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Counting the wrong sheep: why trouble sleeping is about more than just individual lifestyles and habits

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/mary-breheny-1269716">Mary Breheny</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/te-herenga-waka-victoria-university-of-wellington-1200">Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/rosie-gibson-1051224">Rosie Gibson</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/massey-university-806">Massey University</a> Sleep may seem straightforward – everyone does it, after all. But as many of us know, getting enough sleep is not necessarily a simple task, despite what you might read in the media. How to sleep “properly” is a favourite topic of self-help articles, with <a href="https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/health/expert-advice-good-nights-sleep-27900333">headlines</a> such as “Expert advice to get a good night’s sleep whatever your age” promising the answer to your nocturnal awakenings. Older people are commonly the audience of these messages. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gnad058">Our analysis</a> of articles published in the New Zealand media between 2018 and 2021 found sleep is presented as inevitably declining with age. At the same time, sleep is portrayed as a cure for everything: a good night’s sleep is depicted as a way to maintain productivity, ward off illness and dementia, and ultimately live longer. But most of these articles are aimed at the individual and what they can do to improve their sleep. Often missing is any reference to the external factors that can contribute to poor sleep. <h2>Personal choice and sleep</h2> A key message in many of the articles we examined is that sleep is a simple matter of making the right choices. So, if you’re not getting enough sleep it’s probably your own fault. People are lectured about poor “<a href="https://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/%7E/media/CCI/Mental-Health-Professionals/Sleep/Sleep---Information-Sheets/Sleep-Information-Sheet---04---Sleep-Hygiene.pdf">sleep hygiene</a>” – staying up too late looking at their phone, having too many cups of coffee, or not getting enough exercise during the day. And it’s true, drinking too much caffeine or staring at a screen into the small hours might interfere with sleep. It’s also true that good sleep is important for good health. But things are a bit more complicated than this. As anyone who has struggled to maintain good sleep knows, simple tips don’t always overcome the complex situations that contribute to these struggles. <h2>Awake to other factors</h2> Good sleep is not just a matter of “making the right choices”. Internationally, there’s a growing body of research showing sleep is affected by much more than individual behaviour: it’s often shaped by a person’s <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-040119-094412">social and economic circumstances</a>. New Zealand research is adding to this pool of knowledge. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S235272181600019X?via=ihub">One study</a>, based on survey results from just over 4,000 people, found insufficient sleep was more common among Māori than non-Māori, partly due to higher rates of night work. International <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6524484/">research</a> has also found women are more likely to experience insomnia due to their caregiving roles. One US study found unpaid caregivers for children or parents (or both) reported shorter sleep quantity and poorer sleep quality than paid caregivers or people without such roles. A <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1471301220915071">survey</a> of 526 carers in New Zealand showed two-thirds reported mild or severe sleep disturbance. We also know lack of sleep is <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/sleep/about_sleep/chronic_disease.html">linked to serious disease</a>, including diabetes and heart disease. Sleep duration and quality have been identified as predictors of levels of haemoglobin A1c, an important marker of blood sugar control. And hypertension, stroke, coronary heart disease and irregular heartbeats have been found to be more common among those with disordered sleep than those without sleep abnormalities. Failure to acknowledge the social context of poor sleep means sleep messages in the media ignore the fundamental causes in favour of the illusion of a quick fix. <h2>The commodification of sleep</h2> Sleep is also increasingly characterised as a commodity, with a growing market for products – such as sleep trackers – that claim to help improve sleep quality. Sleep trackers promise to measure and enhance sleep performance. However, their reliability may be limited – <a href="https://mhealth.jmir.org/2021/6/e26462">one study found</a> the tested tracker did not accurately detect sleep, particularly in older adults who had greater levels of nighttime movement. Framing public health problems as matters of personal choice is common. Alcohol and fast-food consumption, for example, are regularly presented as <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1745691619896252">matters of individual responsibility</a> and poor personal choices. The <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/hpja.737">role of marketing</a> and access to healthy food gets a lot less attention. Of course, simple tips for getting good sleep may be useful for some people. But ignoring the underlying social and economic factors that shape the possibilities for good sleep will not address the problem. Health promotion messages that focus on individual behaviour miss <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1467-9566.12112">the structural barriers to better health</a>, including poverty, low levels of education, high rates of incarceration, substandard or crowded housing and racism. We need to move beyond messages of individual behaviour change and start talking about inequities that contribute to the problem of who gets a decent night’s sleep and who doesn’t.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210695/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/mary-breheny-1269716">Mary Breheny</a>, Associate Professor of Health Psychology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/te-herenga-waka-victoria-university-of-wellington-1200">Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/rosie-gibson-1051224">Rosie Gibson</a>, Senior lecturer, School of Psychology, Massey University, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/massey-university-806">Massey University</a> Image credits: Getty Images This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/counting-the-wrong-sheep-why-trouble-sleeping-is-about-more-than-just-individual-lifestyles-and-habits-210695">original article</a>.

Caring

Travelling overseas? Here’s what the embassy will – and won’t – do to help if you get in trouble

Australians are jetting back out into the world again. The numbers are still below pre-pandemic levels, but almost <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/industry/tourism-and-transport/overseas-arrivals-and-departures-australia">1.1 million Australians left the country</a> in December last year – compared to 1.3 million in December 2019. According to information provided by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, passport applications smashed records in 2022, averaging more than 250,000 each month in the second half of the year. International travel is a safe, positive experience for most people, but unfortunately things do go wrong for some travellers. Trouble, when it comes, can involve anything from lost passports and small-scale theft to serious welfare problems, hospitalisation and arrests. In these cases, DFAT’s consular service will be expected to do what it can to assist. But where does personal responsibility begin and end when we leave our shores? What should we expect from our government, and what can we do ourselves to minimise the risks? <h2>Travellers behaving badly</h2> As a former head of the consular service in the early 2000s, I know the caseload involving overseas Australians is not limited to major, news-grabbing situations, like the recent <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/23/png-hostage-freed-australian-professor-researchers-captive-papua-new-guinea-mount-bosavi">kidnapping</a> of an Australia-based academic by a criminal gang in Papua New Guinea, or the impact of the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/feb/11/turkey-and-syria-earthquake-australian-death-toll-believed-to-have-risen-to-three">devastating earthquake</a> in Turkey and Syria on Australians and their families. These were serious situations requiring intensive work from our diplomats, but there is much more to the job than that. <a href="https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/sites/default/files/2022-11/consular-state-of-play-2021-22.pdf">From June 2021-22</a>, an average of four Australians died overseas every day, while an average of two Australians were arrested every day - on matters ranging from immigration breaches to drugs crime, theft and fraud. In total, nearly 16,000 Australians turned to their local Australian overseas mission that year for help in “crisis cases” – more than triple the number in 2018-19 before the pandemic. COVID-related repatriations arranged by DFAT were counted separately – there were more than 62,000 of these in the past three years. Carrying an Australian passport means we can rely on a consular service to <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/saturdayextra/what-happens-when-things-go-wrong-for-australians-overseas/13973350">provide support in these situations</a>. But expectations have grown among travellers in recent decades, partly because of the speed of our communications and the instant public feedback we receive via social media. While most Australians are self-reliant travellers, there are still many not living up to their side of the bargain. Most importantly, there are still too many not taking out appropriate travel insurance. Others disregard official travel warnings and then turn to the government for help when things go wrong. Then there are those whose expectations are just inappropriate – asking officials to arrange opera tickets or look after their pets, for example. More seriously, expectations can be very hard to manage in arrest cases overseas. Some Australians are shocked their citizenship doesn’t come with a “get out of jail free card”. But we are all subject to local laws and authority, no matter what notions we might have about the standards of justice that apply in some countries. At any given time, there are between <a href="https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/sites/default/files/2022-11/consular-state-of-play-2021-22.pdf">300 and 400 Australians imprisoned</a> overseas. Under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, there are real <a href="https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/consular-services/resources/arrested-jailed-overseas-factsheet">limits to what the Australian consular service can do</a> in these cases. The service will check periodically on the welfare of prisoners overseas, guide them towards local legal representation and monitor their trials. But that’s about it. This applies to foreigners imprisoned in Australia, too. To be sure, there is occasionally a case that is clearly so arbitrary or unjust, our government calls for the release of the individual. This was the case for Sean Turnell, <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-australian-economist-sean-turnell-came-to-be-in-and-freed-from-a-myanmar-jail-195419">who was imprisoned in Myanmar</a> for political reasons until being released last year. But unlike Turnell, most Australian prisoners overseas probably have a case to answer. <h2>Three ways to stay safe</h2> 1) Be informed about where you are going Australians have a responsibility to know what’s happening at their planned destinations. The conflicts in Ukraine and elsewhere have impacted many travellers, as have major weather events and natural disasters. With international flights returning to normality over the last year, DFAT’s COVID repatriation program has largely wound up. Travellers once again need to look to their own resources – or their travel insurance policies – to ensure they get home. The government’s <a href="https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/">Smartraveller</a> website is a reliable source of up-to-date information on everything from emerging health risks to cultural and legal issues in specific countries to the local security situation. They have recently launched a <a href="https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/news-and-updates/sneak-peek-our-new-ad-campaign">fresh advertising campaign</a> in an effort to highlight the importance of avoiding trouble in the first place. 2) Stay in touch with family back home The consular service deals with hundreds of “whereabouts” inquiries each year. And if disaster strikes when you are travelling somewhere, your family and friends will be worried. In each of the major consular disaster responses I was involved in, including the September 11 attacks and the 2002 Bali bombings, there were people who caused their loved ones untold grief by not letting them know they were safe. In my recent book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/Consul-Insider-Australias-Diplomatic-Frontline/dp/0702263494">The Consul</a>, I recount the story of one Australian who worked on an upper floor of the World Trade Center in New York, but took ten days to let his family know he had actually been in London when the attacks took place. 3) Buy good travel insurance If there’s one thing travellers really should do, it’s to take out travel insurance. Most people think about insurance as a way of covering themselves for flight cancellations or for the theft of personal items. But if you get sick or are injured overseas – or even in the case of a death – insurance is critical. The Australian government cannot just step in and pay for a medical evacuation. From my time as consular chief, I know that some Australians were forced to sell their homes to cover their medical costs overseas. People also often find themselves under-insured, or are surprised to learn that certain activities, such as adventure sports, are not covered. Young people are the least likely to take out insurance. <a href="https://insurancecouncil.com.au/resource/aussies-planning-to-travel-more-but-need-to-do-more-travel-planning/">Travel industry surveys</a> indicate about 12% of travellers below the age of 30 do not intend to take out insurance, and the number is higher for those heading to destinations in the developed world regarded as “safe”. It really doesn’t work like that though - hospitalisation in the United States without insurance can mean financial disaster. It doesn’t take much to minimise the risk of difficulties turning into disasters overseas. Image credits: Getty Images This article originally appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/travelling-overseas-heres-what-the-embassy-will-and-wont-do-to-help-if-you-get-in-trouble-198589" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>.

Travel Tips

"We got in trouble a lot": Fergie spills all on Princess Diana arrest

Sarah Ferguson has opened up about the time she and the late Princess Diana got themselves arrested in 1986. The pair were celebrating at a nightclub when they were arrested for impersonating law enforcement officers. The two had decided to dress up as police for Fergie’s bachelorette party, unaware that they were setting themselves on a path to trouble in an event described by Royal Expert Tom Quinn as a “riot”. Speaking to The Sun, Fergie claimed that once authorities came to the realisation that she and Diana were actually royals, it wasn’t long before they were released. And while appearing on The Kelly Clarkson Show, she expanded on the tale, outlining exactly how the two had gotten themselves into such a situation in the first place. “It was extraordinary,” the 63-year-old Duchess of York said, “because we went to a nightclub, of course, you go to a nightclub with the Princess of Wales. “We sat down, and the waiter came up to us and said ‘excuse me, this is a members club. It’s for fun, and we don’t serve police officers here’." “They thought you were real police officers?" host Kelly Clarkson exclaimed. Fergie confirmed the detail with a confident "yes!" She explained that once they had been arrested and ushered into the police van, they opted to hide their engagement rings. Fergie went on to recall that Diana had been told off for eating some chips - “smoky bacon-flavoured” she’d found in the vehicle. Their brief encounter with the law didn’t ruin their fun though, with the party continuing on into Annabel’s nightclub - an establishment known to be one of the world’s most exclusive. And their fun reportedly wasn’t limited to their own celebration, with Town and Country Magazine claiming that the two got up to some more mischief when they decided to lock Andrew out of Buckingham Palace after his bachelor party. Their fun kept the two close over the course of their friendship, and Fergie has admitted that she carries Diana everywhere she goes, telling Kelly, “she’s with me all day”. “She and I, we laughed a lot,” Fergie reminisced, “we got into trouble a lot. “You know what she used to do? She used to tell me the worst story, joke story, just before I had to be serious." Although, despite her admiration for Diana’s sense of humour - and her belief that Diana would be “incredibly proud” of her grandchildren - Fergie did once share on Good Morning America that if the two had had the chance to go head-to-head as grandmothers, she believed they’d “have a ‘Granny-off’. Because she would run faster in the races, I wonder … she’d probably be funnier. No, I think I’d be funnier.” Images: Getty

Relationships

Police offer “Valentine’s special” to exes in trouble with the law

Police departments have been using social media to share information about missing persons, recent investigations, and other issues within the community - and some have even gone viral doing so.One recent example comes from the Port Orange Police Department, in the US state of Florida, who embraced the spirit of anti-Valentine’s day in a tongue-in-cheek post <a href="https://www.facebook.com/popdpolice/posts/249494237366350" target="_blank" rel="noopener">calling</a> on people to dob in their “ex-Valentines” who have been up to no good.“February kicked off the month for celebrating the love in your life, and we don’t want you to forget those ex’s (sic) that did you wrong either,” the department wrote on Facebook, shared alongside a romantic photo of handcuffs and roses.“Do you have an ex-Valentine and know they have outstanding warrants? Do you have information that they are driving with drugs in their car? Give us a call and we’ll take care of the rest.”<img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/02/police-funny-valentines.png" alt="" width="663" height="767" />Port Orange Police received a flood of attention on their cheeky post calling on people to refer their “ex-Valentines” who may be in trouble with the law for a special experience. Image: Port Orange Police Department (Facebook)The post goes on to offer a special experience for those exes who are reported to authorities.“This Valentine’s Day month-long special starts off with a set of limited-edition platinum bracelets, free transportation and a chauffeur, a one-night minimum stay in luxurious accommodations and professional glamour shots that will be posted online for all to enjoy.“This special is capped off with a special Valentine’s dinner. We know this special is so incredible that you may be tempted to provide additional referrals. We don’t blame you, this special is too sweet to pass by!”In less than a day, the post has been flooded with hundreds of comments and shared over 1,400 times.“This is hands down the best thing I’ve ever seen,” one person commented.“Genius! Ex’s might want to be nice right now,” another joked.Others praised the person behind the post, calling them a “genius” and suggesting they should get a raise.“This is the best thing I’ve read in a long time. Hands down to the creator of this post,” one person enthused.“I don’t know who thought up this idea but just wanted to say, ‘I THINK he or she is a “GENIUS”, WHO DESERVES A HUGE RAISE.“P💓R💓I💓C💓E💓L💓E💓S💓S!”The post was soon picked up by the NSW Police Force page - also known for its cheeky posts - and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/nswpoliceforce/posts/318087973696962" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shared</a> with the caption, “Have you heard the news? Port Orange Police Department’s Valentine’s Day Weekend Special has been extended to New South Wales 🌹”.“To claim, contact Crime Stoppers and we’ll take it from there 😉”.<img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/02/nsw-police.png" alt="" width="781" height="687" />NSW Police quickly got in on the joke, claiming the special Valentine’s offer was now available in New South Wales. Image: NSW Police Force (Facebook)Their post was almost as popular, with many praising the post and getting in on the joke as well.“Love it, handcuffs and a long stem red rose, what a great combination,” one person wrote.“Does it count if they commit crimes against fashion?!” another said.“Why do I love this so much,” a third asked. “Do you give them a card from the ex as well to make it extra special?”A fourth commented, “And they say romance is dead.”Image: Port Orange Police Department (Facebook)

Legal

Fresh insight into troubled past of Cleo's alleged abductor

Content warning: This article contains references to deceased Indigenous individuals. Audio has emerged of the woman who raised Terence Darrell Kelly, Cleo Smith’s alleged abductor, revealing that he had a tumultuous early life. The 36-year-old Carnarvon man was removed from his mother’s care as a two-year-old and was raised by Penny Walker, a respected member of the Indigenous community. “His mum didn’t want him and she threw him away,” she <a href="https://www.perthnow.com.au/news/cleo-smith/cleo-smith-found-accused-kidnapper-terence-darrell-kellys-traumatic-childhood-revealed-c-4476537">said </a>in an interview from 2019. “I looked down at him and this little boy - God was giving me something back in my life what the welfare took off me - my children.” Ms Walker said Mr Kelly’s mother was a drug addict and didn’t want him. She then took him in and raised him alongside her two grandsons - who she was caring for after her daughter died from multiple sclerosis (MS). In the <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.watoday.com.au/national/western-australia/audio-files-reveal-difficult-upbringing-of-cleo-smith-s-alleged-abductor-terence-kelly-20211108-p596y8.html" target="_blank">interview</a>, she also spoke about her own traumatic childhood as a member of the Stolen Generation. She spoke of the poor treatment she received as a child at the Moore River Native Settlement and New Norcia Mission, where she was the victim of sexual abuse and beatings. Ms Walker said this led her to become an alcoholic, which resulted in her six children being taken away. She then turned her life around and became a respected member of the Indigenous community in Carnarvon. Ms Walker died in 2020, leaving Mr Kelly alone in their Carnarvon home. When police arrived at the home last week, they found Cleo in a room sitting upright and playing with toys. <img style="width: 500px; height:281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845436/terence-kelly1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/e959eb1a366f41e8bff36ecb3282bf94" /> Terence Darrell Kelly boards a plane to Perth, where he will stay in custody until he returns to court in December. Image: Getty Images Mr Kelly was then arrested and faced Carnarvon Magistrate’s Court for several <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/news/news/i-m-coming-for-you-suspect-charged-in-cleo-s-alleged-abduction" target="_blank">charges</a>, including forcibly taking a child under 16. His neighbours described Mr Kelly as a “quiet” and “lonely” individual. The day after his court appearance, he was flown from Carnarvon to Perth and spent his first night in a maximum-security prison. Detectives have since returned to his home as part of their investigation into Cleo’s abduction. Police said they don’t believe the alleged abduction was planned and are investigating a theory that Mr Kelly came across Cleo by chance, according to <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.perthnow.com.au/news/cleo-smith/cleo-smith-found-accused-kidnapper-terence-darrell-kellys-traumatic-childhood-revealed-c-4476537" target="_blank">news.com.au</a>. Mr Kelly has been remanded in custody for four weeks and is due to return to court in December. Image: Getty Images

Legal

Paris Hilton calls on Biden to take account for troubled teen industry

Paris Hilton has shared her own shocking experiences while calling on US President Joe Biden and Congress to do something about the “troubled teen industry”. The former reality TV star previously revealed she had faced mental and physical abuse as a teenager in youth facilities. Appearing outside Capitol Hill, <a rel="noopener" href="https://celebrity.nine.com.au/latest/paris-hilton-strangled-slapped-watched-in-the-shower-troubled-teen-industry-reform/c0ee9436-162e-48e1-988b-503af5584097" target="_blank">Hilton said</a>: “For 20 years I couldn’t sleep at night as memories of physical violence, the feeling of loneliness, the loss of peers rushed through my mind when I shut my eyes. “This was not just insomnia. It was trauma.” Hilton appeared on October 20 alongside other teen survivors to announce the Accountability for Congregate Care Act. They were joined by lawmakers representative Ro Khanna and Senator Jeff Merkley, who are co-sponsors of the legislation. The 40-year-old star called on Biden to support the legislation, which would establish a bill of rights for children in youth facilities and act as oversight for the “troubled teens industry”. “Ensuring children are safe from institutional abuse isn’t a Republican or Democratic issue,” she said. “It’s a basic human rights issue that requires immediate attention.” <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CVQrDczvaPA/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CVQrDczvaPA/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Paris Hilton (@parishilton)</a> </div> </blockquote> In her speech, Hilton also shared her experiences and the trauma she endured as a teenager. “One night when I was 16 years old, I woke up to two large men in my bedroom asking if I wanted to go the easy way or the hard way,” she said. “Thinking I was being kidnapped, I screamed for my parents. As I was being physically dragged out of my house, I saw them crying in the hallway. They didn’t come to my rescue that night. “This was my introduction to the troubled teen industry. “My parents were promised that tough love would fix me and that sending me across the country was the only way.” Hilton went on to share details about her treatment at the facility she was taken to. “I was strangled, slapped across the face, watched in the shower by male staff, called vulgar names, forced to take medication without a diagnosis, not given a proper education, thrown into solitary confinement in a room covered in scratch marks and smeared in blood,” she said. “I was forced to stay indoors for 11 months straight - no sunlight, no fresh air.” <img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845046/paris-hilton2.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/b08c4c74198f46a29f4b7cbdf2203326" /> Image: Getty Images “I wish I could tell you what I experienced or witnessed was unique or even rare, but sadly,it’s not,” she continued. “Every day in America, children in congregate care settings are being physically, emotionally and sexually abused.” In the past, Hilton has also called on Biden to support another bill which would require youth residential treatment centres to be under additional government oversight and document when they use restraints. Testifying at a February state Senate committee hearing in favour of the bill, Hilton told the committee that talking about such a personal subject “was and is still terrifying”. “But I cannot go to sleep at night knowing that there are children that are experiencing the same abuse that I and so many others went through, and neither should you.” Image: Getty Images

Relationships

Retired race horses on track to help troubled kids

Image: A Current Affair New charity ‘Rehab 4 Rehab' is saving the lives of children and retired racehorses on the Mornington Peninsula through a ground-breaking equine therapy program. Children struggling with mental health issues get paired up with clinical psychologists, occupational therapists and retired racehorses to accelerate therapy sessions. “We are seeing lots of children with anxiety, depression, self-harming, suicidal kids, lots of autistic kids,” found Alisha Griffiths told A Current Affair. “They are practicing exactly what they would do in the normal four white wall environments but they’re doing it on a farm with retired racehorses.” Ms Griffiths said she had been around horses all her life and now she wants to share them with others. “They also build a rapport with a psychologist a lot quicker, they trust the psychologist because they’re around a retired racehorse,” she said. Clinical psychologist Jo Paterson crossed path with Alisha’s charity when she was looking for somewhere to keep her own horse – and she ended up with a job. “When you’re talking about things that are distressing and through trauma, then you’ve got something there that can help regulate, when they get upset,” Ms Paterson said. There are 46 horses at Ms Griffiths property and most of them are retired racehorses. In order to train them for being a racehorse to a therapy horse, they settle their lives down and “show them a slower pace”. Head horse trainer Alex McDonough said she’s surprised by how well the horses have adjusted. “It’s almost like they know they’re around children,” she said.

Caring

New poll spells trouble for Prince Harry and Meghan

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are preparing to celebrate their third wedding anniversary as a poll has revealed more than four in 10 people think they should lose their titles. Harry and Meghan tied the knot during an extravagant ceremony on May 19, 2018, and are most likely to celebrate the milestone privately at their Californian home. The wedding was the beginning of a new chapter for the monarchy as it was welcoming a person of mixed race into the family for the first time in centuries. But 18 months later, the Sussexes moved to North America with their son Archie and have never permanently returned to their UK home. A UK poll carried out on Monday found 44 per cent of 4567 adults questioned thought the couple should no longer have the title of Duke and Duchess. While 20 per cent believed they should keep their titles but not use them, 17 per cent said they should not lose their titles or stop using them ad 20 per cent did not know. The past few months have been a tumultuous time for the couple after their bombshell TV interview with Oprah Winfrey. The pair let all their grievances out and came clean on what it was really like to be a part of the royal family. A few days after their wedding anniversary Harry and Meghan, who is expecting a daughter in the summer, will appear in the first episode of the duke's mental health documentary series with Oprah Winfrey.

Relationships

Princess Beatrice opens up about troubled childhood: “They were so far ahead”

Princess Beatrice has everything to look forward to, but she has touched upon her childhood days in a heartfelt clip for charity. The royal opened up about her own “challenges” with dyslexia while studying in school in a new interview, where she admitted what she would want to tell her younger self. <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CAQr0Q-HkiB/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CAQr0Q-HkiB/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Royal Families_Turkey (@royal_families_turkey)</a> on May 16, 2020 at 12:36pm PDT </div> </blockquote> “I was very lucky, I got to go to a school that was very nurturing and supporting [but] I would describe the actual day-to-day learning side of things — very challenging,” the 31-year-old said. Princess Beatrice who is the Patron for Made By Dyslexia spoke on an experience she had as a child: "We had different coloured books to describe where your reading levels had got to, and I was always on the white books and my best friends were always on the yellow books or the green books, they were so far ahead. "And I think at that stage, those moments of doubt just pop into your head: 'I'm not good enough, I'm not smart enough, why am I not like the others?' I think when you're in the classroom those moments are very defining," she admits. <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/tv/CAp3u5fHjp8/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/tv/CAp3u5fHjp8/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by The British Royal Family (@the_mountbatten_windsors)</a> on May 26, 2020 at 7:23am PDT </div> </blockquote> Princess Beatrice continued on by admitting she would tell her younger self to take challenging experiences as “lessons.” "I think if I were to say to my younger self 'do not be defined by those moments that happened to you in that exam or that classroom, because they are life-long learnings'. They are lessons you carry with you and they build you up to be who you are." The royal finished the clip with an emotional sentiment: "It is not something that is wrong with you. "It's a great part of how your brain works and everybody's brain works incredibly differently. There is nothing wrong, there is just everything that is so right."

Caring

Trouble in paradise? Kate Middleton shrugs off hand on shoulder from Prince William

Duchess Kate set tongues wagging in her and Prince William’s latest TV appearance on A Berry Royal Christmas. She appeared to shrug off her husband’s hand when he placed it on her shoulder as they were speaking with volunteers on the show. The pair hosted a Christmas party for charity workers and volunteers who will spend their holiday period working with former Great British Bake Off judge Mary Berry for the BBC. <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/B6GlHWlJYEW/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B6GlHWlJYEW/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A Berry Royal Christmas.🎄The Duchess of Cambridge has revealed that one of 19-month-old Prince Louis' first words was Mary because he recognised Mary Berry in a cookbook. William and Catherine have joined the former Bake Off presenter in a Christmassy TV special. Click the link in our bio to find out more.👆#MaryBerry #RoyalFamily #bake #bbcnews</a> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/bbcnews/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank"> BBC News</a> (@bbcnews) on Dec 15, 2019 at 10:16am PST </div> </blockquote> Fans were quick to point out how awkward the encounter was. “She moved with a quickness,” commented one fan on Twitter, while a second wrote: “Awkward! Too awkward!! They should have cut it out!” Another noted: “Kate shaking off William’s hand on her shoulder during #ABerryRoyalChristmas.” Another added: “What just happened here???? Ouch!” “I really can’t stop watching this,” said another Twitter user, while a second penned: “Very awkward indeed.” <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en-gb"> Kate shaking off William's hand on her shoulder during <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ABerryRoyalChristmas?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ABerryRoyalChristmas</a> <a href="https://t.co/NyzjdKC3rk">pic.twitter.com/NyzjdKC3rk</a> — Caitlin McBride (@mcbride_caitlin) <a href="https://twitter.com/mcbride_caitlin/status/1206688540991655936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">16 December 2019</a></blockquote> However, some other Twitter users had another theory. “I like the way they interact, it’s professional. I don’t want to see excessive hand holding and back rubbing. It’s awkward, like you’re intruding on a private moment,” commented one, while a second added: “They’re not supposed to show PDA.” ”Why can’t people just be content with the fact that she didn’t feel a PDA was appropriate at that moment/at that event,” said another via social media. “It wasn’t about them, it was about all the volunteers.” Kate also shared a sweet story about how she stays up late to bake a cake before each child's birthday. “It’s become a bit of a tradition that I stay up until midnight with ridiculous amounts of cake mix and icing and I make far too much,” said Kate. “But I love it.”

Relationships

Mum runs into trouble with naming her fourth child as the name choice might be ILLEGAL

A Byron Bay mother-of-four has run into a bit of trouble while naming her newborn son. Claire Alexander-Johnston from Byron Bay is a mummy blogger known as JetSetMama and has named her three other children Atlas, Everest and Zephyr. Following the trend, it makes sense that her fourth son would have a unique name. She posted on Instagram and apologised to her 117K strong audience for the delay in letting them know about the name. She wrote: "Sorry this naming business has taken so long! We had a bit of a curveball when we announced your name to our family, as someone pointed out, it's possibly illegal to name you that in Australia, as it falls loosely under the category of 'title' like 'King', 'Duke', 'Lord' or 'Captain'. <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/B3rAu8llYHT/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B3rAu8llYHT/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">Welcome to the family 💙 Citizen Sage Alexander-Johnston. 🌿 You are ten days old. Four delicious kilos already. My favourite child [as long as you never answer me back or disagree with me at all ever 🤪]. You have the colouring of your brother Atlas. The face of your brother Everest [Sochi], and ...well nothing of your sister Zephyr right now 😆 but she’s kind of her own person... [and actually the self-titled Boss of You] ...you’ll work that out pretty fast, don’t worry, I got you. Sorry this naming business has taken so long! We had a bit of a curveball when we announced your name to our family, as someone pointed out, it’s possibly illegal to name you that in Australia, as it falls loosely under the category of ‘title’ like “King” “Duke” “Lord” or “Captain”. We tried to change it. ‘Disco’ even came back into play! 😆 But nothing else felt right for you as a Libra, with a [very sensible and grounded] Capricorn moon. ⚖️ So Citizen you are, and always will be- a Citizen of the world. And amazing Sage 🌿- burning, cleansing, and healing. And in Ancient Greece- a wise man [but you know, no pressure 🤪]. And look, if you have some rough teenage years, and you just wanna hang in the garage punching bongs with “Benji and the crew”, you can always roll out “Zen” as a nickname, and I’ll bring you all snacks and we’ll get through it. Because I’m already so proud, and so in love with you Citizen Sage. You complete me. Welcome to the family, we’re so glad you’re here. ❤️ #citizensage</a> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/jetsetmama/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank"> Claire Alexander-Johnston</a> (@jetsetmama) on Oct 16, 2019 at 1:16am PDT </div> </blockquote> "We tried to change it. ‘Disco’ even came back into play! But nothing else felt right for you as a Libra, with a [very sensible and grounded] Capricorn moon. So Citizen you are, and always will be- a Citizen of the world." According to legislation in Australia, there are a number of names that are considered unacceptable by Births, Deaths and Marriages. These include swear words, unpronounceable names and names that include numbers or symbols. Another category is names that could be considered a title, which includes “Commissioner”, “Bishop”, “Queen” or “Prime Minister”. Claire spoke to <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-7592289/Mother-three-reveals-unusual-fourth-child-ILLEGAL.html" target="_blank">The Daily Mail</a> , saying that her and her partner had put names through a test before choosing it. 'When thinking about names we like, Rich and I would put it through the "can they be a rockstar or an accountant?" test. [not that I particularly want either of these professions for any of my children, but you get the drift- "an adaptable name"!],' she said. If they pass the test, the name sticks. Fans of Claire were thrilled, but very curious as to how it passed the BDM. "So has it been approved by the BDM!? Such a cool name and so hope it gets approved if its not already," one woman wrote. "Wonderful name for a beautiful boy. Very happy for you that you were allowed the name you had your heart set on," another wrote. "Is this his registered name or was it not approved but you're calling him it anyway? Just wondering!!"

Family & Pets

7 innocent mistakes that put your kidneys in trouble

If your kidneys aren’t working properly, you could raise your risk of having a heart attack or stroke. Here are seven things you may be doing that could jeopardise the health of your kidneys. 1. You’re a fan of packaged food Most processed food is chock-full of sodium, which isn’t just bad for your heart, it can lead to kidney problems. When you’re showing signs that you eat too much salt, your body needs to flush the sodium out when you wee, and it takes calcium with it. In turn, having too much calcium in your urine increases your risk for kidney stones, says nephrologist Dr James Simon. Check the nutritional label on processed food, you’ll be surprised just how quickly sodium can add up. In fact, processed and fast food is where more than 75 per cent of the sodium we consume comes from. “People look at carbs and fat and kilojoules, but they don’t pay attention to sodium,” says Dr Simon. 2. Your blood pressure is out of control High blood pressure is hard on your whole body, including your kidneys. “Kidneys are basically one big set of blood vessels with urine drains,” says Dr Simon. “If you have high blood pressure in your big blood vessels, you have high blood pressure in your smaller blood vessels.” Letting high blood pressure go unchecked could damage the blood vessels leading to your kidneys, plus scar the organs themselves. 3. You haven’t kicked your smoking habit If you thought lung cancer was the only reason to put down the cigarettes, think again. A 2012 study found that quitting smoking for 16 or more years cut the risk of renal cell carcinoma (the most common form of kidney cancer in adults) by 40 per cent. Plus, smoking can damage the blood vessels and increase your risk of high blood pressure. “It’s another reason smoking is just bad on the body,” says Dr Simon. 4. You never drink when you’re thirsty Contrary to popular belief, you don’t necessarily need to down a full eight glasses of water to keep your kidneys working well. Even with just four to six glasses of water a day, your kidneys are probably fine, says Dr Simon. But sticking with just a cup or two a day could challenge the organ. Not only will you not have enough water flushing out your system to keep your sodium levels in check, but a dehydrated body will have a harder time keeping blood pressure steady. “The kidney is very sensitive to blood flow,” says Dr Simon. “It won’t like it if you are so dehydrated that your blood pressure drops and the blood flow to your kidneys drops.” You probably won’t need to worry about that level of dehydration every day, but make sure you drink enough water if you’re exercising a lot or outside on a hot day, he says. 5. You pop painkillers constantly Watch out if you take over-the-counter medication for chronic pain. Anti-inflammatory drugs, which include ibuprofen and aspirin, reduce blood flow to the kidneys, and cause scarring because they’re directly toxic to the organ, says Dr Simon. Nobody’s saying you need to suffer through a throbbing headache, but popping anti-inflammatory pills too often can increase your risk of kidney problems. “The people at risk are taking them on a daily basis for long periods of time,” says Dr Simon. But if you already have kidney damage, he recommends avoiding these drugs altogether. 6. You assume supplements are safe Just because a product is marketed as ‘natural’ doesn’t mean it’s good for you. “There are plenty of herbal medicines out there that are harmful,” says Dr Simon. Case in point: a plant-based ingredient called aristolochic acid can be found in ‘traditional medicines’, but it can cause scarring in the kidneys. Consumers are warned to stay away from products listing Aristolochia, Asarum or Bragantia on the label, because they probably contain the harmful ingredient. Unless you’re taking a regular multivitamin, always check with your doctor before starting any kind of supplement, advises Dr Simon. 7. Your weight is pushed to the side No surprises here: extra kilos are hard on your body. Being overweight puts you at higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes, which in turn can increase your chances of developing kidney disease. Insulin issues from both type 1 and type 2 diabetes cause inflammation and scarring in the kidneys, says Dr Simon. “Anybody with diabetes should be getting their kidney function and urine checked on a fairly regular basis,” he says. Written by Marissa Laliberte. This article first appeared in <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.readersdigest.com.au/healthsmart/conditions/7-innocent-mistakes-that-put-your-kidneys-in-trouble" target="_blank">Reader’s Digest</a>. For more of what you love from the world’s best-loved magazine, <a rel="noopener" href="http://readersdigest.innovations.co.nz/c/readersdigestemailsubscribe?utm_source=over60&utm_medium=articles&utm_campaign=RDSUB&keycode=WRN93V" target="_blank">here’s our best subscription offer.</a> <img style="width: 100px !important; height: 100px !important;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7820640/1.png" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/f30947086c8e47b89cb076eb5bb9b3e2" />

Body

Surprising holiday photos that can land you in trouble

On holidays people tend to take photos of everything that they see, from old rustic buildings and narrow streets, to food at a restaurant and the view of city lights. But there are some photos in particular that can get you in trouble with the law. A British tourist in Egypt was arrested over mobile phone footage of the airport which happened to capture a military helicopter in the background. Muhammed Fathi Abulkasem, 19, from Manchester was arrested and charged with collecting intelligence on the Egyptian military, reported the Associated Press. The teenager innocently filmed the landing of his flight, which showed a helicopter in the background. Taking unauthorised photos or videos of military facilities, equipment or personnel is illegal in Egypt. “We all have one of those landing videos on our phones,” his cousin Shareen Nawaz from the UK told AP. “They shouldn’t have military helicopters in public spaces if this is what will happen.” Many countries have outlawed the photographing or filming of military related materials, equipment and personnel. The strictness of these laws are related to the country’s level of secrecy. More seemingly innocent photographs can also land tourists in hot water from places of worship, airports, museums and galleries, bridges, tunnels and railway stations – and even shopping centres and buildings. These all seem like normal things a tourist would capture on camera – but taking snaps of these places could be illegal without you even knowing it. The most surprising things people can’t take pictures of include some of the most famous photographs in the world, such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris at night. The reason being, under European copyright law, works are protected for the lifetime of the artist, plus an additional 70 years. The tower’s designer, Gustave Eiffel, died in 1923 and the building entered the public domain 10 years later. Although the lights weren’t installed until 1985 by Pierre Bideau and are an artwork, they are still protected under European copyright law. Therefore, taking photos of the Eiffel Tower with the lights off isn’t breaking the law, although at night when the lights are flashing and dazzling over the city, it could get you in trouble with the law. Tokyo’s most famous night bar location in Golden Gai in the centre of the Shinjuku district is an iconic spot jam-packed with around 200 miniature bars with a labyrinth of really narrow alleys winding through the block. Signs throughout the district warn tourists of the banning of photographs. The Sistine Chapel in Rome also forbids photographs, although not for the reasons you may assume. The Sistine Chapel contains the famous artworks of Michelangelo and Cosimo Rosselli. People assume the reason is that the flash could damage the artwork, and although it is a concern for the longevity of the priceless art, that’s not the primary reason. A Japanese TV company owns the exclusive rights to these famous artworks. It attained these rights when they helped fund a major restoration project. The TV corporation offered US$4.2 million to spend on restoration in exchange for the exclusive rights to photograph and film the restored art. The company produced many documentaries and art books from the deal. The photo ban extends from buildings, artwork and iconic landmarks to animals. In particular, Chinese pandas. This ban comes after tourists have attempted to get dangerously close to the endangered creatures. In an attempt to maintain safety for tourists and the pandas, animal groups encouraged the ban. The tightly controlled and regulated country of North Korea consists of many photography bans, which extend to almost everything. Getty Images photographer Carl Court spent a week in the country documenting people’s daily life. Court explained the things he was an wasn’t allowed to photograph. The biggest rule for his photos included having to capture only full-frame images of Kim II-sung and Kim Jong-il statues and iconography. “You can’t crop the feet off the statues. You can’t cut a bit of the corner off,” Court said. Tourists are only allowed to enter the country if they are with a state-approved travel group that closely monitors where they go and what they see. Electronics and mobile phones may be searched by Korean authorities at any time.

Travel Trouble

Did you know this bad cruise habit could get you into trouble?

Cruise ships are a haven away from home and a place to put your feet up, relax and enjoy your time on the high seas. However, there are always rule everywhere we go - and a cruise getaway is no different. There is one rule cruise ship passengers are expected to follow or else they face the risk of getting into big trouble. Supercruisers said sun lounge “hogging” is no longer acceptable on cruise ships and could get travellers into a bit of trouble if they are spotted making that mistake. One expert told<a href="https://www.express.co.uk/travel/cruise/1157046/cruises-2020-cruise-ship-passenger-chair-hogging-sun-lounger-carnival-cruises"> express.co.uk</a> passengers have a number of activities to enjoy while onboard so it can come off as extremely selfish to hog beach chairs when there's already a limited number. “If you’re looking to begin your days on the ship relaxing by one of the onboard pools, you’ll be looking to reserve a sun lounger – often a topic of contention on many holidays, both onboard and on land. “To stop guests unfairly chair hogging, a term that has been coined for the act of reserving prime spots by the pool with towels and other belongings while the chairs remain empty for hours, Carnival Cruises has implemented a strict policy. “The rules that are enforced by shipboard team members, state that if belongings are left unattended for longer than around half an hour to reserve chairs, the items shall be removed.” Carnival cruises implemented the new ryle as a way to stamp out selfish hogging.

Cruising

Trouble sleeping? Ultimate guide to a good night’s rest

Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA) specialises in brain and nervous system research and has dedicated its resources to find the answer to a better quality of sleep. It exposes the bad habits and factors that influence how you sleep and the quality of rest you get each night, as well as providing solutions to benefit your quality of sleep. The bad habits of drinking, smoking, presence of pets in the bed, eating rich foods less than two hours before bed and a lack of exercise in your daily routine have all been revealed to impact sleep patterns. The researchers have also confirmed what we have all heard before – the light from your phone or tablet keeps your brain stimulated, making it harder to sleep. Hanna Hensen, a sleep scientist from NeuRA, reveals that 40 per cent of Australians aren’t getting an adequate amount of sleep, which she admits affects an individual’s mental wellbeing. “Disrupted or inadequate sleep can negatively impact every organ in your body and is associated with anxiety, depression and other mental health disorders,” Dr Hensen said. Researchers have discovered that a lack of sleep influences our ability and quality of work as we become less creative and efficient, we become less motivated due to our fatigue, as well as limiting our judgement and decision making. Hensen reveals who is most at risk of these factors within the work environment. “If you are working with large figures, writing an article, handling transactions or controlling machinery, inadequate sleep will adversely affect your success and accuracy at work,” the doctor revealed. Hensen also elaborated on the importance of maintaining mental wellbeing and identified two major categories of sleep – quiet sleep and rapid eye movement (REM). Every 90 minutes a normal sleeper cycles between two important categories of sleep – quiet sleep –– where the deepness of the sleep gradually increases. As we fall into our deeper sleep, we experience a drop in our body temperature, the relaxation of muscles and the decreasing rate of heart rate and breathing. Dr Hensen shared the benefits of quiet sleep, stating, “The deepest stage of quiet sleep – called slow wave sleep – is the constructive phase of sleep, repairing damaged tissues, stimulating growth and development, and boosting the immune system.” The second major category of sleep is REM, also known as dream sleep. Surprisingly, this quality of sleep plays an important role in learning and memory, which impacts emotional health. “By getting insufficient sleep or sleeping poorly, we are not giving the brain and the body space to recover from the previous day,” Dr Hensen said. “This causes us to be less sociable, more emotionally unstable and less resilient the following day.” Still not convinced your quality of sleep is important? Maybe these statistics will change your mind. <ul> <li>18 hours without sleep is equivalent to having a blood alcohol level of 0.08, while 24 hours with no sleep is the same as a blood alcohol level of 0.12.</li> <li>Poor sleep makes you eight times more likely to have a car accident.</li> <li>Lack of sleep increases the risk of anxiety and depression.</li> <li>Men who get 5 hours of sleep for one week have significantly lower levels of testosterone mirroring someone 10 years older than what they are.</li> </ul> Convinced now? Here’s the advice Dr Hensen suggested in order to get a good sleep. Hensen encourages routine and advises to go to bed around the same time every night and wake up at the same time every morning. To help get relaxed and ready for bed, dim bright lights or turn on soft lamps within two hours of going to sleep. Sadly, Hensen discourages naps that exceed 20-30 minutes, as well as recommending people turn off their technological devices and storing them away from their sleeping space. That’s right. No phone, tablet or laptop in your bedroom. If that demand is simply impossible, put your phone on night mode or put a blue light filter on your screen. Caffeine, sugar or cigarettes four hours before bed can stimulate the mind and keep you awake, Hensen suggests avoiding these for a better night’s sleep, as well as advising against lounging around in your bed for more than 30 minutes. We know the covers are irresistible, but Dr Hensen suggests moving to a chair to read a book or listen to soft music elsewhere before returning to bed to sleep once you’re tired. Replace music with soft and soothing sounds instead of loud stimulating music. Also avoid eating heavy foods such as rich, fatty or fried meals, spicy dishes, citrus fruits or carbonated drinks as they can trigger indigestion and heartburn that disrupts sleep. Happy sleeping!

Body

Meghan Markle’s taxman troubles: US authorities closing in on royal cash secrets

The countdown is officially on to the royal wedding, but with less than three months to go before Prince Harry and Meghan Markle finally tie the knot there’s another important date looming for the royal couple – April 17. That’s when Meghan’s tax return is due as a US citizen, even though she no longer lives in the United States, and the Internal Revenue Service is reportedly licking its fingers at the prospect of being able to peek behind the velvet curtain that is the royal family’s finances. Meghan will have to declare any earnings from Suits, but in addition to that any money she receives from the royal family (for instance, if Prince Harry gave her an allowance), any joint accounts and gifts worth a total of more than $100,000. US tax specialist Alistair Bambridge, of Bambridge Accountants, <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/auhome/index.html" target="_blank">told DailyMail.com</a>, “'Of course this raises the tantalizing prospect of Uncle Sam getting a look behind the velvet curtain - and seeing the private finances of the Royal Family. “Each year she must file her tax return and pay any tax she owes to Washington. “The US income tax system is citizenship-based, so as an American it doesn't matter where in the world you live and work - your tax affairs are always Uncle Sam's business.” What are your thoughts?

Money & Banking

Michael Douglas’ troubled son thanks family for “never giving up” on him

Michael Douglas' troubled son Cameron has publicly thanked his family for getting him through his "darkest days" after spending seven years in prison for drug offences. The only child of the Fatal Attraction star and his former wife Diandra was released from prison in August 2016 but has just recently given his first interview. Talking to the Mail Online, Cameron credited his father and step-mother, actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, for "never giving up" on him – even when he was caught selling prescription drugs to fellow inmates. “My family never gave up on me, not for one second,” he said, particularly crediting Catherine in for her perseverance. "She never gives up on anything and she didn’t quit on me. The love of my family got me through my darkest days." The 39-year-old also revealed his grandfather – Hollywood legend Kirk Douglas – sent him "two letters a month" when the 101-year-old became too frail to visit him in prison. "I lived a nightmare for seven years but the love of my family never wavered," he said. Cameron is famously the “black sheep” of his family, having had numerous stints in rehab before ending up behind bards in 2010. However, since his release from prison he is determined to turn his life around. He became a father to a daughter Lua Izzy with his Brazilian girlfriend Viviane Thibes who has been with him throughout all his trials. "I finally have my priorities in the right order," Cameron said. "I want to make my family proud.”

Movies

6 common gestures that could get you in big trouble overseas

They might seem normal at home, but be careful when you’re on the road. 1. Giving a thumbs up To us, a thumbs up is a quintessential symbol for ‘ok’ or ‘great!’. But in some countries in the Middle East, Latin America or West Africa, as well as in Russia and Greece, it’s the equivalent of giving someone the middle finger. Oops. 2. Tipping Australians aren’t big tippers (like our North American cousins) but it’s still fairly common to leave something for your waitress or bartender. Not in Japan. The Japanese find tipping quite offensive and will often run after you to return the extra money as you leave the premises. 3. Using your left hand In many countries, people don’t use toilet paper so the left hand is reserved for cleaning yourself after a trip to the bathroom. It stands to reason then that they don’t want to eat or shake hands with the left, so the right is used at all times. In much of Africa, India and the Middle East, people will be reluctant (at best) to accept your left hand. 4. Showing the bottom of your feet Your feet touch the ground, so in many Buddhist, Hindu or Muslim countries they are considered dirty. Be careful when crossing your legs and never – ever – put your feet up on a table for people to see. 5. Dressing too casual In summer, we love to get around in not much more than boardies and thongs. Some cultures take things a little more seriously, so while you don’t need to pull out your dinner suit it is a good idea to wear longer pants, a shirt with sleeves and proper footwear in countries like Japan, France or Dubai. You probably won’t offend anybody, but it’s branding yourself an obvious tourist. 6. Eating everything on your plate We are taught from childhood that it is polite to eat everything your host has served. But in countries like China, Thailand and the Philippines, leaving an empty plate means you are still hungry and would like more. Always leave a little food when you are done to show you are full. Were you aware of these tips?

Travel Tips

The real reason you have trouble sleeping on the first night of a holiday

If you have ever had trouble sleeping on the first night of a cruise or any holiday, you are not alone. In fact, this experience is so common that it has been dubbed as “the first-night effect”. According to a new study from Brown University, the reason people have trouble sleeping the first night while away on holidays is because half of your brain is keeping tabs on your safety. The findings published in <a href="http://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822%2816%2930174-9" target="_blank">Current Biology</a> were discovered by using advanced neuroimaging to observe subjects’ brains while sleeping. The researchers found that instead of both sides of the brain resting, the left side was more active, responding to the sounds around it. So, how do you beat having a disturbed sleep on your first night of holidays? Lead study author, Yuka Sasaki suggests travelling more to overcome “the first-night effect”. “Human's brains are very flexible,” Sasaki said <a href="http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-04/cp-tiw041416.php" target="_blank">in a statement</a>. “Thus, people who often are in new places may not necessarily have poor sleep on a regular basis.” Sasaki also suggested that people might be able to beat the effect by bringing their own pillow while they travel and staying in places with similar accommodations (e.g. the same chain). Do you have trouble sleeping on the first night of a holiday? Let us know in the comments below.

Cruising

Troubled airline to fly its first passengers in 27 years

Ever heard of Baltia Airlines? Neither have we, and for good reason – it hasn’t flown a single passenger in 27 years. But all that could be about to change thanks to new rebranding efforts. Founded in 1989 by Latvian immigrant Igor Dmitrowsky, Baltia had big plans to connect New York with St Petersburg, along with routes to Belarus, Estonia, Ukraine and Georgia. But his dream never came to fruition. Despite being granted permission in 1991 to fly to St Petersburg and Riga by the US Department of Transportation, the airline was never able to gain certification from the US’ air regulator, the Federal Aviation Authority. Why? Well, for nearly three decades, Baltia failed the FAA’s evaluation a staggering seven times due to faulty evacuation slides. Now, 27 years later, they’re giving it one last shot and starting from scratch. Rebranded as USGlobal Airways, reports suggest the troubled carrier has taken on more experienced management and has even earned backing from Wall Street. “Our new airline is well advanced in the process of restructuring, reorganising and refinancing,” the new company’s chairman, president and CEO, Anthony Koulouris, told <a href="http://www.insidertravelreport.com/baltia-startup-carrier-emerges-again-as-usglobal-airways" target="_blank">Insider Travel Report</a>. “[We hope] to receive US government regulatory approval and certification in the not too distant future in order to serve international routes to and from Stewart [International Airport in New York] that are currently poorly served or underserved.” Do you think this last-ditch effort for survival will be a success? Share your thoughts with us in the comments.

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Counting the wrong sheep: why trouble sleeping is about more than just individual lifestyles and habits

Travelling overseas? Here’s what the embassy will – and won’t – do to help if you get in trouble

"We got in trouble a lot": Fergie spills all on Princess Diana arrest

Police offer “Valentine’s special” to exes in trouble with the law

Fresh insight into troubled past of Cleo's alleged abductor

Paris Hilton calls on Biden to take account for troubled teen industry

Retired race horses on track to help troubled kids

New poll spells trouble for Prince Harry and Meghan

Princess Beatrice opens up about troubled childhood: “They were so far ahead”

Trouble in paradise? Kate Middleton shrugs off hand on shoulder from Prince William

Mum runs into trouble with naming her fourth child as the name choice might be ILLEGAL

7 innocent mistakes that put your kidneys in trouble

Surprising holiday photos that can land you in trouble

Did you know this bad cruise habit could get you into trouble?

Trouble sleeping? Ultimate guide to a good night’s rest

Meghan Markle’s taxman troubles: US authorities closing in on royal cash secrets

Michael Douglas’ troubled son thanks family for “never giving up” on him

6 common gestures that could get you in big trouble overseas

The real reason you have trouble sleeping on the first night of a holiday

Troubled airline to fly its first passengers in 27 years

News

Shop

Catalogues

Travel

Health

Lifestyle

Finance

Entertainment

Property

Information

Keep up to date

Search

Counting the wrong sheep: why trouble sleeping is about more than just individual lifestyles and habits

Travelling overseas? Here’s what the embassy will – and won’t – do to help if you get in trouble

"We got in trouble a lot": Fergie spills all on Princess Diana arrest

Police offer “Valentine’s special” to exes in trouble with the law

Fresh insight into troubled past of Cleo's alleged abductor

Paris Hilton calls on Biden to take account for troubled teen industry

Retired race horses on track to help troubled kids

New poll spells trouble for Prince Harry and Meghan

Princess Beatrice opens up about troubled childhood: “They were so far ahead”

Trouble in paradise? Kate Middleton shrugs off hand on shoulder from Prince William

Mum runs into trouble with naming her fourth child as the name choice might be ILLEGAL

7 innocent mistakes that put your kidneys in trouble

Surprising holiday photos that can land you in trouble

Did you know this bad cruise habit could get you into trouble?

Trouble sleeping? Ultimate guide to a good night’s rest

Meghan Markle’s taxman troubles: US authorities closing in on royal cash secrets

Michael Douglas’ troubled son thanks family for “never giving up” on him

6 common gestures that could get you in big trouble overseas

The real reason you have trouble sleeping on the first night of a holiday

Troubled airline to fly its first passengers in 27 years

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