About Yananiso
Who We Are
Why We Are Here
Why We Are Here
Yananiso is dedicated to empowering women and youth, focusing on imparting crucial life skills and offering networking platforms to share experiences. Our capacity-building initiatives aim to motivate, inspire, and equip individuals for success!
Why We Are Here
Why We Are Here
Why We Are Here
We believe that thriving communities are the cornerstone of strong communities and nations. That's why we advocate for establishing sustainable livelihoods for women and youth through our life skills training centre. Life skills are like a versatile toolkit, empowering individuals to navigate life's challenges. From communication and prob
We believe that thriving communities are the cornerstone of strong communities and nations. That's why we advocate for establishing sustainable livelihoods for women and youth through our life skills training centre. Life skills are like a versatile toolkit, empowering individuals to navigate life's challenges. From communication and problem-solving to collaboration and creativity, these skills equip people to tackle obstacles with resilience and shape their own destinies. At Yananiso, we're committed to the belief that life skills are crucial for enhancing women's employability and broadening their opportunities for income generation.
Who We Love
Why We Are Here
Who We Love
Our team is dedicated to providing top-notch life skills training for women and youth, and we are motivated by the remarkable changes we witness in the people we serve. At Yananiso, we advocate for accessible life skills education regardless of economic status. Our training is facilitated through two distinct centres:
1. Eve-olve: This i
Our team is dedicated to providing top-notch life skills training for women and youth, and we are motivated by the remarkable changes we witness in the people we serve. At Yananiso, we advocate for accessible life skills education regardless of economic status. Our training is facilitated through two distinct centres:
1. Eve-olve: This initiative partners with both private and public-sector organizations to address issues related to women's emotional well-being and overall wellness.
2. Fortune Foundation: This program focuses on empowering high school students by enhancing their skills in Financial Literacy, Ethical Decision Making, and Business Management.
When Did Being Busy Become More Important Than Being Well?
The Things We Keep Ignoring Because We're "Too Busy"
"I'll go when I have time."
"It's probably nothing."
"I'm just tired."
"Let me finish this first."
Sound familiar?
How many times have we said these things to ourselves? Perhaps we've had a nagging pain for weeks, noticed something unusual about our bodies, or simply felt exhausted for longer than we can remember. But instead of finding out what's wrong, we convince ourselves that it can wait. After all, there's work to be done, children to look after, bills to pay, meals to prepare and a never-ending list of things demanding our attention. Somehow, our health keeps finding its way to the bottom of that list.
It's interesting how quickly we respond when something goes wrong with the people or things we care about. If our child isn't feeling well, we make arrangements to get them medical attention. If the car starts making a strange noise, we want to know what's wrong before it becomes an expensive problem. If something goes wrong at work, we do our best to sort it out before it gets worse. But when our own bodies try to tell us something, we often respond with, "I'll deal with it later." And sometimes, later becomes weeks. Weeks become months. And eventually, we become so accustomed to feeling a certain way that we begin to think it's normal.
Not every ache, pain or unusual symptom is a sign of something serious. Our bodies change as we grow older, and many symptoms have perfectly ordinary explanations. However, there are some changes worth paying attention to.
- Persistent pain you've been managing with painkillers, hoping it will eventually disappear.
- Unusual bleeding, particularly between periods, after sex or after menopause, that you've dismissed as hormonal changes.
- Persistent bloating that you keep blaming on something you ate, even though it keeps happening.
- Unexplained weight loss or gain that doesn't seem connected to changes in your eating habits or activity levels.
- A cough that won't go away, which you've been treating with one remedy after another.
- Changes in your bowel or bladder habits that are new, persistent or difficult to explain.
- A change in your breasts, such as a lump, swelling, nipple discharge or a change in appearance, that you're hoping will go away on its own.
- Constant tiredness that doesn't seem to improve even after you've rested.
- How often do we dismiss exhaustion as simply part of being a woman, a mother, an employee or someone with too many responsibilities?
The truth is, these symptoms can have many causes, and most do not automatically mean cancer or another serious illness. When something is new, persistent, unexplained or unusual for you, it's worth discussing with a healthcare professional.
If we're being fair to ourselves, sometimes the reason we postpone medical appointments has very little to do with our schedules. Sometimes we're afraid of what the doctor may say, the cost of treatment or discovering something that could change our lives. We may simply not have the money, transport or time away from work to get the medical attention we need. These are real challenges, particularly when we're already trying to stretch limited resources to meet our families' needs. However, avoiding a problem doesn't necessarily make it disappear.
While we cannot control every health outcome, seeking professional advice gives us a better opportunity to understand what's happening and what options are available. Taking care of yourself doesn't mean you care any less about the people who depend on you. It means recognising that your wellbeing matters too.
You are not selfish for taking care of yourself.
Breast Cancer
Knowing Your Body Could Make a Difference
Breast awareness isn't about diagnosing yourself. It's about noticing changes and knowing when to seek professional advice.
Your breasts don't have to look or feel exactly the same every day. Hormonal changes, age, pregnancy, breastfeeding and other factors can all affect how they look and feel. What matters is knowing what is normal for you and paying attention when something changes. A change does not automatically mean cancer. Many breast changes are caused by conditions that are not cancerous. However, a new or unusual change should be checked by a healthcare professional rather than being ignored or self-diagnosed.
A New Lump or Thickening
A new lump or area of thickening in the breast or armpit is one of the changes that should be assessed. People sometimes describe breast cancer lumps as hard, firm or less mobile than the surrounding tissue. However, there is no reliable way to identify a cancerous lump simply by how it feels. Some breast cancers may feel soft, tender or painful, while some benign lumps can feel quite firm.
Breast tissue can also naturally feel lumpy, particularly around hormonal changes and menstruation. The important thing is to pay attention to a new, persistent or noticeably different lump or area of thickening and have it assessed.
Changes in Size, Shape or Appearance
It is completely normal for one breast to be slightly different from the other. What deserves attention is a new or unexplained change in the size or shape of one breast. This might include a new swelling, bulge, distortion or other change that wasn't there before. A breast that suddenly becomes swollen, feels unusually heavy or changes noticeably in appearance should be assessed by a healthcare professional.
Skin Changes
Pay attention to new changes in the skin of the breast, including:
- Dimpling or puckering
- Persistent redness
- Scaling or flaking
- Thickening of the skin
- Changes in texture
- Swelling
One possible appearance is sometimes described as "peau d'orange", meaning the skin develops a texture that resembles the surface of an orange. These changes can have several causes, including infections and other non-cancerous conditions, but persistent or unexplained changes should be checked.
Nipple Changes
If your nipples have always been flat or inverted, that may simply be normal for you. A new change, however, deserves attention. This can include a nipple that was previously pointing outward and suddenly becomes inverted or changes direction. Unusual nipple discharge should also be assessed, particularly if it occurs without squeezing the nipple, comes from only one breast, or is clear or bloody.
Changes such as persistent crusting, scaling or sores around the nipple or areola should also be checked. In some cases, these changes can be associated with a rare type of breast cancer called Paget's disease of the breast.
But Here's Something Important...
You cannot determine whether a breast change is cancer simply by looking at it or feeling it.
Many non-cancerous breast conditions can cause symptoms that look or feel similar to breast cancer. For example:
- Fibroadenomas are common benign breast lumps that can feel firm and may move under the skin.
- Breast cysts are fluid-filled sacs that can appear suddenly and may feel firm or cause pain and swelling.
- Mastitis and other infections can cause redness, warmth, swelling and pain.
- Hormonal changes can cause breast tenderness, thickening and temporary lumps, particularly around menstruation.
This is why the answer is not to panic when you notice a change, but it also isn't to assume that it is nothing. Get it checked.
Early Detection Matters
If a breast change does turn out to be cancer, finding it at an earlier stage can provide more opportunities for effective treatment and can improve outcomes. Early detection does not mean that every change will be cancer, and it does not mean that cancer can always be cured simply because it is found early. What it does mean is that we give ourselves the best opportunity to understand what is happening and to receive appropriate care as soon as possible.
So don't diagnose yourself. Don't panic. Don't ignore something simply because you are afraid of what it might mean. If you notice something unusual, get it checked. Breast awareness isn't about living in fear of cancer. It's about knowing your body well enough to notice when something has changed and giving yourself the opportunity to find out what is happening.
Contact Us
We would love to hear from you!
Call or text us on: +263 (0) 784 457 367
4 Kirkaldy Road, Pomona, Harare, Zimbabwe
Hours of Business
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