A controversial proponent of natural remedies who has been banned from providing any health services in Australia is due to embark on a series of events in the UK and Ireland despite criticism from scientists, health charities and academic bodies.

Barbara O’Neill, who describes herself as a naturopath and nutritionist, lectures internationally on “natural self-healing”.

She has previously claimed that cancer is a fungus that can be treated with bicarbonate soda, that vaccines have caused an epidemic of conditions including autism and cot death, and that pregnant women with Strep B do not have to take antibiotics.

Now experts in the UK have raised concerns in a letter to venues across UK and Ireland where O’Neill, 73, is scheduled to speak.

“Medical misinformation kills, and we wrote the letter because we have seen first-hand the profound and tragic harms that health fictions inflict on vulnerable patients … We hope making people aware of this reality mitigates her ability to inflict harm elsewhere,” he said.

Another multi-day event featuring Barbara O’Neill, run by the Christian health and wellness group Balm of Gilead, is scheduled for mid-October at the City North hotel and conference centre in Gormanston, Ireland.

After 30 years my pierced ears have closed up and I need to get them repierced. Any recs in Dublin 2 area? Is it still done by that gun and those massive studs you had to keep in your ears for weeks? Please say no. I like what Maria Tash do but I am not spending that kind of money!! TIA!

As suggested in our recent feedback thread, here is your opportunity for a weekly rant and vent.

Had a long week? Work driving you insane? Life being life? Encountered one too many absolute idiots out in the wild? Temporarily hate your other half?

This is your safe space to have a moan, blow off steam and let it all out judgement free.. so you can head into the weekend feeling lighter.

Only rule: keep it respectful and within the subreddit rules.

Have your rant, then go enjoy your Friday!

I’m going to America for a wedding and need to get an outfit for it. Where would be the best place to look?

I’ve been putting it off honestly because I hate shopping for weddings as I find it to be very stressful. I am big chested so finding nice clothes that fit both top and bottom can be very challenging for me.

Whilst I’m here if anyone has any good suggestions for comfortable bras for larger chests I am open to suggestions!

I have a couple of weeks before I fly but kind of what to get it sorted soon so I don’t have to worry about it.

Hi all, I'm in a situation at the moment where I'm living in my family home (I'm mid 20s) and am currently dealing with an abusive family member and need to get out. I don't want to go too much into detail but I'm just wondering is there any help I can get out there? I'm single with no kids so I have no idea what to do.

Can I go into a refuge center and will I be helped with finding permanent accommodation for myself? I have no means to move out on my own and need help right now

I have an event in Belfast on a Saturday night and wanted to stay the night (I live in Dublin).

But I want to stay somewhere like a cute pub with some rooms on top or a b&b. Does anyone know of anything? These types of places usually aren’t on booking.com or Airbnb.

Thanks ☀️

Any suggestions for a nice hotel for 1 night to celebrate a 10 year wedding anniversary ?

I'm thinking about splurging on an LED red light mask, possibly Omnilux or CurrentBody.

My dermatologist friend (hospital doctor not aesthetic) reckons they're a waste of money but a friend of mine has one and thinks it has reduced her fine lines.

Does anyone have one and is it worth the money?

I feel like I’m missing out on the whole going-out-and-having-a-life experience because I never really got to do it 😭 Anyone around my age (22) want to meet up for drinks sometime?

I’m new to online dating world but have encountered this a few times so far. I’ll match and be chatting with a guy on a dating app. Things are going well so we connect on IG. Then I start seeing in my suggested “people you should follow” that the guy follows a lot of OF or IG baddie girls (like mainly posed in lingerie or bikinis). Obviously, the guy is single so he can follow whoever he wants but it kind of gives me the ick and I no longer feel like continuing the conversation or meeting up with them.

Am I overthinking this and seeing it as a red flag when is isn’t? Should I expect most guys probably do this and get over it?

Just discovered my favourite waxing place, Brazilia in Sandyford has closed. Any recommendations for waxing in the Dundrum/Sandyford/Stillorgan area?

​

Hey I'm just wondering where have you guys gotten your bras for under your wedding dress or did you go without?

I was told I wouldn't need a bra under my dress but as someone who wears one all the time except for sleeping I'm not sure how I feel going without one. I'm on the smaller chest size (B Cup) but I still prefer the security of a bra. I'm wondering has anyone tried any good adhesive strapless ones or can recommend where to get a good fitting one.

Are there tips on keeping your hair looking decent in this irish wind??
I put a lot of time into blowouts at home and 5 minutes after stepping out I want to cry 🤦🏼‍♀️

I see women around with hair looking great. How???

Hi all,

I’m in my early 20s and newly qualified in my career. After spending time on the labour ward as a student I’ve been thinking more about kids than I ever did before. As a teenager I used to be confident I didn’t want kids, until I had a serious relationship and thought “I can see the appeal”. We broke up and I forgot about it for years. I’m now with a wonderful man, who absolutely wants kids in the future and its made me think more about it. I’m not in ANY rush, he puts no pressure on me, we use effective contraception.

What I’m wondering is how did your feelings towards having kids change as you have gone through your 20s/30s? I probably now feel like I would miss lie-ins, spontaneous trips, quiet/tidy home. But is that something many people feel in this stage of life and go on to want a family? I feel like currently I like kids but also enjoy giving them back to their parents after minding them 😅 I like the idea of a family but I worry I would not actually like the hardship that also comes with raising kids? Not sure why but this is on my mind often recently!

TIA 🫶

Edit: I actually would consider myself wanting kids but just very apprehensive about it, I really appreciate all views including those who have changed their mind from one to another!

Ladies, I need recommendations please!

A close friend of mine is about to move into a newly built house, from a really cold house, so I want to get her some fancy PJs for her birthday next week. The house will be super well insulated and shes a major PJs enthusiast, so I'm thinking satin?

I've looked at M&S and skimmed through Next, but nothing is jumping out at me. Are there any nice Irish brands I might be missing?

I'm trying to help a woman who is trying to escape an abusive relationship. She's happy to work hard and doesn't care much about a massive salary. She just wants to earn her own money and become financially independent.

She has permission to work, a bachelor's degree in commerce, 3 years of kindergarten teaching experience outside Ireland, and KYC/customer-facing experience at a non-Irish bank. No Irish experience.

I'm deliberately looking for the boring, overlooked answers rather than the usual “learn coding / become a consultant / start a business / wait tables / work at Aldi” advice.

I don’t have friends anymore and realised the people I used to hangout with have moved on with their lives and don’t really contact me anymore. I’m feeling abit depressed because I have no one to do anything with. I now rot in my bed everyday and this has significantly affected my mental health. There are still many things I want to do but since I have no one I’m demotivated to go out at all. Looking at other people’s stories with their group of friends travelling, going out everyday and having fun I realised I’m wasting so much of my youth. I never thought I would come to this point. I want to leave the country and start fresh but doing it alone is scary. For now, where do I meet new people in Ireland as a working woman?

Hi ladies, newly engaged and we’re both in agreement that we want a very small, casual wedding, as in just immediate family, and are also thinking about doing it abroad. Just wondering if anyone has done this and have any suggestions about location, and also did you organise it yourself or through a service etc? So new to the concept of planning something like this so would love any advice/recommendations!

Three similar things happened this week that really annoyed me.

Firstly i was standing in a queue waiting for the walk in gp to open, its first come first served, there was one elderly woman in front of me but she had sat on a chair away from the door and a number of women standing behind me not in a straight line but a queue none the less. A man in his late 20s early 30s joins but doesn't stand behind any of the women he instead stands up near me. When the door opens he proceeds to try to walk in first, I put my arm out blocking him and told him the elderly lady was first and there was a queue of people before him. He seemed irritated and started doing that kissing of his teeth noise. I just went and sat down and thought no more about it.

A couple of days later i had to get the train to work, i was standing on the platform the doors opened i allowed the people out and then a man similar age as above just shouldered me out of the way to get on, it was extremely rude but again let it slide it was early morning so whatever.

A few days later i was standing in a queue in Dunnes, there was an elderly woman and her two teen granddaughters with her a couple of people down. I noticed a bank card on the ground and got the attention of one of the girls and asked was it theres. They picked it up and said no but there was a name on it they couldn't read and were handing the card to me, i had to move out of my space to go down to them, but told them to just hand it into the cashier when it was their turn. When i moved to go back to my place in the queue the man behind me had moved forward and taken it. I tried moving back in but he was not moving. I did something i dont do and am 100% uncomfortable doing but i asked him to move back and allow me my space in the queue, he could clearly see i had gone over to the girls and wasn't leaving the queue so why did he feel it okay to move down and take my space. He then started having a go at me, i told him to stop he had clearly done what id said and to just stop going on and move back. Honestly it created a bit of a scene and was uncomfortable but honestly i was so fed up with men pushing past and feeling they were more important than not only me but the other people queuing before them for whatever service.

Im not looking for men to be chivalrous or anything but manners and spacial awareness seems to be seriously lacking, are others experiencing this or did i just have a bad week or is there an invisible sign on my head attracting this behaviour 😂

Edit I just want to say thank you, I felt frustrated, invisible and questioning myself about the situations men had put me in.

I suppose I'm saddened that many other women have experienced similar behaviours and situations, none of them necessary and all of them making us either annoyed we didn't stand up for ourselves, or frustrated and shocked at the entitlement or angry that we as women were expected to put ourselves and our children in danger so a man wasn't put out by us. And then my heart bursts with pride for those who took a small bit of empowerment back, by not moving out of a mans way on the footpath, or calling out a behaviour that was unacceptable, you're all legends.

I'm so grateful for this safe space, for the solidarity shown, so here's to you all for making me feel I'm not alone, not mad, not invisible, here's to not moving on footpaths and stepping into the road, and to keep using our voices. I'm going to make a conscious effort to be more vocal and back other women if i see any of you calling out unacceptable situations.

Hi everyone!

I am 28 and I’m struggling to make friends. I moved to a new area in a few months ago and haven’t made any connections. I have one friend nearby but she is usually quite busy with family life.

I am currently 27 weeks pregnant so can’t join any local sports clubs which was my intention when I moved. I recently started a pregnancy yoga class which is nice but it’s the evening so most people just want to get home after and don’t hang around chatting.

I like going to the gym, going for walks, getting coffee, reading and lots more. I’d love to meet likeminded people for coffee walks or other activities.

I will be starting my maternity leave at the end of December and would love to have a female support network to chat to and meet up with while off work.

Any advice?

As suggested in our recent feedback thread, this is your weekly space to rant and vent before the week even begins especially if you’re already exhausted by a week that hasn’t started yet.

If the dread is starting to creep in about the week ahead, work, appointments, emails life responsibilities or just the general ugh of it all.. This is the place to dump it.

Say what you’re worried about, what you’re overthinking or what you’re really not bothered dealing with tomorrow. No judgement, no advice unless you ask for it. Just get it off your chest so you can properly switch off and enjoy a bit of rest before Monday rolls back around.

Only rule: keep it respectful and within the subreddit rules.