Single Ladies In Your Area - Trying To Feel Less Hopeless When The World Is Fcked

Episode Date: January 11, 2026

We’re still on our summer holidays and we’ll be back VERY soon, but this week’s bonus episode is a little different. A simple chat about how life is going accidentally escalated into a conversation how awful things are in the world right now. It’s hard not to feel hopeless, but you’re not alone. Big love to everyone. Trigger Warning: In this episode we discuss infant death and severe human sufferingSupport the brilliant charity All Our Relations by donating if you can: allourrelations.co.uk and follow them on Instagram for the latest updates @_allourrelationsJoin your local campaign group and learn how else you can support Palestine by heading to palestinecampaign.orgLearn about the BSD (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement and why it's important by following @bds.movement on InstagramFollow Single Ladies In Your Area on Instagram @singleladiespodRecorded and edited by Aniya Das for Plosive.Artwork by Welcome Studio. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Oh, hello, this is Harriet Kemsley, and I'm very excited to be back on tour around the UK with my new show, Flusi. As listeners of the podcast will know, I am really trying my best to be a bit of a flusie, but it's not going particularly well. The dates are on sale now. It's going to be autumn 2026. For tickets and information, head to plosive.com.com. Oh, hello, everybody. Hello there. This episode's a little bit different. It wasn't quite what we planned as we're still on our summer holes. Yes.

Yeah, it was meant to be an intro to another episode and then somehow we just started talking about how shit the world is right now and we just wanted it to come out sooner. Yeah, so have a listen. And there's some helpful links at the end and hopefully it helps. Sending lots of love to everybody. We're back.

We're back. Yeah. How was your summer holidays? It's good. Summer is so busy. It's like every day I don't really know what I'm doing and I'm just dealing with every day at a time. Yes.

Just literally on the day. And then people are like, have you prepared for this? And I'm like, that seems like on the day kind of problem to me. And so that's how it's going. But I'm also trying to have fun. It's hard though, isn't it, fitting fun in? It's so hard scheduling fun because I think fun isn't meant to be scheduled. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Have to schedule it. Schedule it. Otherwise it's not going to happen. I get that. I've realised I can't truly have fun unless my bedroom's tidy. Yes. Well, I read a stat about this, which is apparently that women, when we see clutter and mess, it affects us. It affects like our release of hormones or whatever to make us more stressed.

And men don't have that. I don't know if this is science, but I read it on Instagram. It's science. And so I think it's science because it's so true because if everything's cluttering, in my room, I feel so stressed. And my chest of drawers has fallen apart. You actually wouldn't believe it. It's like the drawers have gradually all fallen out.

And they're just a pile. And I'm like, I don't have the space to deal with this right now. My keys are falling down behind the radiator. That's another thing. Because these are all like jobs that take up a certain amount of time that I don't have the time for. But then every day is just a bit harder because of it. Every day is just incrementally harder and more stressful

because the systems are broken. But we don't have time to fix the system. You don't have times of fixer systems. Yeah. I feel exactly the same. My room is in such a state because I've been going away and then coming back for like a night. Yeah. So I've been coming back with a full suitcase and I got a set of three suitcases.

Currently they are all full. Oh my God. No, that would make me so stressed. They are all full. And then I've got a pile of washing and then I need to pack for two different things. So last night I like opened one of the suitcases and tipped it out on my bed and then I was like, there was so much, there was so much stuff on my bed. I did have a thought where I was like,

I'm going to have to get a hotel for tonight. I was like, I can't, there's no way one woman can deal with this. So I was like, what am I going to do? And then it was so hot. My flat is so hot. And nothing is cooling it down. And there was a point where I just like pushed all the stuff just to one side of the bed. And I was just laid and I had to take all my clothes off because I was so stressed.

I think I'd overheated. And I was just laid on this. bed with just piles of clothes that need dealing with. And I just thought, I can't, I don't know why this is going to be the thing that takes me over the edge. Yeah. I feel like I've dealt with so much, but I feel like the clothes in my bedroom are the thing that is going to end me. It's so funny. I've been feeling exactly the same where the levels of stress are just building and building. And you're just, it's like, I'm trying to look above it and just not look at it because I can't address it. And then there's packages and things that I need to return.

And as we know, that is a very stressful thing to me. And it takes up a large, a large window of time. And I don't have the windows to do it. So I don't know. Everything is, like society is crumbling. Yeah. And I don't know. Well, this is the thing.

I'm wondering if I'm putting my feelings and anxiety from another thing in the world that's happening right now, which is the worst thing that we've ever lived through, onto the clutter in my room. Because I'm tearful at this clutter. Yeah. in a way that is bonkers. And I think I feel so stressed in my bedroom.

And then last night, I didn't sleep well because as soon as you start scrolling and reading about what's happening, and I saw, I mean, on Instagram you see all sorts, don't you? But I saw the worst thing I've ever seen last night at about 1 a.m. And it just like a clip of, like, a baby being resuscitated. And it was in Gaza.

like the most harrowing thing I've ever seen. And then you just have to like go, right, well, I just get on with my day then. And we all know that it's happening. And we just have to sort of plod along and get along. And it's like, I feel like it's almost like, you know, when we had the pandemic, and it's just this like weird thing that sort of seeps into everything. And I think it affects, it must as a human just like affect you knowing what's going on. And then the clothes, it's like, this is too much now.

This is too much for anything. want to deal with and where the lucky ones. It's just so, I just, I think we're in just a really strange, I don't want to get this serious, but it's just like, we're in just in a very strange time where we're just carrying on when, yeah, I am, there's big things happening. I feel completely the same. I've been speaking to a woman who's over there who has two kids and it's just, I just feel, I try and post it every few days. Yeah. But I don't know, it's just, I don't know why nothing is like, they're starving or,

Yeah. It's just like to, and then you're complaining about my chest of drawers. I know. I know. Like, it's just such a head fuck where you're like, this isn't being human. Like, how can this be being human? How can it be like just like just carrying on while something like this is happening in the world? And how is no one doing it?

Like it just feels like how is no one doing anything? I just don't, I just don't understand it. And if anyone is listening and is feeling that way and wants to feel. like they can do something. Jen Brister has an amazing charity called All Our Relations. So I really recommend following Jen and looking at their page and donating whatever you can there or just to feel like there's something to do because I think that's part of it.

You just feel so powerless. And when people that are meant to, the people that we've elected that are meant to make decisions for us are, I don't know what they're doing. How can they not be thinking about it? It feels, the feeling I have in my body is like, do you know, do you ever have a nightmare where you're in a situation and you're like trying to like fight someone off or something, but you're in like toffee or like you're underwater? And it's like, or you're screaming and no one can hear you.

It sort of feels like that is just how we live now. We're just like, we're all, we all know what's happening. And the people that can do something are just like, well, I'm going to put an eight. 80 year old woman in prison for wearing a t-shirt and you're like, okay. All right then. All right, yeah, put Sue in prison, shall we? Fuck sake! Christ, I'm so sorry.

I didn't even mean to bring this up, but it's just like how, it's just, it's like, in your throat, like a lump when you're about to cry, it's like just there all the time. But what do we do? But we've got to carry on because us being, doing nothing is not, is, is, it's, equally as unhelpful. Yeah, and it's not even the only tragedy that's happening around the world at the moment. That's it. It's just, it feels, to me, it feels a bit like I started to watch severance and, you know, when they just go to work and they're just like getting on with things and then they're like, let's not think about what's happening in the real world, you know, let's just do

these actions. Yes. You're not, everything is being compartmentalist. Yeah. That's another thing. And I think our, as generations go, we do, we do want to face things head. on, I think. We don't want to push things down anymore. We want to help people. Like, it's fucking nuts. I don't know. I do not know what to do.

What I will say is I am during my period and I watched, you know, the Doctors Under Fire, what the documentary that the BBC wouldn't show, but then Channel 4 did. I watched that and it, again, just, like, beyond what I even imagined was going on. And within 10 minutes, because I was like, what can I, what can I do? I was Googling, I mean, it was late at night.

And I do need to have a proper think about this. Thank God, it wasn't just like I'd press a button there. And then I was Googling how I could adopt. Because there's going to be so many orphans. And I was like, okay, so how do I adopt? I could probably do that in like a year. I could, like, spend the next year, like, sorting everything out. And I could get myself ready to like look after an orphan.

And I was like, is this like, am I being like a white night, being like, I'll go in and help one of these Palestinian kids? And then I was like, no, but I don't know. But if there was a button where it was like adopt and a child will be sent to you in 24 hours, I would have about 55 children today. Thank God that button doesn't exist. For your sake and for the children's sake, thank God there is not. Hey, kids.

I've got no experience in this. I am a comedian and a podcaster. I think I can change your life. I was like, what am I doing? But it just felt like the only tangible thing I could do. Yeah. But I also think I probably just need to have this period. Anyway.

Have you been on any dates? I think we're all, yeah, we're all a little bit to hearful because it just, it's just, it's just so, it's just, I don't, yeah, I don't, there's, that, that, what it is. There's not like it just feels like there's nothing, nothing seems to be making a difference. And yeah, just the price of food over there is just going up and up and there's less of it. And I just don't understand how aid can't get in. It's just, um, yeah. Yeah, it's just all a bit, um, a bit brutal. And, um, I think humanity needs to have a good,

hard look at itself because we are not doing, we're not doing it right. There's something, there's something wrong. And anyone that thinks that this is okay, like it's just a thing of, it's all of us. You know, like that's what all our relations is, it's all of us. And it could be, it could be us one day. It could be anybody like no one is immune because who knows what the fuck is going to happen in this. I know. And you feel like it's coming from, well, let's say men.

men in charge. It's, and it's, you know, it shows how one person, just trying to sort of somehow link it back to this podcast, one man can be so destructive. One horny man. If Benjamin Netanyahu was on hinge, I would block and report. That's the only way I can think to link it back in any sort of light way

to this dating podcast, to this lighthearted dating podcast, where we're three women sat in a room, all on the verge of tears. But we must carry on. And you know what? It feels sort of a weird, disingenuous way to live to compartmentalise it.

It feels like you shouldn't be allowed to. It feels like you're, it feels so selfish and disgusting to be like, I can't think about it every second of the day. But in reality, we can't because if you do just fully, if you actually let yourself fully feel and think about what's going on every second of the day, you'd go so insane so quickly that you'd be no use to anyone. And in the long run, that's not helpful.

It's not positive. And also what we need to remember, I'm trying to give myself reasons for still going on and doing comedy and podcasts. We need to remember that people, good people who are trying to affect a change, need escapism. And this might be one of the things that they pop on. Oh yeah. Let's just listen to the single ladies have a nice break. Oh, for fuck sake.

There's no escape anywhere. Yeah. Yeah. But we, but yes, we need to just, uh, I feel like we're offering a service, you know? In our own way, we are helping. useless service, kind of. Not for the single women in our area. Yeah, we love our single women.

We have so many beautiful, honest letters coming from, not just women, from anybody and everybody saying, thank you for doing this podcast. It's really helped me feel less alone. And that's always been our motto. And all we're doing here is helping people feel less alone. And so we must continue, Harriet. Yeah. And I think that is true.

And I think that the instinct sometimes is to be like, oh my God, this is so. overwhelming. I don't want to look or think about it and actually it's good to be aware of it. It's good to know and you have to look after yourself but it's good to know because you can't just ignore what's happening. You have to look after yourself but when people say, oh, I can't watch the news or I can't deal with it. It's too upsetting. It's like that's not actually, you actually, we have to, we have to be aware of what's happening because it's otherwise. It's a real privilege. You're in a real privileged position if you can say, well, I don't watch the news, it's upsetting.

Yeah. You have to watch the news equally. Where you get your news source from is that's maybe a choice. Yeah. And also, if you're mentally a bit fragile and who isn't? Yeah, and some days you can't. And some days you can't. Pre-period is real hard.

A blanket ban of, oh, I don't want to think about it. Yes. Unacceptable. I think so. It's hard to say that, but I have people in my life that say that. And then you think, but how are you human? how are you living in this world when these things are happening? We need to be aware.

But then it's like, I guess the awareness doesn't make any fucking difference. That's what it feels like. It's like I feel so aware. But what does the difference make? But then it feels like we have to be aware to consciously... Yeah. I'm doing a lot of gestures with my hands. I just explain, which isn't going on a podcast,

being very passionate with my hands. Because I'm not sure what to say with my words. But I think that's the point, isn't it? I think sometimes I feel really... like I'm not, I always feel like I'm not the person to speak about this because I don't know enough. And it's like, but do you know what? Not that you're not. Okay, you're like, yeah, yeah, you've got you.

But I always feel like, oh, I can't, I shouldn't be it because I don't, I don't know enough. I don't know the facts and the figures. And truthfully, that's how most of us are political scientists who've studied it for 30 years. And we shouldn't be afraid of. Speak for yourself. We shouldn't be afraid of speaking about our experience of it and our just in terms of being a human and our humanity towards it. That's it.

And things that we can be aware of is the distractions. Is the focus on kneecap? Yes. Bob Villain is the focus on the CEO having an affair with his wife. You're like, yeah, sure, I love that story. But it shouldn't be more in the press than a genocide. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Yeah, the fact that it's just hard to exist when everyone isn't screaming.

Like, let's do something about this when it feels like that's what you're screaming inside. And then you're just looking at people and they're saying, oh, like, oh, do you want to get a coffee or whatever? And you're like, but I'm screaming inside. How are you just getting a coffee? I don't understand. Yeah, I know. And so you feel a bit mad. And so I think talking about it is good.

If you want to help out in anywhere, we've put together a few things that might make you feel a bit less helpless. Yeah, we've had some suggestions from friends. It's so difficult because it's still, I mean, obviously none of this is enough. But suggestions we've had are, is to join your local Palestine Solidarity Campaign Group. You can find details on PalestineCampaign.org. And you can join demonstrations and protests. Yes, all them details will be on that website.

So you can also boycott Israeli products when you're doing your big shop. and there's also some corporations and companies up there, which you can boycott and avoid. And you can find out why that's important, still on this Palestine campaign.org website. But also you could follow on Instagram. There is an account called BDS.movement. And that's very helpful for people like me who really don't know

the what's and the whys and the wends and the who. Yeah, they literally have pictures. They've got pictures. Yeah, of products. It's very helpful. Yeah, yeah. Follow Jen Brist. follow all our relations, the brilliant charity that she helps that up.

And another thing that was suggested is to keep talking to friends and colleagues and to not let the issue fade. I think it's something that we've been aware of for so long now. 21 months it's been going on. Wow. 21 months. It's not going anywhere and it's so awful. Yeah. But just to keep it to keep talking about it.

it to not let it fade. It's got to the point where we cannot do nothing. And as individuals, even if we can just donate where you can and if you can go to demonstrations and things like that, I think it's the very least we can do. Yeah, it's unbelievable. Not only are people over there having to deal with airstrikes. They are also literally being starved. The price of flour has gone up to, I think it's over $60. Yeah. a kilogram at the moment. Like it's just like un... And you can't get it anywhere.

And it's scarce. And it's just aid isn't being let in. It's just people are being starved and attacked from all sides. It's just unimaginable. So let's do what we can. Yeah. Keep on trucking. Keep on trucking.

Keep on trucking everyone out there. We love you. We love you. Goodbye. Hello. I'm Lucy Beaumont. And I'm Sam Campbell. As a matter of fact.

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Our podcast is out every Friday. It's really easy to remember. It's like if you've got an office job, it's the first day you feel alive again. Lucy and Sam's Perfect Brains, one of the hottest podcasts. People are going crazy for this podcast. Yeah, please give it a listen. We're loaded up on buzz balls. We've got a Laboo in both hands and we are ready to screech.