by Paromita Pain
-USA-

“We cried the first time I told my family I had Sjögren's syndrome,” says Susan Ross. “Dealing with the pain and fatigue seemed so overwhelming at times, but I was glad to finally know what it was.”

Ross is among the lucky ones. It only took 10 years for doctors to diagnose her with Sjögren’s syndrome. An autoimmune disorder, Sjögren’s is finally making headlines thanks to tennis superstar Venus Williams, who pulled out of the U.S. Open, citing Sjögren's as a cause.

by Paromita Pain
-India-

Gropes, stealthy fingers that pinch and leave bruises, catcalls, severe beatings, systematic starvation, emotional torture and worse – harassment against women takes many forms, and like issues of hunger and poverty, it is global in scope.

The recent report, "Violence against Women Prevalence Data: Surveys by Country March 2011,” compiled by the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women (UN Women), says that most women will face harassment from either close partners or strangers at least once in their lifetime.