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How to stop using alcohol as a confidence crutch

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:42 GMT

(CNN) — Sobriety from alcohol can be good for your health and your wallet — and that phase of life when you realize those memes about hangovers at 21 versus hangovers in your late 20s or 30s actually are true.For some people, including me, going alcohol-free is also the solution when drinking starts to harm your mental health. But doing so can create a predicament if you still want to hang out in bars, clubs or parties where drinking alcohol is both the norm — and the main thing helping you feel at ease in those environments.As social animals with the need to belong in a tribe or community, “we get anxious in social situations because, with social anxiety, there is a sense that people will judge or reject us,” said Dr. Ellen Hendriksen, a clinical psychologist and author of “How to Be Yourself: Quiet Your Inner Critic and Rise Above Social Anxiety.”“So we work very hard to try to conceal the things we think might make us vulnerable, the things that people might think are wrong...

Gaza health ministry says 2,329 Palestinians killed since start of war, making it deadliest Gaza war for Palestinians

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:42 GMT

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Gaza health ministry says 2,329 Palestinians killed since start of war, making it deadliest Gaza war for Palestinians.Source

Gaza hospitals warn that thousands could die if supplies run out as Israeli ground offensive looms

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:42 GMT

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Medics in Gaza warned Sunday that thousands could die if hospitals packed with wounded people run out of fuel and basic supplies, as civilians struggled to find food, water and safety ahead of an expected Israeli ground offensive in the war sparked by Hamas’ deadly attack last week.Israeli forces, supported by a growing deployment of U.S. warships in the region, positioned themselves along Gaza’s border and drilled for what Israel said would be a broad campaign to dismantle the militant group. A week of blistering airstrikes have demolished entire neighborhoods but failed to stem militant rocket fire into Israel. The Gaza Health Ministry said 2,329 Palestinians have been killed since the fighting erupted, more than in the 2014 Gaza war, which lasted over six weeks. That makes this the deadliest of the five Gaza wars for both sides. More than 1,300 Israelis have been killed, the vast majority of them civilians killed in Hamas’s Oct. 7 assaul...

Pakistani forces clash with militants and kill 6 fighters during a raid in the northwest

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:42 GMT

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistan security forces killed six militants and wounded eight others in a shootout during an overnight raid in the country’s northwest, the military said Sunday. Security forces conducted an intelligence-based operation in the Mir Ali area of the North Waziristan District when they exchanged fire with militants, the military said. One soldier also died and troops recovered weapons and ammunition from the militants’ hideout. North Waziristan had served for decades as a safe haven for militants until the military carried out a major operation after an attack on an army-run school in Peshawar in 2014 killed more than 150 people, mostly schoolchildren. After the yearslong operation, the army announced it had cleared the region of local and foreign militants. Occasional attacks have continued, however, raising concerns that the local Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, found sanctuaries in Afghanistan and are regrouping in the area.The Pakistani Talib...

Daily horoscope for October 15, 2023

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:42 GMT

Moon Alert: Avoid shopping or important decisions from 3 a.m. to 7:15 a.m. EDT today (midnight to 4:15 a.m. PDT). After that, the Moon moves from Libra into Scorpio.Happy Birthday for Sunday, Oct. 15, 2023:You are passionate, intelligent and imaginative. You can be so persuasive and seductive that you empower others. Expect exciting changes this year, along with increased personal freedom. Stay flexible and be ready to let go of anything that impedes your progress and growth. Travel is likely.ARIES(March 21-April 19)★★★★Today you’re energetic and pumped! You have ideas that you want to set in motion to improve your long-range future. Tonight: Romance! This Week: Good times with partners and close friends.TAURUS(April 20-May 20)★★★★You might have a lively discussion with a partner or close friend today. Or you might encounter someone, perhaps someone in the general public, who is aggressive or very direct. (It will be wise to keep your eyes open.) Tonight: Schmooze. This Week: ...

Dear Abby: The family letter is meant to be upbeat but I can’t bring myself to read it

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:42 GMT

DEAR ABBY: Is there any way to end the “holiday newsletter”?Related ArticlesAdvice | Dear Abby: Do I need to make a formal goodbye to an unwanted friend? Advice | Dear Abby: I took in her cat and it was a big mistake. How do I get out of this? Advice | Dear Abby: Am I overreacting to my dinner guest’s unseemly request? Advice | Dear Abby: I suspect this girl is not really my fiance’s niece. Should I demand the truth? Advice | Dear Abby: I’m afraid she’ll get us kicked out of the restaurant. Any advice? Every Christmas, I get one from a particular family member, which invariably includes a list of their glowing accomplishments, expensive trips, etc., accompanied by lots of photos. Nobody else in our family sends these kinds of letters, and I don’t know how they feel about receiving it. Last December, I couldn’t even read it because it made me so depressed.My...

EU triples funding to Gaza after a week of mixed messages on Israel crisis

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:42 GMT

The European Commission is tripling its humanitarian assistance to Gaza as the bloc comes under mounting pressure to present a coherent policy on the Israel-Gaza crisis. The EU’s executive arm will increase its humanitarian funding to Gaza from €25 million to €75 million. The announcement was made following a phone call Saturday between European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, who has been one of the leading international figures calling for restraint from Israel in response to the Hamas attack.Von der Leyen and European Parliament President Roberta Metsola visited Israel on Friday to pay tribute to the victims of Hamas’ attack on Israel, which have claimed the lives of more than 1,300 people. But they have received some push-back for failing to publicly call for restraint by Israel as it launches an attack on Gaza. In contrast, EU foreign ministers earlier in the week stressed the need for restraint and called fo...

Biden speaks with Netanyahu, Abbas

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:42 GMT

U.S. President Joe Biden reiterated U.S. efforts to prevent the Israel-Hamas conflict from escalating into a regional war and to safeguard civilians’ access to vital resources, according to readouts of separate calls with Israeli and Palestinian leaders Saturday.Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that all countries must “condemn Hamas as a terrorist organization that does not represent the aspirations of the Palestinian people,” while reiterating U.S. support for Israel.Biden’s call with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was the first between the two since Hamas’ attack last week, while his conversation with Netanyahu was their fifth such call.“President Biden condemned Hamas’ brutal attack on Israel and reiterated that Hamas does not stand for the Palestinian people’s right to dignity and self-determination,” said the White House readout of the call with Abbas, adding that Biden offered Abbas and the Palestinian Authority his full support for humanitar...

MLB Notes: What we know about candidates for top Red Sox job

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:42 GMT

It’s no secret the Boston Red Sox have experienced a lot of front office turnover, and in the coming weeks the club will hire its fourth head of baseball operations this decade. The last three didn’t make it through four full seasons, and two departed not long after winning a World Series championship.One quick hook can be forgiven, or even two, but three is a trend, and seeing that instability it’d be natural for any prospective candidate to wonder how much rope they’d get. But asked if he’s concerned quality candidates might shy away, Red Sox CEO Sam Kennedy said at the year-end press conference he believes the job is among the best in baseball and people will jump at the opportunity to run the historic club.“This is the Boston Red Sox. If you want to run a baseball organization, this is where you want to be, you want to be in Boston,” Kennedy said. “Why? Because it matters here more than anywhere else, so if you’re not up for ...

Packed Gaza hospitals warn that thousands could die as supplies run low and ground offensive looms

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:42 GMT

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Medics in Gaza warned Sunday that thousands could die as hospitals packed with wounded people run desperately low on fuel and basic supplies. Palestinians in the beseiged coastal enclave struggled to find food, water and safety ahead of an expected Israeli ground offensive in the war sparked by Hamas’ deadly attack last week.Israeli forces, supported by a growing deployment of U.S. warships in the region, positioned themselves along Gaza’s border and drilled for what Israel said would be a broad campaign to dismantle the militant group. A week of blistering airstrikes have demolished entire neighborhoods but failed to stem militant rocket fire into Israel. The Gaza Health Ministry said 2,329 Palestinians have been killed since the fighting erupted, more than in the 2014 Gaza war, which lasted over six weeks. That makes this the deadliest of the five Gaza wars for both sides. More than 1,300 Israelis have been killed, the vast majority of them civ...