldn’t be shared publicly, that’s not a leadership principle. Don’t hold secrets from your team, and more important, don’t use secrets to control people.

Have you ever worked for a leader who managed by keeping secrets from his or her team? Click on the banner below.

Content by www.philcooke.com

Lupita Nyongo Returns To Kenya

Culture

Lady Lee

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July 3, 2015

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Hollywood star Lupita Nyong’o has blamed work commitments for the delay in coming to Kenya.

Speaking at a breakfast briefing at the Villa Rosa Kempinski, Nairobi, Lupita said her job requires her to be physically present in order to “make a career”.

Lupita, who is in the country to promote wildlife conservation, spoke on the harms done to the economy by poaching of elephants.

“My first connection with elephants started when I was 6 years old. It’s a lifelong passion… Talking about elephants, every 15 mins an elephant is killed. We lose so much revenue as a country,” Lupita said.

The Oscar award winner challenged Kenyans not to buy pirated music and video productions which eat into the return of the organisations and individuals producing them.

Lupita recounted her experience winning the award in 2014.

“I never dreamt of winning the Oscar. The feeling was very scary… It was scary to win with my first performance,” she said.

Lupita said her family has been her biggest source of support and inspiration. She did not comment on a Star Wars film she is said to be part of and other upcoming works owing to contractual constraints, but said “I can’t sing… Will not be changing careers soon.”

Cabinet Secretary for Sports, Culture and Arts Hassan Wario said the government is committed to promoting sports and the arts as an alternative to mainstream vocations.

“The revamped Kenya National Theatre will be opened by the President soon. A new film school will be opened soon in the country,” Wario said.

He added that Lupita has been an inspiration for many Kenyans who prayed for her during the ceremony at the Academy Awards.

Also present at the breakfast briefing was Tanzanian musician Ali Kiba, who spoke of the wildlife conservation efforts in Tanzania.

Content by www.allafrica.com

I Don’t Trust That Easily

Lady Lee

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July 2, 2015

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As I grew older I became very careful about who I put in my circle/space. I’m not that trusting after all. People have disappointed me before.

There are people I’ve respected and they would preach certain things but do the opposite of that. That is so disappointing to me on so many levels. Maybe I place too many expectations on people? I don’t know.

Let me tell you a short story…I love keeping my stories way too short, don’t want to bore you LOL. I remember one time I was going through a rough patch, some very serious things. I decided to confide in someone who was a friend and mentor. This person was so comforting and said all the things I needed to hear at the time. I felt safe, I felt cared for, I felt loved, but not for too long, until the friend decided to share the issue with other people.

So whenever this friend would have conversations with their other friends, they would keep bringing up my name as part of their “reference” and I was an example of almost EVERYTHING. Someone decided to tell me and warn me about this friend.

You see I’m very much confrontational, so I never leave things hanging. I decided to speak to my friend/mentor and find out why I was being made examples of. All I got from this friend was “Oh come on it wasn’t that serious”. That’s when my jaw dropped. I felt disrespected and disappointed in them as I had spoken with them in confidence. So since then, I knew when to share and who to share things with. I’m not that trusting anymore.

People disappoint you when you least expect it. Every time I’ve trusted people in the past I’ve been let down, so now it’s easier and less painful to just rely on myself and God.

The main reason we should trust God is that He is worthy of our trust. Unlike men, He never lies and never fails to fulfill His promises. God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should change his mind. Does He speak and then not act? Does He promise and not fulfill? Unlike men, He has the power to bring to pass what He plans and purposes to do. God is worthy of our trust, and our trust in Him will grow daily. To know Him is to trust Him.

Maybe you feel a similar way, and even if you don’t, you’ve possibly experienced broken trust in a past relationship that has caused you to question whether or not it’s worth trusting again. Maybe you’ve confided in someone and they decided that your “secret” and what you going through is worth sharing to other people and laugh about it. If you been through a similar situation, do share your story with us, how did you handle it, did you stay friends with those people? Click on the banner below.

Jurassic World Leads At The US Box Office

Culture
Film

Lady Lee

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July 1, 2015

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Jurassic World Leads At The US Box Office

The dinosaurs of Jurassic World stayed atop the cinematic food chain this weekend, snapping up another $54.5-million (R666,3m) to keep Pixar’sInside Out in second place at the North American box office, figures showed on Monday.

Jurassic World completed its third weekend in US and Canadian cinemas with an overall haul of $500m, shattering US and worldwide records, according to box office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

The fourth film in the popular Jurassic Park series, Jurassic World returns to the island featured in the first instalment. It follows an experiment to create an especially mean dinosaur and, unsurprisingly, things quickly go awry.

The film just bested Inside Out, the well-received animated tale depicting the emotions inside the mind of a young girl, which pulled in another $52,3m in its second week.

The movie – which is generating major Oscar buzz – has so far taken in $185m in North America.

Ted 2, the sequel to Seth MacFarlane’s 2012 hugely successful comedy starring Mark Wahlberg about an anti-social slacker teddy bear that comes to life, opened in third place at $33,5m.

Another new film, Max, about a boy who adopts an ex-military dog that had served in Afghanistan, opened in fourth place with $12,2m, despite scathing reviews and a low 38 percent critics’ approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Comedy Spy grabbed $7,9m in ticket sales for the fifth spot. The film follows a CIA analyst (Melissa McCarthy) who leaves her desk job to go deep undercover to avenge her former partner (Jude Law).

Earthquake thriller San Andreas starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson took home $5,4m for sixth spot. Coming-of-age film Dope came in seventh place with $2,8m.

The prequel and third iteration of the Insidious supernatural horror films, Insidious: Chapter 3, got $2m in sales for the eighth spot.

Dystopian action flick Mad Max: Fury Road starring Charlize Theron got $1,8m in ticket sales for the ninth spot.

Rounding out the top 10 was Avengers: Age of Ultron, which pulled in another $1,7m, bringing its total haul to $452,5m since its official US release early last month.

Leave Everything To God

Lady Lee

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July 1, 2015

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In the Bible, the Book of John 16:33, Jesus says, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” Out job is then to ask the Lord to show us how He has “overcome” our problems, our worries, our anger, our fears and our guilt.

The Lord reveals to us through His Word, the Bible, that we can be of good “cheer,”. We get to learn that we can:

1) Rejoice in our problems because God will use them to our benefit.
2) See our “worries” as an opportunity to trust the Lord with all our hearts and acknowledge Him.
3) Counteract our anger by obeying.
4) Deal with any sinful feelings by believing and acting upon the truth of John 1:19. All of our problems can be dealt with through simple faith in God’s Word.

The Bible teaches us that if we admit our sins and confess them, He will forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Start by freely admitting all your faults. Hold nothing back. Admit them to God and to people. Don’t make excuses or place blame elsewhere. As you do this, you will experience a new freedom, and your relationship with Jesus and with people will improve greatly. I have found that if I tell people my faults before they find them on their own, neither one of us is as bothered by them. Be open with people. Most people respect and admire honesty and openness. It is what we try to hide that comes back to haunt us.

Invite Jesus into every area of your life. Don’t hide your faults from Him. He knows all about them anyway. Don’t hold anything back; give God everything!

God is bigger than all our worries and problems put together, and we must realize that if we are to have any victory in our lives.

If you would like to connect with God in a relationship of trust, where you know you can confidently leave all your worries and concerns to Him, click on the banner below.

Binge Eating Disorder

Lady Lee

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June 30, 2015

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We all overeat from time to time—taking an extra helping at Thanksgiving dinner or having dessert when you’re already full. But for binge eaters, overeating is regular and uncontrollable. You use food to cope with stress and other negative emotions, even though afterwards you feel even worse. You may feel like you’re stuck in a vicious cycle, but binge eating disorder is treatable. With the right help and support, you can learn to control your eating and develop a healthy relationship with food.

What is binge eating?

Binge eating disorder is characterized by compulsive overeating in which people consume huge amounts of food while feeling out of control and powerless to stop. The symptoms of binge eating disorder usually begin in late adolescence or early adulthood, often after a major diet. A binge eating episode typically lasts around two hours, but some people binge on and off all day long. Binge eaters often eat even when they’re not hungry and continue eating long after they’re full. They may also gorge themselves as fast as they can while barely registering what they’re eating or tasting.

The key features of binge eating disorder are:

Frequent episodes of uncontrollable binge eating.
Feeling extremely distressed or upset during or after bingeing.
Unlike bulimia, there are no regular attempts to “make up” for the binges through vomiting, fasting, or over-exercising.

People with binge eating disorder struggle with feelings of guilt, disgust, and depression. They worry about what the compulsive eating will do to their bodies and beat themselves up for their lack of self-control. They desperately want to stop binge eating, but feel like they can’t.

Signs of binge eating:

People with binge eating disorder are embarrassed and ashamed of their eating habits, so they often try to hide their symptoms and eat in secret. Many binge eaters are overweight or obese, but some are of normal weight.

Behavioral symptoms:

Inability to stop eating or control what you’re eating
Rapidly eating large amounts of food
Eating even when you’re full
Hiding or stockpiling food to eat later in secret
Eating normally around others, but gorging when you’re alone
Eating continuously throughout the day, with no planned mealtimes

Emotional Symptoms.

Feeling stress or tension that is only relieved by eating
Embarrassment over how much you’re eating
Feeling numb while bingeing—like you’re not really there or you’re on auto-pilot.
Never feeling satisfied, no matter how much you eat
Feeling guilty, disgusted, or depressed after overeating
Desperation to control weight and eating habits

Tips and ways to overcome binge eating:

Manage stress.
Eat 3 meals a day plus healthy snacks.
Avoid temptation.
Stop dieting.
Exercise.
Fight boredom.
Get enough sleep.
Listen to your body.
Keep a food diary.
Get support.

Breaking the old pattern of binge eating is hard, and you may slip from time to time. This is where the support of others can really come in handy. Family, friends, and therapists can all be part of your support team. You may also find that joining a group for binge eaters is helpful. Sharing your experience with other compulsive eaters can go a long way towards reducing the stigma and loneliness you may feel.

Lady Lee

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