Cervical cancer is fully curable – if detected early enough. Putting aside our typical Indian hesitation to discuss reproductive organs, let’s get ourselves checked!

By Vandana Chatterjee

One woman dies of cervical cancer every seven minutes in India. By 2025, cervical cancer is expected to claim one victim every 4.6 minutes.

Still think it can’t happen to you? I thought so too. For almost a decade, knowingly, willingly, I skipped gynaecologists’ appointments to get a checkup and PAP smear. There was no reason other than inertia and the feeling of omnipotence – it can’t happen to me! Add to that work pressure, domestic commitments, Saturday schedules packed with grocery shopping, PTA meetings and every imaginable important unavoidable engagement that could not be postponed or rescheduled.

When I finally managed to reach a gynaecologist, I had a severely abnormal PAP report and was diagnosed with the earliest stage of cancer. I was lucky. I escaped with just a surgery as treatment. A few more months and I would well have been in an advanced stage, trudging from home to hospital for endless treatments, work and life in cold storage.

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Summer holidays herald a dilemma for working parents; how do you keep your kids occupied? Let’s find out!

By Melanie Lobo

Children look forward to their long break from school, but for working parents, this can be a difficult time. Here are some tips from working women who have figured out ways to keep their kids occupied and spend time with them as well.

The art of balancing responsibilities

Rosita Saini works in a leading bank and finds that the key to looking after her child during the holidays is by sharing the responsibility with her husband. “You need to balance things if you are a working mother,” she adds.

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My mother has a green thumb. But when she tried her hand at bonsai trees, I realized that mothers just can’t grow them.

By Raamesh Gowri Raghavan

Mother has a way with plants. With a watering can, a spade and garden scissors, she can coax flowers to bloom anywhere. Give her free reign, and she’ll turn your balcony into a florid hothouse. Money plants in bathrooms, ornamentals in corridors or something to light up a window-sill – you name it, she’ll do it.

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March 24^th is World Tuberculosis Day. Women in India affected by TB have to battle the associated stigma and misconceptions as well.

By Hamsini Ravi

A couple of years ago, homemaker Martha Thoma* from Chennai suffered from spinal tuberculosis. Due to the acute pain it caused, Martha was unable to get up and perform her normal household duties. As she was undergoing medication and recovering at a relative’s house, she found out that her husband had plans to desert her and marry her sister.

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We asked the parenting community at Women’s Web to recommend some great parenting books. Here are the top six favourites!

By Anne John

A few days back, we asked the parents among our readers to fill in a short survey on their experiences with parenting books. 25 people decided to help us and took up the survey – thanks to all of you dear parents!

Given that the sample size was small, this isn’t by any means statistically significant, but there are still some interesting picks to look at.

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A mother’s love is considered unconditional and boundless; then, why is it so hard to accept the fact of a child’s alternate sexuality?

By Sudha Santhanam

(Translated from the original in Tamil by Aparna V. Singh)

On this summer afternoon in Chennai, the heat is getting to me. It feels as though my mind too is on fire with the same heat. My elder son has just told us that he cannot get married to a woman. When we asked him the reason for his decision, he began rambling on about his sexuality. I switched on the TV, unsure whether it was to divert my mind or forget myself. One of those televised debates was on, the topic being, ‘Which was the greater love? That of the Ayodhya-vasis for Rama or of the people of Gokulam for Krishna?’. My mind returned to my son’s problems.

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Lack of anger management can affect all aspects of your life – including relationships and health. A look at why anger management is essential.

By Maitreyee Chowdhury

A scene from the movie ‘Jab We Met, showcases the female lead advising her friend, who is sad and angry at a girl dumping him. In a strange way, the central character Geet advises her friend to burn his ex-girlfriend’s picture and flush it down the toilet; symbolically, ending all the pent up anger and frustration that he has for her. A rather unusual and dramatic move I thought, but in many ways perhaps very effective in handling anger, especially the way many modern women see it today.

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Child-free zones seem to be silently popping up everywhere. Are such kid-free zones practical in India? Are they hassle-free or discriminatory?

By Prerna Malik

“They’re kids. Let them be”, said a mother to me as we sat in the restaurant watching a bunch of kids literally tear the place down with their bare hands and their screams. At that moment, I thought how lovely it would be for a restaurant to have a no-kids policy.

Did I mention that, that was before I, too, was a mother. Today, when I read about child-free flights, events and restaurants, it makes me sad. Why?

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Violence against women is an everyday occurrence. Protecting ourselves is important, if not essential – and it is never too late to learn.

By Nisha Salim

India is the fourth most unsafe country for women, according to a 2011 poll by TrustLaw. When it comes to women’s safety, we rank just above Somalia. Delhi is the most unsafe city for Indian women, even during the day.

Over-protection fosters helplessness

A typical Indian girl from a middle-class or affluent family is raised chaperoned and over-protected. Rarely does she learn how to protect herself or react in a situation where she is attacked.

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Some years ago, my son Advaita helped me accept that at times, even a mother must take a backseat to a friend.

By Aparajita Bose

“Why did you leave me and go to her house?” My son sounded devastated as he came up the steps, his friend following him. “They called me for snacks. My mom was there too. So I went.” Advaita was not convinced. That his friend alone was invited and he was forgotten obviously hurt him.

He picked up his most recent acquisition, a plastic tool set, complete with hammers and spanners. Dangling it right before Ravi’s nose, he triumphantly declared, “My papa got it for ME from US. I’m never going to share this with you!” Not to be outdone, Ravi promptly took up his long-forgotten badminton racket from Advaita’s toy basket, retaliating, “This is MINE, not yours!” So the battle had begun…it was almost time for adult intervention.

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