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What is dyspareunia? Thanks for asking!Most people associate sex with pleasure but research suggests that 60% of women have already experienced pain during sex without daring to tell their partner. Dyspareunia is the medical term for pain which occurs before, during or after intercourse. The problem can affect men, but is far more common in women. Dyspareunia may be persistent or recurrent, sometimes leading to a loss of libibdo or forms of sexual dysfunction like vaginismus.  What does this pain feel like?There are two main types of dyspareunia: superficial and deep. Superficial pain can affect the clitoris, vulva or at the opening of the vagina. It may come on as soon as penetration begins, or even before. Deeper pain is generally felt in the vault of the vagina or within the pelvis upon penetration. It may be more acute in certain sexual positions.So what are the causes of dyspareunia? Is there any hope for those suffering with dyspareunia? What can they do to stop? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: What is the Gamestop short squeeze?What is a coup d'etat?What is Diogenes Syndrome?A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is Pancake Day? Thanks for asking!Feeling hungry? It’s Pancake Day tomorrow, which means you’ve still got time to choose your favourite toppings! Pancake Day is also known as Shrove Tuesday, which marks the day before the start of Lent on the Christian calendar. The date changes every year, as it depends on when Easter falls.   So how did a religious date get to be known as Pancake Day? Well, according to Christian tradition, Pancake Day marks the last day of excess allowed before Lent. The following day is Ash Wednesday, and the beginning of 40 days of prayer and fasting. During Lent, practising Christians often give up something as a personal sacrifice to remember the forty days Jesus spent in the desert. Lent ends on Easter Sunday, when Christians celebrate Jesus’s resurrection from the dead, after being crucified. How far back does the celebration of Pancake Day go?The tradition of making pancakes dates back to at least the Middle Ages. Preparing pancakes was considered ideal to use up rich foodstuffs like butter, eggs and milk, before Lent. Like many religious festivals, customs vary by region. In other countries, people eat doughnuts, omelettes or pastries instead of pancakes.  In the UK, pancake races are held, with participants in fancy dress running down the street flipping pancakes in a frying pan. Elsewhere, Shrove Tuesday is known as Mardi Gras, which translates into English as Fat Tuesday.See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is an antiviral mask? Thanks for asking!Since the turn of the year, the threat of new coronavirus variants has emerged. As a result, many are questioning how effective different types of face covering are against these more contagious strains.The World Health Organisation has stressed that cloth masks still work just as well, because the mode of transmission is the same, despite the mutation. However, governments in some countries have encouraged people to favour surgical masks or FFP2 masks.Manufacturers are on a mission to make more efficient face coverings available to the public. Some even claim their products have germ-killing properties which can destroy the coronavirus!How can a mask kill a virus? Is that really possible? Remember that the coronavirus doesn’t simply circulate on its own. It’s always carried by something like a drop of saliva. When we wear a face covering of any kind, we mainly protect others from our own droplets.A standard mask filters the majority of pathogens but can never be 100% successful. Antiviral masks are more proactive in that they don’t just seek to stop viruses and bacteria from penetrating, but to kill it and prevent them from staying on the surface. The best form of defence is attack, as they say!Some use antimicrobial agents, like proteins, which bind to the virus and stop it from replicating. Others are infused with metals like copper or silver, which are known to have antimicrobial properties.In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: What is the Gamestop short squeeze?What is a coup d'etat?What is Diogenes Syndrome?A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is the Gamestop short squeeze? Thanks for asking!You may have seen headlines about it in recent weeks, and it’s certainly one of the financial stories of the year so far. The Gamestop short squeeze saw Wall Street tremble at least temporarily due to the actions of amateur traders from Reddit. And this battle is perhaps just the start of a long war.To understand the short squeeze, let’s go back to the beginning. Gamestop is an American chain of video game stores which has a presence in many countries across the world. It’s well-known among gamers, but has been struggling of late due to competition from digital distribution.That might sound like sad news, but some American hedge funds saw an opportunity to make money by effectively betting on the company’s stock falling in value. That’s known as shorting and it’s seen as a form of vulture capitalism, because of the disregard it shows for the businesses in question.How does short-selling actually work in practice? OK it’s a little complicated for novice traders but let’s try with a simplified example. Say you expect the value of a company’s shares to drop. You borrow a single share in the company from someone and then immediately sell it. When the value drops, you can make a profit by buying back a new share at a lower price, and simply paying it back to the original lender. This is what some hedge funds like Melvin Capital did with Gamestop, but in far higher quantities than a single share of course! So what went wrong for the hedge funds in this case? Anybody can buy stocks? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: What is Diogenes Syndrome?What is the sixth dose?What is sensory processing sensitivity? A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is a coup d’etat? Thanks for asking!Just last week, Myanmar underwent its fourth coup d’état in 63 years, ten years after becoming a democracy. Although no blood was spilled, several members of the ruling National League for Democracy Party were placed under house arrest by the military. That includes Aung San Suu Kyi, the elected State Counsellor. The Tatmadaw military declared a year-long state of emergency. What are the main characteristics of a coup d’état? The term, which has been around since the 18th century, comes from French words meaning “a strike against the state”. In 2013, the University of Illinois’ Cline Center for Democracy defined a coup d’état as “the sudden and irregular removal, or displacement, of the executive authority of an independent government.” Their project listed twelve different types of coup.So the purpose of a coup is usually to seize power. A coup isn’t necessarily violent, but many are. In 2011, American researchers Jonathan Powell and Clayton Thyne identified three common criteria in coups d’état. Firstly, the coup has to be carried out against the executive authority, by the military or other elites within the state, using anti-constitutional methods.  Another synonym is the Swiss-German word “putsch”, which is also used in English. It refers to military coups, such as Myanmar 2021. When it’s the people who overthrow the government and take power, we talk instead about a revolution.Can you give me some examples of recent coups d’état? What about January’s storming of the U.S. Capitol? Could that be considered a coup d’état? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: What is Diogenes Syndrome?What is the sixth dose?What is sensory processing sensitivity? A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is Diogenes Syndrome? Thanks for asking!Diogenes Syndrome is a behavioural disorder which mainly affects older adults. It’s also known as senile squalor syndrome, which is perhaps a more evocative name for what it entails. It happens when people neglect to take care of themselves, leading to poor personal hygiene and an extremely dirty or messy home. The unsanitary conditions in which these people live can lead to other health problems.How could anyone get to live in such squalor?Many people affected are totally unaware that anything is wrong with their home, or simply living in denial. Untrusting of others, they often live in isolation and may turn down offers of help from family or friends. They are compulsive hoarders, even keeping rubbish in their homes which can attract insects and rodents.So their living situation may only come to light after they get sick or have an accident like a fall which results in them needing medical attention. In other scenarios, neighbours may investigate due to smells coming from the person’s home, or the building becoming infested with pests like cockroaches. Extreme cases have even seen fires or serious leaks due to the squalor of someone with Diogenes syndrome.Wait a minute; who is Diogenes and what does he have to do with all this? Who is affected by this behavioural disorder? What’s the best way to help someone with Diogenes Syndrome? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: What is sensory processing sensitivity? What is enbyphobia?What is ASMR?A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is the sixth dose? Thanks for asking!From the outset, each vial of the Pfizer and BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine was supposed to contain five doses. But it has since emerged that a sixth dose can in fact be extracted from each vial. So, is this extra dose a welcome surprise which will allow vaccination programmes to move forward more quickly?Let’s go back to Germany at the end of December 2020. The European Medicines Agency recommended that the Cominarty vaccine from BioNTech and Pfizer be authorised. According to official guidelines, each vial contained enough for five vaccine doses.The two pharmaceutical giants then asked the EU to allow doctors to extract an extra sixth dose from their vials. The EMA regulator approved this proposition on January 8th 2021, and a spokesperson from BioNTech insisted that the cost of the EU’s vaccine order would remain the same.  So are we saying that European member states are both saving money and able to vaccinate more people with the same number of vials? It seemed that way at first. But ten days later, Pfizer and BioNTech changed tune. As each vial was now considered to contain six doses, rather than five, they would deliver less vials to European states. Having ordered 600 million doses of the Cominarty vaccine, the EU would now receive only 100 million vials, rather than the initially expected 120 million.What’s going to happen with all the remaining vials then? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: What is sensory processing sensitivity? What is enbyphobia?What is ASMR?A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is sensory processing sensitivity? Thanks for asking!“Why are you being so sensitive?” “Stop overreacting”. It’s common to hear people criticise others for being highly sensitive, but it actually often isn’t a choice. Sensory processing sensitivity, or SPS, is a personality trait which describes how individuals’ levels of sensitivity vary when reacting to physical, social and emotional stimuli. This is down to differences in the central nervous system and cognitive processing.Discussion of SPS is recent. It only began in the 1990s, thanks to American psychologists Elaine and Arthur Aron. They designed a questionnaire to measure sensitivity and estimated that 15-20% of the world’s population have high SPS. Such people are known as HSPs, or highly sensitive people.Wow, that’s a lot! Could I be an HSP without realising it?There are a number of telltale signs. On the physical side, a highly sensitive person may react in a very positive or negative way to certain sounds, odours or even touches. Some examples are bright lights, coarse fabrics and loud noises.Emotional reactions, both positive and negative, can also be strong. Highly sensitive people may have trouble accepting criticism, as well as compliments. They can switch quickly from joy to anger, or from love to apathy. Due to their heightened empathy, they understand what other people are feeling. If you’re a neurotypical, you may find HSPs tactless when describing their feelings.Is high sensitivity considered an illness? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: What is ASMR?What is VOC 202012/01?What is Wikipedia?A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is enbyphobia? Thanks for asking!This term first appeared in LGBT+ circles; if you’re wondering what an “enby” is, just say it slower: N - B, which stands for non-binary. So it refers to a phobia of non-binary people, which is also sometimes called exorsexism.If you think back to our episode about non-binary gender identity, you’ll remember it means people who do not feel exclusively male or female. For example, some may identify as having two or more genders, or none at all.There isn’t much data on the subject, but statistics gathered by Nat Titman in 2014 suggest that at least 1 in 250 people are non-binary. In reality, the figure may be much higher. British Grammy-winning singer Sam Smith and Netflix star Brigette Lundy-Pain are just a couple of the numerous celebrities who describe themselves as non-binary. So why do some people have a problem with NBs? And what does enbyphobic behaviour look like?Enbyphobes often argue that being non-binary isn’t a real thing. They see it as a fad or temporary identity crisis affecting confused, attention-seeking members of today’s younger generations. And of course non-binary people don’t appreciate not being taken seriously. They see enbyphobia as a form of systemic oppression. Some people refuse to use gender-neutral pronouns like ‘they’ or ‘zie’, even when corrected. Assuming, ignoring or invalidating a person's gender is called misgendering. Most NBs understand that mistakes happen, but choosing to wilfully ignore a person’s choice of pronoun is seen as disrespectful and enbyphobic.Other common examples of enbyphobia in society are only having male and female bathrooms, only listing two genders on a form or using non-inclusive phrases such as “ladies and gentlemen” or “boys and girls”.Non-binary people may also be more likely to be victims of harassment and assault. What’s the difference between transphobia and enbyphobia? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: What is ASMR?What is VOC 202012/01?What is Wikipedia?A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is ASMR? Thanks for asking!ASMR is short for autonomous sensory meridian response. It refers to the pleasant tingling sensations some people feel when triggered by certain sensory stimuli. These sensations tend to begin on the scalp and work their way down throughout the body, bringing on a state of relaxation. In the 2010s, ASMR was popularised to such an extent that there are thousands of videos available online for those looking to experience it. Most often, ASMR is brought on by an audio stimulus, so it’s recommended to listen with headphones to really enhance the sounds going into your ears. That’s especially true when the recordings have been made with a binaural microphone.Other kinds of triggers are visual, like hand movements, or tactile, like light touches against the skin.Are you saying it took us until the 21st century to discover such sensations? Well, in reality the sensations have existed since forever, but it wasn’t until 2010 that anyone put a name on them. Jennifer Allen, herself an ASMR content creator, coined the scientific-sounding acronym on a Facebook group and it caught on. Allen has since explained she wanted the term to come across as clinical, so people could talk about it openly without fear of being ridiculed. There’s almost no science on ASMR.Since then, this digital-age relaxation method has become a true sensation. Each month, there are over 11 million searches for ASMR on Youtube, and the most viewed videos have tens of millions of plays. The influencers posting these are known as ASMRtists and they have to regularly come up with new ideas to keep their content fresh.What are the most common ASMR triggers? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: What is Wikipedia?What is Parler?What is Signal?A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices