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I’m a 21-year-old woman who was recently diagnosed with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), which is one of the reasons behind my weight gain. Being someone who has been living with body image issues, gaining all that weight from PCOS has affected my mental health. I’m insecure about my body, and I fear being judged. This has especially affected my romantic pursuits. Maybe it’s society’s beauty standards that makes me doubt my worth, but no matter what anyone says, I don’t feel comfortable when people get close to me. Sometimes, I tell myself that people are just trying to take advantage of me even when they’re genuinely interested in me. I have trust issues. What should I do?—J.K  Answered by Dristy Moktan, psychosocial counselor, Happy Minds I understand that being diagnosed with PCOS isn’t easy. It causes hormonal imbalance, mood swings, and irritability, which can be quite overwhelming for your mental health. On top of that, being insecure about your body image might be making the situation even more difficult for you. Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean it’s not manageable. There are a lot of women living with PCOS, and they have sound mental health. So I want to assure you that if you put a certain level of effort, you will be fine too.  First, I would like to talk about your body image issues. Our society has set a certain beauty standard that many think they should fit into perfectly. But I know even you know that not everyone looks the same and that people in their own way are beautiful. Ask yourself this: Would you ever judge someone based on their physique? You know you wouldn’t. So, why refrain from showing the same kindness and compassion to yourself? Yes, I know there are going to be people who will never understand how much they talk about your body image will bother you. But, that doesn’t mean you should believe everything they say. I know it’s easier said than done but if you don’t love yourself for who you are, who will?  Sometimes, we tend to refrain from finding out the core reason behind having these issues. Either we are in denial, or we don’t want to dig deep and face the problem. Don’t do that. It’s easier to find a solution to your insecurities when you know what’s triggering them. From what you have written in your question, I believe you are still not aware of the trigger. Take some time and think about what the reasons are behind these insecurities. Then maybe you will find some answers on how to overcome them.  Journaling helps. Our feelings can be fuzzy. You might not always understand your emotions. It can become perplexing. Expressing your emotions in writing can help you understand your feelings better. Managing those emotions will then become easier.  Also, try talking to someone who has been facing similar issues. Learning how they cope with their problems can give you an idea on how you can manage yours too. Finding your own way of healing will require you to try a lot of things until one of those methods works. But you will never know unless you try. On top of that, sharing your feelings with someone who can empathize with you can be therapeutic. This will also help with your trust and attachment issues with people. You will slowly learn to get comfortable with people getting close to you, romantically too. You just need to know what your comfort zone is before you jump into any kind of relationship.  The solution to body image and trust issues is gradual. You have to give yourself enough time to heal and move forward. But if it gets too difficult for you to handle your emotions, the best option would be to consult a mental health professional.

National Innovation Center Chairman Mahabir Pun and the government signed a seven-point agreement on Monday. Chairman Pun and Minister for Defense and Minister of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Purna Bahadur Khadka on behalf of the government signed the agreement this afternoon. Following the agreement, the sit-in among protest programs led by Pun has come to an end. According to the agreement, the government will establish a fund and invest in carrying out research and development and innovation and invention related activities. Similarly, the government will table a bill in the upcoming session of the Parliament and endorse it to manage and operate the fund and to prepare the draft of the bill within 60 days in consultation with stakeholders. Likewise, it has been mentioned in the agreement that one percent of the capital budget will be deposited in the fund from the next financial year and formulate necessary policies and laws to promote research and development and innovation and invention related activities.

Mohan Baidhya-led CPN (Revolutionary Maoist) and Dharmendra Bastola-led CPN (Bahumat) have unified on Monday. The name of the new party announced amidst a formal program in the Capital this afternoon will be ‘Revolutionary Communist Party Nepal’. Newly formed Revolutionary Communist Party Nepal Chairman Baidhya, party spokesperson Bastola, officer members and party advisors among others were present in the program.  

The government continues efforts for safety and rescue of Nepalis in Sudan amidst a challenging security situation. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the government is in regular contact with the Nepali citizens in the country in northeast Africa and the Nepali Embassy in Cairo of Egypt continues to update about their situation and rescue as well. So far 30 Nepali citizens except those security personnel deputed for the UN peacekeeping missions there have come into contact with the Embassy. As per the request of the Embassy, the Saudi Arabia government cooperated to safely bring 19 Nepalis from the Port Sudan to Jeddah of Saudi Arabia, according to the Nepali Consulate in Jeddah. Prior to this, a Nepali safely reached Jeddah and preparations are on to send them back to home. Five, out of the remaining 11 Nepali citizens who are in contact with the Nepali Embassy in Cairo, have already left for Port Sudan. Efforts are on to transport one from Khartoum to Port Sudan and three have reached Port Sudan with the help of their employer company and are staying in a hotel on their own. Similarly, arrangements are in place to escort two from Khartoum to safety near the Egyptian border by their employer company. The government has thanked all for facilitating and cooperating it to undertake rescue for Nepali in Sudan that has been plunged into internal conflict for weeks. It is reported that the security situation is still not eased there and the government has urged the Nepali population there to stay safe and indoor except in emergency. The government has in emergency requested to call Deepak Ghimire (second secretary, Embassy) at Mobile/WhatsApp +201097772348, +201029606662 or email at [email protected].  

The Rastriya Swatantra Party elected President Rabi Lamichhane as its Parliamentary Party leader. A Central Committee meeting of the RSP held on Monday decided to elect Lamichhane as the leader of the Parliamentary Party, party spokesperson Mukul Dhakal said. The Parliamentary Party will endorse the decision. Lamichhane had resigned from the leader of the Parliamentary Party after he lost the post of lawmaker over the citizenship issue. Later, Dol Prasad Aryal was made the Parliamentary Party leader. Aryal has submitted the resignation to Deputy Parliamentary Party leader Biraj Bhakta Shrestha after Lamichhane was re-elected as the lawmaker from Chitwan-2.

A month after the Rasuwagadhi-Kerung border point was reopened for two-way trade between Nepal and China, the Tatopani-Khasa border is also set to resume two-way trade from Monday. Tatopani Customs Office said that it is ready for two-way trade through the border point. “We are preparing to send goods from Nepal to China. A truck of handicrafts is ready for export through this border point for the first time in the last three years,” said an official at the customs office. Officials however don’t have big expectations from the two-way trade through his border point immediately because cross-border movement of people will not be allowed through his border point. “China will not allow Nepali trucks to the Chinese side,” the official said. “Both sides will unload each other's goods to the border point and take transport away to their respective areas avoiding direct contact between people of two countries.” Even though China has allowed drivers and Nepalis in the bordering areas to go up to Kerung through the Rasuwagadhi-Kerung border point, cross-border movement of humans will not be allowed through the Tatopani border point. “The Chinese side has said that the issue of cross-border movement of humans will be decided later,” the customs official said. Given the restrictive conditions set by China for the resumption of the two-way traffic of goods, Nepali officials say it will not boost Nepal's export any time soon. Nepali importers have been importing mainly agricultural products such as apples, and garlic among others through this border point. According to the Department of Customs (DoC), Nepal imported goods worth Rs 8.62 billion through the Tatopani border point in the first nine months of the current fiscal year while no exports took place over the period. Meanwhile, goods worth Rs 19.51 billion were imported via the Rasuwagadhi border while exports worth Rs 215 million were exported along the border point. A significant number of handicraft products, particularly bamboo chairs, had been exported through the Rasuwagadhi border point, according to customs officials. During the first meeting of the Nepal-China Coordination Mechanism on Border Trade and Cooperation held in Lhasa in March, two sides reached an agreement to reopen the borders for two-way trade. These border points have not been fully operational since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020. Initially, Nepal chose to close the border after the coronavirus outbreak in China, but the border points could not be fully operational due to the strict zero-Covid policy adopted by the northern neighbor. China on Dec 28 last year opened the Rasuwagadhi border point even for exports of Nepali goods though it was already reopened for one-way import of goods from China only. Tatopani-Khasa border point has remained closed for a long time, though it was occasionally reopened since the pandemic hit the world. Even after reopening the Rasuwagadhi border points for two-way traffic of goods, China has been imposing a quota system for the export and import of goods which has prevented the full realization of export and import through this border point. Currently, most of the trade with China takes place through the sea route via India. DoC statistics show Nepal’s imports from China stood at Rs 162.44 billion against the export of Rs 636.83 million as of the nine months of the current fiscal year. Since the Covid-19 pandemic began, Nepali exporters have been forced to use expensive air routes to export certain goods to China. The customs official said that Nepal’s export growth would also depend on whether Chinese authorities would continue to impose non-tariff barriers. “For example, the Chinese side has not yet allowed Nepal to export food items through Rasuwagadhi border points even though other types of goods have been allowed to export,” said an official at Rasuwagadhi Customs Office.

The Rastriya Swatantra Party has said that it will take a decision on joining the government only on Friday. During a Central Committee meeting of the party held on Monday, the leaders discussed taking a decision on joining the government only on Friday, RSP spokesperson Mukul Dhakal said. He said that the final decision on the issue will be taken after holding a meeting on Friday.    

Nepali Congress leader Shekhar Koirala stressed that there should be representation of workers at the policy making level. In a message on the occasion of International Labour Day, the Congress leaders said that there should be the representation of workers at the policy making level to take ahead the rights of workers. “The representation of workers is necessary at the policy making level of the state to establish the rights of workers,” he said. Leader Koirala demanded that the government form a Labour Commission to resolve the problems of workers.