Who wrote the book of…

Good vibes! We’re sure that’s how The Montones song goes. We’re back with our February edition of Hive Vibes, and as the vaccine roll-out continues apace, we at the Research Hive have been keeping busy wrapping up on our daily walks and keeping warm at home with some hearty soup. January came and went without much ado, and we’re sure the February freeze will whizz by too. Let’s check out what’s on offer this month…

What’s Happened

Hive Roundup:

Manchester and the Immunomatrix – Megan Priestley 

Megan cracked out the sunglasses to give us the downlow for all things about how our extracellular matrix and immune cells interact. 

Four Humours of Wellbeing – Jack Sharpen

Jack’s pun-filled post provides a pre-emptive preparation on dealing with new years goals through a balance of four key principles.

Rounding off Manchester

Support for PGRs (what’s on and what to expect) – A one-stop shop for all PGR-related resources we could need! Whether you need info on financial support or where you can get a test, find it here.

What’s next

In the Hive Pipeline: 

Gal, Enby or Guy: Doesn’t matter I’m Bi – In lieu of LGBT+ history month, Nathan shares his personal journey whilst exploring a new world of bi-directional wellbeing.

Tips for new PhD students – Chloe lays on advice she wishes she had been given when she began her PhD journey. 

Love thyself – Olivia reflects on what the pandemic has taught us about being kind and compassionate to ourselves during the emotional coronacoaster of the past year.

In Faculty: 

Wellbeing workshop: The 4Ds of Distress: Distract, Dilute, Develop and Discover (16th February at 10am)  – Join Dr Warren Mansell, Reader in Clinical Psychology, as he guides us through an intervention to help us navigate academic and professional stress. Using an evidence-based and person-centred approach, the workshop will help attendees to identify their sources of stress and draw on their own resources and strengths to apply techniques that work for them.

*Please note that the session on 16th February is now full but you can apply to be on the waiting list. A further session will run later in the year. 

In the UoM:

Time to Talk day (4th February) – Never has it been more important to look after our mental health in these times. If you’re struggling right now or perhaps know a friend or family member who is, reach out to someone and open up or start a conversation about how they’re feeling. Some of us may be feeling more isolated than ever, so why not hold a virtual coffee morning or send someone a card to let them know you’re thinking about them? (We know the date has now passed but we reckon every day should be a time to talk, so don’t hesitate to get in touch with someone today or any day).

Wellbeing event: LGBT+ History Month – A range of online events are being held to mark LGBT + History month, including a virtual wellbeing session for the LGBTQ community on Thursday 11 February at 1.30pm. This session will focus on the challenges faced, how to tackle them and the support available from the university.

MRC Come & See Dr Marc Milstein: Optimising Sleep and Managing Stress (Wednesday 17th February from 4:30pm to 5:30pm) – If you’re tired of exhaustion and strung out by stress, register for this webinar, delivered by an internationally renowned speaker on brain health. (The talk is open to everyone. Also look at the picture of the cat below. You can’t help but feel relaxed gazing at that serene ball of fluff getting its zzz…)

Around the world

Chinese New Year (12th February) – Get ready to welcome in the year of the Ox! Although the usual festivities in Chinatown won’t be going ahead this year, don’t let that stop you from joining in on the fun. Take part in the range of online events and celebrations, including a lantern-making workshop and online cooking classes for that authentic Spring Festival experience.

St. Valentine traditions (14th February) – While romantic city breaks may be off the cards for now, we can still bring the wonderful idiosyncrasies of other cultures into our homes this Valentine’s Day…or Friendship Day (Sobrapaev), as it is in Estonia. Basically, it sounds like a big, thoughtful (and expensive) love fest in which everyone exchanges gifts with their social circles of family members and friends. Sounds suspiciously familiar – we can’t for the life of us think of any tradition in the calendar where we do something like that. Oh wait, is this another Christmas in disguise? 

While the Estonians are busy making sure singletons don’t feel left out (by practically creating another Christmas), the Ghanians are busy displaying their collective outpouring of love for one thing in particular: chocolate! Yes, they celebrate National Chocolate Day on the 14th. Smart move, guys….. Chocolate and love are a match made in heaven in our eyes. 

Shrove Tuesday (16th February) – Prepare your Lenten Sacrifice, and get ready to burn last year’s palms along with a good ol’ pancake. If Valentine’s Day isn’t your thing this year, whip out that frying pan and practise some self-love instead by treating yourself to these fluffy, delightful delicacies. Try this yummy Honey Cinnamon Blueberry pancake if you’re short of ideas. 

International Mother Language Day (21st February) – Rooted to the Bangladesh language movement, this UNESCO day celebrates all lexicons, promotes multilingual missions and protects language diversity. Manchester has a week long online programme dedicated to this special event found here.

Final words

We hope you’re all continuing to stay safe (and warm!) and taking care of your wellbeing. If you’re really struggling right now, remember that everything is temporary, as Mother Nature shows us. Spring will soon be on its way with its usual promise of longer days and better weather – we can but hope in Manchester!  Evenings will be less dark and gloomy and flowers will start to blossom. We’re sending all our positive and healing vibes to all those who are suffering. 

In the meantime, hold on tight and gear up for the most important mid-month celebration this year (you guessed it!): 

Pancake Day!

Written by your friendly Wellbeing Sub-editors 

If you would like to contribute to any wellbeing news, as well as tips, tricks and tipples for next month’s bulletin, don’t hesitate to contact us! 

(jack.sharpen@postgrad.manchester.ac.uk and olivia.mak@postgrad.manchester.ac.uk)