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In my childhood, I had many bouts of explosive rage, which led me to throw things, misbehave with friends and family and even cut my arms. As I grew up, I started developing depressive symptoms. I had problems concentrating in my studies and work. It's been some years since I started working and I don’t enjoy it. The issue with me is that I give up too easily. I am 30 now and I still feel angry at myself thinking about my past. I recently smashed my phone and tore my driving license. Family conflicts are also fairly common with me. I feel unloved, uncared for, and ignored. I often get demotivated. What should I do? Please help! —M.J.

Answered by Dristi Moktan, Counsellor, Happy Minds  

Given all that you have experienced since childhood and that things have only become worse with time, it would be preferable to consult a mental health expert. Anger issues in early stages can be somewhat self-managed, but as they intensify, you must be aware of your own limits. They are often too much to handle on your own. It is advisable to get professional help as anger issues are often symptoms of an underlying cause. 

But here are a few strategies you can use to manage your anger. It's important to first think about what makes you angry, what you actually feel when you're angry, what are the consequences that follow, is it hurting you, or are you merely expressing your sentiments? You might want to keep track of your anger. Being more emotionally aware of yourself can enable you to see things clearly. The more you express your feelings, the more they'll help. You can also try writing down your feelings when you get angry. 

Another thing you can do is to delay your response: if you feel angry, try to hold back your response and then reflect on the situation. We can't control our emotions, but we can control our responses. If you ever get a feeling of anger rising inside you, take a deep breath, hold it and exhale slowly. If that still doesn't work, consider leaving the situation that is triggering your anger. You can also imagine a pleasant scenario to help you calm down.  

Practicing meditation can also be beneficial to regulate your emotions. Given enough time and practice, all of these approaches can help you develop a robust coping mechanism for anger.

Cheese Square is arguably the only restaurant in Kathmandu Valley specializing in cheese-based dishes. The name of the joint itself should give you the idea about what it’s all about. Located in Jhamsikhel, Lalitpur, the place serves items that are simple yet personalized. Try their Mac and Cheese, Chicken Parmesan, and Burgers if you are there. They have created their own tasty takes on these popular dishes prepared with in-house recipes and served with special sauce. You won’t be disappointed.  

Chef’s special:

• Mac and Cheese

• Chicken Parmesan 

• Burgers

Opening hours: 10:30 am to 9:30 pm 

Location: Jhamsikhel

Meal for 2: Rs. 1,000

Online Payment: Yes

Contact: 9861355607/9840016524

The price of gold has dropped by Rs 1, 000 per tola in the domestic market on Thursday.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers' Association, the yellow bullion is being traded at Rs 93, 000 per tola today.

Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 92, 500 per tola.

The yellow metal was traded at Rs 94, 000 per tola on Wednesday. 

Similarly, the price of silver has decreased by Rs 10 and is being traded at Rs 1,155 per tola today.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Wednesday that "more than 500 people" died during a 10-day heatwave in Spain, one of the most intense ever recorded in the country, NDTV reported.

Sanchez cited figures released Monday from the Carlos III Health Institute which estimates the number of heat-related deaths based on the number of excess deaths when compared to the average in previous years.

The institute has stressed that these figures are a statistical estimate and not a record of official deaths.

"During this heatwave, more than 500 people died because of such high temperatures, according to the statistics," Sanchez said.

"I ask citizens to exercise extreme caution," he said, noting that the "climate emergency is a reality".

Spain was gripped by a heatwave affecting much of Western Europe which pushed temperatures as high as 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) in some regions last week, sparking dozens of wildfires, according to NDTV.

The blazes forced the evacuation of thousands of people and claimed at least two lives -- that of a firefighter and a shepherd who got caught up in the flames in northwest Spain.

The July 9-18 heatwave was one of the most intense ever recorded in Spain, meteorological agency AEMET said Wednesday.

"At a minimum, it is the third most intense heatwave in terms of its geographic extension and duration" since modern records began in 1975, AEMET spokeswoman Beatriz Hervella said.

Only two other heatwaves lasted longer -- one in July 2015 that lasted 26 days and another in August 2003 that went on for 16 days, she added, NDTV reported.

Ethnic clashes in Sudan's Blue Nile state in a deadly land dispute killed 105 people and wounded 291, the state's health minister said, providing a new toll Wednesday, NDTV reported.

Fighting broke out in the southern state on the borders with Ethiopia and South Sudan on July 11 between members of the Berti and Hausa ethnic groups.

"The situation is now calm," state health minister Jamal Nasser told AFP by telephone from the state capital al-Damazin, some 460 kilometres (285 miles) south of Khartoum.

The deployment of the army had eased the fighting since Saturday, he said.

"The challenge now is in sheltering the displaced," Nasser said.

The United Nations said Tuesday that more than 17,000 people have fled their homes from the fighting, with 14,000 "sheltering in three schools in al-Damazin."

Between January and March this year, the UN said aid was provided to 563,000 people in Blue Nile.

Sudan, one of the world's poorest countries and mired in an economic crisis that has deepened since an October coup led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has seen only rare interludes of civilian rule since independence, according to NDTV.

In Sudan, deadly clashes regularly erupt over land, livestock and access to water and grazing, especially in areas still awash with weapons left over from decades of civil war.

Fighting in Blue Nile reportedly broke out after Bertis rejected a Hausa request to create a "civil authority to supervise access to land", a prominent Hausa member said.

But a senior Berti leader said the group was responding to a "violation" of their land by the Hausas.

While fighting is reported to have stopped and relative calm returned to Blue Nile, tensions have escalated in other states, where the Hausa people have taken to the streets demanding "justice for the martyrs."

Thousands protested Tuesday in Khartoum, North Kordofan, Kassala, Gedaref, and Port Sudan, according to AFP correspondents, NDTV reported.

US President Joe Biden plans to speak with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, by the end of the month at a moment of simmering tensions between the countries over Taiwan and trade, Reuters reported.

"I think I'll be talking to President Xi within the next 10 days," Biden told reporters as he returned from a climate-related trip to Massachusetts.

The long-discussed call between the two leaders, their first in four months, would come at a crucial moment given tensions over the status of Taiwan, and as the Biden administration weighs cutting import duties on goods from China to help reduce inflation pressures on American consumers.

The United States calls China its main strategic rival and says high-level engagement is important to keeping the difficult relationship stable and preventing it from veering inadvertently into conflict. Last month, Washington pushed NATO to adopt a strategic document calling China a security challenge.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Biden appeared to cast doubt on a trip reportedly planned by House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi to visit Taiwan next month.

"I think that the military thinks it's not a good idea right now, but I don't know what the status of it is," Biden said.

Beijing said on Tuesday that it would respond with "forceful measures" should Pelosi visit the Chinese-claimed island, and that such a visit would "seriously undermine China's sovereignty and territorial integrity."

Pelosi's office declined to comment on whether the visit is moving forward, citing security concerns. The State Department has called the trip "hypothetical." Plans for the trip were reported by the Financial Times, which also said the White House had expressed concerns, according to Reuters.

China considers the democratically-governed island its own territory, and the issue is a constant irritant in ties between Beijing and Washington.

Biden's administration has repeatedly spoken of its "rock-solid" commitment to the island's security.

US military vessels were conducting transits through the Taiwan Strait as recently as Tuesday, angering Beijing, which sent fighters across the strait's median line this month following a visit to Taipei by US Senator Rick Scott.

On trade, the Biden administration has been at odds with China over fulfilling its commitments to existing agreements.

But rising inflation has prompted a look at possible tariff relief, including on the 'Section 301' tariffs imposed by former President Donald Trump, covering some $370 billion in Chinese imports.

People familiar with the tariff deliberations have told Reuters that Biden also is weighing whether to pair a removal of some tariffs with a new investigation into China's industrial subsidies and efforts to dominate key sectors, such as semiconductors. Such a probe could lead to more tariffs, Reuters reported.

Wildfires are raging across Europe, where a heatwave has intensified drought conditions, BBC reported.

Though temperatures have cooled in France and the UK, firefighters are still tackling blazes in Greece, Spain and Italy.

The fires in France's badly hit south-west have started to be brought under control.

And as the heatwave moves north-east, low water levels are hampering transport on rivers in Germany.

Heatwaves have become more frequent, more intense, and last longer because of human-induced climate change. The world has already warmed by about 1.1C since the industrial era began and temperatures will keep rising unless governments around the world make steep cuts to emissions.

More than 1,000 deaths have been linked to the extremely high temperatures in Portugal while in Spain it is at least 500.

In Greece, firefighters were tackling a blaze on Mount Penteli, to the north-east of the capital Athens.

In the nearby town of Pallini, state electricity workers were scrambling to remove burnt pylons, the BBC's Kostas Koukoumakas reports.

Panagopoulos, 87, woke up at 03:00 (00:00 GMT) to a red sky. "The fire surrounded the house and I managed to leave the area by car," he said.

Mr Panagopoulos, who was for many years an amateur actor, said his house could be rebuilt but his collection of more than 1,200 theatre books had been turned to ashes.

Firefighting helicopters were dropping water, one after the other. Winds in excess of 80km/h (49mph) have made it harder to contain the fire.

Almost all the water carriers in the region have been deployed. Greece's fire service said additional support was expected from other regions.

Hundreds of people have been evacuated from surrounding areas, including eastern Gerakas, which is home to nearly 30,000 people. A paediatric hospital and the National Observatory of Athens have also been vacated.

France has had some of the worst fires, particularly in the southwest region of Gironde, though conditions for tackling them have improved. Temperatures fell from 40C (104F) on Tuesday to the mid-20s on Wednesday.

"The conditions are favourable" to tackle the blazes, the mayor of La Teste-de-Buch - one of the affected areas in Gironde - told the BBC. Patrick Davet added, however, that it was necessary to stay "humble" as conditions could change.

Visiting fire crews in Gironde, French President Emmanuel Macron said the shift in climate, which is leading to more wildfires, would force the EU to take "structural decisions". 

Ahead of his arrival, one firefighter told BBC News he thought France had been underprepared. While he understood the planes needed were very expensive, similar fires would happen in the future and France needed to bite the bullet and invest, the unnamed firefighter said.

Spain has also been battling multiple wildfires. 

Though one in the central province of Zamora has been brought under control, according to the local government, two large wildfires are still out of control in the north-western region of Galicia. A fire in the Gredos mountain range is also spreading east towards the Madrid region, the BBC's Guy Hedgecoe reports.

Some 5,600 hectares (13,800 acres) of land have also been burnt in the north-eastern region of Aragon. 

In Portugal, some 900 firefighters were fighting two active fires in the country's far north.

Major fires have also affected Italy in the past days, causing the country to be put on its highest heatwave alert for Thursday. Italian infrastructure has also been heavily impacted, with temporary closure of a key rail route between Rome and Florence, Italian media report. 

As the heatwave moves north-eastwards, parts of Germany have recorded 38C (100.4F) on Wednesday, according to its national weather service, DWD. 

Despite the hot temperatures, heavy rain, strong gusts of wind of around 100km/h and even hail are forecast.

Thunderstorms are also expected in Belgium. 

On Wednesday, Sweden recorded its hottest day of the year, with temperatures in the south-west reaching 32C.

There is no intelligence that Vladimir Putin is unstable or in bad health, the director of the CIA has said, BBC reported.

There has been increasing unconfirmed media speculation that Mr Putin, who turns 70 this year, may be suffering from ill health, possibly cancer.

But William Burns said there was no evidence to suggest this, joking that he appeared "too healthy". 

His comments came as the US announced it would provide Ukraine with more long-range weapons, according to BBC.

Earlier Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia's military focus in Ukraine was no longer "only" the east and implied Moscow's strategy had changed after the West supplied Ukraine with such weapons.