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  • ASTROLOGY April 7 – 14, 2018

    ASTROLOGY April 7 – 14, 2018

    ARIES (Mar 21 – Apr 20)
    It might seem like there is a mighty struggle going on, but under the surface the Moon is leveraging change in a gentle and flowing way. Get out of your own way and listen to the voice of silence. Your feelings have much to tell you. They will be whispering, not shouting like billboards.

    TAURUS (Apr 21 – May 20)
    Venus is in Taurus, boosting your self-perception and self-confidence immeasurably. Take on the adventures that have been brewing in your mind for so long. Your heart is aching to be liberated from the threat of a potential side-track of fear-based mediocrity. Show off all your colours.

    GEMINI (May 21 – June 21)
    The attention is elsewhere. You have a patch here in which you can gather your resources and prepare yourself for more expressive times. There’s no shame in retiring to count your acorns every now and again. You are being held in one spot. Don’t let impatience get the better of you.

    CANCER (June 22 – July 22)
    The Moon begins her week in Capricorn. She is inviting you to be more hard shell than soft centre. This doesn’t mean you have to veer towards brutish insensitivity. It simply means that there are situations where it is appropriate for your own health and sanity to say a good clear ‘no’.

    LEO (July 23 – Aug 22)
    The future will require that you have lots of energy and intent – as well as a good dose of stubbornness and hardiness. You will need fire and you will need earth. Be at home with the multitude of different colours that make up your being. To be, is to be slightly paradoxical.

    VIRGO (Aug 23 – Sept 22)
    Even though Mercury is in Aries, he is hidden away. This implies that you are doing something similar. Perhaps you are instigating major change but quietly and unseen. Perhaps you are rewriting your whole life script but haven’t yet shown it to the world. Your spirit is irrepressible.

    LIBRA (Sept 23 – Oct 23)
    The deeper Venus moves into Taurus, the more dedicated you become to your craft. Your love is turning towards the desire for creative and technical mastery. This requires curiosity, immersion and discipline. The deeper your love for what you do, the easier it is to access these things.

    SCORPIO (Oct 24 – Nov 21)

    Jupiter is sending sparks all over the place as he makes his way through your sign. Change has never felt more welcome or liberating. Your beautiful wild imagination has never felt more full of colour and promise. Give yourself access to all your talents. Share your energy exhaustively.

    SAGITTARIUS (Nov 22 – Dec 21)
    Jupiter is twice as massive as all the other planets combined. Jupiter is the planet that pours energy your way every day. Jupiter is presently passing through the deep waters of Scorpio and having a wild time of it. He is filling you with a powerful drive towards realness, truth and transformation.

    CAPRICORN (Dec 22 – Jan 19)
    Saturn is regarded as the jewel of our solar system and yet in astrology he is regarded as rather dour and obstructive. He is your planet. He has like you, been misunderstood. Saturn is the planet of wisdom. Wisdom comes when we stop fighting with life and be with what is. Stop fighting.

    AQUARIUS (Jan 20 – Feb 18)
    Your planet Uranus does things differently. It rotates sideways on its axis. Little wonder Aquarians are prone to eccentricity. You are unknowingly inspired by your planetary mentor. You don’t have to work at having a totally unique perspective. It comes naturally. Relax into this completely.

    PISCES (Feb 19 – Mar 20)
    Neptune, your planet, is famous for its winds as much as its waters. Yours can be a wild and choppy sea. The ocean can be fearsome. It has given birth to powerful tales like Moby Dick. With Neptune in your midst, you are beginning to feel and show a truly broad range of emotion.

  • Reno ripper

    Reno ripper

    HUGE windows, glass doors and skylights have transformed this 1960s Bayswater home into something “light and bright”.

    The owners’ renovation has been sympathetic to the integrity of this Drake Street property, but it’s still packed with modern features.

    Sitting on 481sqm, the home integrates beautifully with the landscaped gardens.

    The front is like a geometric artwork with concrete, timber decking and a swath of emerald green lawn and stylised plantings.

    The deck flows into the family/living room, via a bank of glass doors, where it meets a sweep of rich jarrah flooring.

    “I love the living room: on a nice day you can have it wide open and it’s bathed in light,” the owner says.

    “I also like cooking in the kitchen. It’s so practical and functional it doesn’t seem such a chore to cook for a toddler, and later throw the food in the bin,” she says, with an affectionate glance at her angelic daughter.

    The kitchen certainly is a beauty with slick and clean lines. There’s heaps of white cupboards with funky copper handles, and the area combines 60s panache with modern convenience.

    Cooking is a breeze with an almost floor-to-ceiling pantry, white and grey- flecked marble benchtops and a huge Smeg oven.

    A dining room separates the kitchen from a child’s play room, meaning mum can beaver away in the kitchen while still keeping an eye on junior.

    Massive sliding glass doors lead to a timber decked alfresco, which is protected from the elements.

    It’s a great spot to simply chill, or stoke up the pizza oven and invite the mob around for a Margherita.

    Three of the potentially six bedrooms are on the ground floor.

    The main is huge and has an en-suite and lots of under-eave storage, and one of the upstairs bedrooms is used as a dressing room.

    With a park next door and plenty of trees all around, the birdlife is prolific.

    “Parrots, kookaburras. There’s constant bird chatter, which is lovely,” the owner says.

    Bayswater train station is at the bottom of the street, along with a small shopping centre “with great Thai takeaway”.

    65 Drake Street, Bayswater
    EOI over $779,000
    Carlos Lehn
    0478 927 017
    Acton Mt Lawley
    9272 2488

  • Health adviser

    Health adviser

    What is Pudendal Neuralgia?
    Pudendal Neuralgia is pain caused by the nerve that supplies the skin between your pubic bone and your tail bone. The pudendal nerve carries the sensations of touch and pain from the skin between the anus and the clitoris, as well as the sphincters (muscles that keep the openings of the bladder and bowel closed).

    Causes and Symptoms
    Pudendal neuralgia is often caused during childbirth. During vaginal delivery, the pudendal nerve is slightly stretched and may therefore malfunction. It can also be related to intense physical exercise involving the pelvic floor, such as ‘Kegel’ exercises, cycling and weight lifting. Some types of surgery can also lead to persistent pudendal pain.

    The most common complaint of this condition is pain when sitting, which gets worse as the day goes on. As the nerve is also involved with bladder and bowel function, other problems such as bladder frequency, feeling of a bladder infection, pain with intercourse and the urgent need to open the bowels, can occur. Typically, the pain resolves during the night or when lying down.

    Diagnosis
    Most women with pudendal neuralgia have a similar story to tell; they experience pain with sitting that usually starts around midday, worsens as the day goes on, and then resolves during the night. A thorough examination by a doctor aims to define how sensitive the skin of the perineum is and to reproduce the pain by feeling the nerve. Other tests such as ultrasound or MRI may be required to rule out other problems.

    Treatment Options
    As with any chronic pain condition, pudendal neuralgia is not necessarily ‘cured’, but rather it is managed through a variety of measures, from lifestyle changes to medical procedures. A pudendal nerve block, which is an injection of local anaesthetic and sometimes steroid medication, is injected around this nerve to temporarily reduce pain. After the procedure you will be unable to drive or return to work and you must have someone to accompany you home.

    Improving postural awareness – by aiming to sit on your ‘sitting bones’ and modifying your exercise program can be helpful. Physiotherapy treatments to stretch the tight pelvic floor muscles and decrease pressure on the nerve may also be beneficial.

    Possible side effects/complications
    All medical procedures carry a risk of complication. Precautions are always taken to minimise the risk as far as possible, but the following side effects may occur: failure of the procedure to reduce pain; worsening of pain (temporarily or permanently); numbness; temporary loss of bladder control; bruising, infection and allergic reactions (very rare). Your specialist will work with you to provide the best treatment plan.

    Dr. A S Arun MD DNB CCST, FRCOG, FRANZCOG
    Waikiki Specialist Centre
    221 Wilmott Drive, Waikiki WA
    Phone 9550 0300
    Fax 9592 9830
    Email specialists@waikikiprivatehospital.com
    http://www.doctorarun.com.au

    DISCLAIMER: This information is intended to be used as a guide of general nature, having regard to general circumstances. The information presented should not be relied on as a substitute for medical advice, independent judgement or proper assessment by a doctor, with consideration of the particular circumstances of each case and individual needs. This information reflects information available at the time of its preparation, but its currency should be determined having regard to other available information. RANZCOG disclaims all liability to users of the information provided. 

     

  • Quick & Easy Heart Health Test

    Quick & Easy Heart Health Test

    Did you know that there’s a quick and easy test to determine your risk of heart attack? A coronary calcium score scan can detect coronary artery disease long before it becomes symptomatic. It’s completed in little longer than one breath hold. It uses a very low dose CT scan and doesn’t need any injection of contrast material associated with other more complex CT investigations. It is a quick, easy, safe, accessible and inexpensive test to check for Cardiovascular Disease (CVD). It is ideally suited to patients with no symptoms, who have been identified as having some risk of CVD.

    The target groups for coronary calcium score typically include the following individuals Low risk on risk calculation with a family history, Intermediate risk on risk calculation, Low risk women.

    A zero calcium score is associated with a very low risk for an event (0.11% annual event rate) whereas a high calcium score (>400) puts the patient at high risk. If you think you might benefit from this investigation discuss it with your doctor at your next visit.

    Perth Radiological Clinic offers the coronary calcium scan at the following clinics in your area – Subiaco and Morley and coming soon to Nollamara. Visit http://www.perthradclinic.com.au for more information.

     

  • Change your brain, change your life!

    Change your brain, change your life!

    New brain-based treatment for ADHD
    Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) affects an estimated 1 million children and adults in Australia, and those and those affected usually have difficulties with attention and impulse control.

    ADHD is more common in boys, and most children with ADHD will continue to experience problems into adulthood. Recent studies have also highlighted late-onset ADHD where symptoms do not show until adulthood.

    What causes ADHD?
    Research shows that ADHD has a strong genetic basis. So, when a child is diagnosed, it is very likely that at least one of the parents will also have ADHD. It is not yet clear exactly what causes ADHD, but research shows that there are changes in the structure and function of key areas of the brain involved with attention and impulse control.

    Diagnosis
    The formal diagnosis of ADHD is usually made by a paediatrician or psychiatrist. Assessment involves a comprehensive examination, and information from the patient, parents and teachers. For adults with suspected ADHD, input is often sought from partners, work colleagues and friends.

    At The Perth Brain Centre, established in 2007, we use special brain scans called QEEG that measures brainwave activity to identify potential problem areas in the brain. Brainwave analysis was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in 2013 for assisting in the accurate diagnosis of ADHD. The scans are performed whilst awake, and careful analysis generates detailed images that pinpoint areas of abnormal brain activity.

    Treatment
    In the past, treatment for ADHD was often limited to medication. However, now it is generally accepted that treatment should be ‘patient-centred’ and involve a range of interventions. Aside from medication, other treatment options that are effective include behavioural therapy, lifestyle and dietary changes, neurofeedback therapy and
    psycho- education.

    There is no ‘one size fits all’, and at The Perth Brain Centre we believe that individuals and families should be able to make an informed choice based upon the range of treatments now available.

    The Perth Brain Centre focuses on providing neurofeedback therapy in conjunction with behavioural interventions, psycho-education, lifestyle and dietary advice. Neurofeedback is recognised by The American Academy of Paediatrics to be an effective treatment for ADHD, and is featured in Dr Norman Doidge’s book ‘The Brain’s Way of Healing’, the sequel to his international best-selling book ‘The Brain That Changes Itself.’

    Neurofeedback Therapy
    Neurofeedback is suitable for people of almost all ages and uses a sophisticated brain-computer interface to ‘strengthen’ and ‘re-train’ the brain. Patients sit comfortably during training whilst sensors precisely detect and measure brainwave activity.

    This information is analysed in real-time and presented as audio and visual feedback, which is used to strengthen and re-train the ‘weak’ areas in the brain. There is extensive research supporting neurofeedback as a safe and effective treatment for ADHD. Studies specifically show that neurofeedback therapy can result in significant and sustained improvements in the key symptoms of ADHD.

    Getting successful treatment for ADHD can change your life and the lives of people around you. For further information about how neurofeedback therapy can help you or someone you know, please call 08 6500 3277, or visit the websiteperthbraincentre.com.au

     

  • FreMANTLE Stories AT AGELINK THEATRE

    FreMANTLE Stories AT AGELINK THEATRE

    Agelink Theatre in association with the City of Fremantle and Know Your Nation, is celebrating 25 years of telling West Australian stories with their new production Between Wind and Water.

    Come along for lively family entertainment featuring stories from interviews with long term Fremantle residents and historical accounts, from early times until the 1980s. So many new migrants have arrived at the wharf and so many departed to war. So many fishing families, wharfies, market gardeners and factory workers (such as Mills and Ware) have told their stories and will be celebrated with music and song.

    With a large cast of professional and local community actors, including musical theatre students from John Curtin College of the Arts, this is a not to be missed event. Limited season of four performances only at the Fremantle Town Hall from 1-3 June 2018. Tickets only $12 pp. For bookings: http://www.windandwater.eventbrite.com.au or telephone 9432 9999.

  • Brickbats for housing plan

    Brickbats for housing plan

    FOUR options put forward by the state’s heritage department for redeveloping the Maylands Brickworks haven’t impressed locals.

    The 1927 brickworks, closed for 30 years now, is owned by Bayswater council and is on the state heritage register.

    But the building needs about $7.7 million worth of restoration and the heritage department has suggested selling off nearby land for apartments, or to adapt the brickworks itself into apartments, to pay for it. Another option was to relocate the Maylands Peninsula Golf Course clubhouse into the site.

    Newly-formed group Friends of Maylands Brickworks doesn’t want any part sold off and isn’t keen on blocks of flats.

    • The Friends of Maylands Brickworks.

    The group delivered a 208-signature petition to Bayswater council two weeks ago saying they’d prefer a community space, museum, historical interpretation centre or art centre “to preserve its historical authenticity and integrity”.

    Kevin Hamersley from the Friends of Maylands Lakes is likewise unimpressed by the options, particularly converting the brickworks into apartments.

    “We are concerned that this option was even presented as it would dominate and diminish the aesthetic presence of the kiln,” Mr Hamersley’s submission said.

    “Other concerns are the cost of converting the kiln to residential standard and the impact it would have on the heritage value.”

    The petition was due to go to this week’s Bayswater council meeting. The project team will then look over the feedback and come up with plans to present back to Bayswater council and the Heritage Council.

    by DAVID BELL

    ————————

    THE Hoffman kiln is significant as the last of its type in WA, and one of only a handful anywhere in the world.

    A second Hoffman kiln at the site was damaged in the 1968 Meckering earthquake and demolished.

    The kiln’s technology was patented by German inventor Friedrich Edouard Hoffman in 1858, and was a breakthrough in brickmaking because the fire could burn continuously. Older style kilns required the fire to be put out and restarted between loads.

    The Hoffman has an inner ring where the fire slowly moves around a series of chambers, so workers can load wet bricks ahead of the fire and take out dry bricks once the fire’s passed.

    There’s still a few working in China, India, Iran and Bangladesh, but they’re being phased out for more environmentally friendly methods.

    Few kilns have been preserved, though in Box Hill contamination has seen the local brickworks spared redevelopment.

    What the Friends of the Brickworks don’t want is to see their kiln go the way of those in Victoria and South Australia. Brunswick’s two surviving kilns were gutted to become flats while in South Australia, a smoke stack preserved at a cost of $1.5 million stands lonely amid a shopping centre.

  • Leederville Super Criterium cycling race

    Leederville Super Criterium cycling race

    LEEDERVILLE’S streets were closed again last Sunday for the Leederville Super Criterium cycling race.

    Part of a summer series, the Leederville ring wrapped up the season with Midland Cycling Club dominating, finishing with well over double the points of runners-up Perth District Cycle Club.

    For some, though, it was less about the thrill of the race and more about getting some out and about time with mum and dad

  • Being visible is pure magic

    Being visible is pure magic

    MARCH 31 is Transgender Day of Visibility, and local support organisation TransFolk of WA is celebrating with a family-friendly day down at North Perth Town Hall.

    TransFolk of WA started back in 2012, initially as a support group for trans men (men who were assigned as female at birth) but then expanded into having mentors and support groups across the spectrum.

    These days they have online groups and monthly meetings for trans women, non-binary people (who don’t identify as male or female), parents and families, and their T-Junior online support group which was started at the request of parents with transgender kids.

    Executive director Nick Lawrence says the groups are set up “so people can talk between themselves and discuss common issues, reduce isolation, and build a support network”.

    They also direct each other to trans-friendly doctors and psychiatrists so people don’t waste their time with health care professionals with anti-trans views who refuse to prescribe hormones needed for transition.

    Mr Lawrence, assigned female at birth, transitioned about six years ago at age 32. He says “I would have been about five years old when I realised I didn’t want to grow boobs”. But when he was a young kid in the 80s he’d never heard the word transgender and didn’t know any trans people.

    • Last year’s Visibility Celebration held by Transfolk WA.

    Pride 

    “Every [Pride] fair day I’d walk around hoping I’d meet a trans guy… I couldn’t find anyone to ask questions.” He ended up setting up a stall himself, and it grew from there into the trans mens group and then TransFolk of WA.

    The international Transgender Day of Visibility was started in 2009 as more of a celebratory event, as previously the only trans-centred holiday was the Transgender Day of Remembrance (November 20) which reflects on trans victims of violence.

    Mr Lawrence, a mechanic by trade who works in the mining industry, says; “the whole idea is just to stand up and be counted, and to be proud of who you are, and show the world that we are good members of society, we are everyday normal people”.

    On TDV, Transfolk are having a family friendly event and all are welcome, so it’s a good educational day for cis-gendered people (that’s when your gender identity matches what they decided you were at birth) to come along and learn a few things.

    For the $10 entry they’re putting on lunch and a drink, and there’ll be tunes from DJ Roskie, slam poet champion Jessie Oliver, the trans woman magician Zatanna Queen of Illusion, and some fun stuff for kids like the paper plane maze, arts, soft toy making and origami.

    It’s on Saturday 11am to 3pm and they’ve got an event page up on Facebook under “Visibility Celebration 2018” or go via their website at http://www.transfolkofwa.org

    by DAVID BELL

  • Shelter rules pushing transfolk onto streets

    Shelter rules pushing transfolk onto streets

    TRANSGENDER people are slipping through the cracks of support services and ending up homeless at a disproportionate rate.

    Dani Wright Toussaint, who has recently been appointed to a new Trans Homelessness Pathways project, says mainstream support services can be discriminatory because of their strict focus on “men’s” or “women’s” shelter, while they’re often completely overlooking transfolk in their data collection.

    “But what we do know is that trans and gender diverse young people face disproportionately high rates of homelessness,” Mx Toussaint told the Voice.

    “A women’s refuge often won’t allow trans women to come into their services.

    “The Commonwealth anti-discrimination legislation means that any religious-based service has the right to discriminate against people who are LGBTI but also it’s just an inherently gendered nature of welfare and accommodation services which are often in men’s wings or women’s wings.”

    To combat the problem, Vincent council has recently given the project $7500 to help set up a new monthly drop-in service at Perth Inner City Youth Service’s office in Blencowe Street, Leederville.

    Base Camp Agenda, as the drop-in service will be called, is a peer-based approach where volunteers who identify as trans and non binary and may have also experienced homelessness will provide mentoring and support to clients, as well as a free feed.

    The Pathways project is run by PICYS, TransFolkWA and ConnectGroups is also developing a toolkit that will allow other support services to improve their data collection to ensure trans people are recognised.

    Mx Wright Toussaint says research and data collection is crucial to creating a system-wide cultural change.

    Vincent also gave funds to the Salvation Army Lincoln Street Outreach Centre and the Ladder Project Foundation under its grants program.

    “Last year we wanted to do something to address the rising issue of homelessness in the City of Vincent and initiated a new grants program focused on building partnerships with organisations who can address this issue,” says mayor Emma Cole.

    by ALICE ANGELONI