Taking Care of Yourself- Ratoath celebrates International Day of Action for Women’s Health

An event tailored for women, called 'Taking Care of Me' takes place in the Venue Theatre, Ratoath, on Sunday 26th May 2019.  Created by the team of ladies behind Lilly’s Pharmacy, all proceeds will be donated to the charity Meath Women’s Refuge & Support Services. The event takes place ahead of International Day of Action for Women’s Health with informative talks, interactive workshops, interviews, and much more, to address a variety of health issues and interests for women of all ages. 
Owner of Lilly’s Pharmacy Ratoath, Ola El Garawany, has put together this event as a way to share an in-depth knowledge of pharmacy and how it can be positively impactful in health promotion for women, outside of the traditional framework of the dispensary. “Women coming together is very powerful,” says El Garawany of the line-up of speakers for Taking care of Me. “I personally wanted to get these speakers involved because of their contribution to their fields and to nourish the betterment of women and their communities.” 
Lilly’s Pharmacy has been part of the Ratoath Community for more than 10 years, running regular customer focused events, tailored to the issues and queries that the Lilly’s staff have faced on a daily basis. They are at the coal face of what people are dealing with when it comes to health – both mental and physical and this has helped them tailor Taking Care of Me. 
El Garawany will donate all proceeds from the event to the charity, Meath’s Women’s Aid – a refuge based in Navan that provide services to women and children experiencing abuse. The cause has been chosen because it is local, for women in need and all funds raised will directly fund services to vulnerable women and children. 
Meaths’ Women’s Aid was established in 1987, and Manager Deirdre Murphy describes their work as women supporting women, providing a range of services; the focus for 2019 is on counselling for women to deal with domestic violence, particularly after the urgency of the situation has passed. “When you’re in crisis you need a response, a week later is too late. We don’t get funding for counselling,” she says of how the funds raised will help. “One to one play therapy for the children, this is a new area for us and very intensive work. Children need a lot of time to express their needs. It’s essential to listen to the child and to listen to the woman.” 
The price of a ticket to Taking Care of Me is the cost of one-hour of counselling for a woman or two tickets would cover a play therapy session for a child. “Nothing is spent on expenses – it goes directly to services,” Murphy adds. “Whatever is raised will be divided equally between the women and children’s services. Mothers always put themselves last, it’s difficult to take care of others if you don’t take care of yourself.” She believes that women need the space to look at how they can move forward. “Domestic violence is complicated. There’s a lot of secrecy. Women take the blame and a child doesn’t have a voice.” 
The topics covered at Taking Care of Me include: the Omega Coach, Nutrition and its impact on mood, Reiki, Mental Health, Skincare, Zumba (to shake everyone up!), Fertility, Menopause, Sound Healing and an interview style session on Women in Business and dealing with Work/Life Balance. 
For information on Meath’s Women’s Aid please see: www.womensaid.ie/services/local/meath/ or www.facebook.com/meathwomensrefugeandsupportservices/    
To book tickets for the event contact Lilly’s Pharmacy on 01 689 6819 book online at https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/taking-care-of-me-tickets-59890723767