Shaniqua’s Sickle Chronicles
— Mary Shaniqua

Because today is recognized as Valentine’s Day or “love day” across much of the globe, I want to explore the difficulties that can arise within romantic relationships when one partner has sickle cell…

Here’s a feeling that I’m certain other sickle cell disease patients relate to, and who knows, perhaps their carers do, too: It’s astounding how much sickle cell can change the body over time.

Sickle cell disease is highly misunderstood, and our patient community is acutely aware of this. One of the key lessons I’ve learned throughout my journey with this illness is the importance of…

I recently had my first blood transfusion of the year. It’s one of the most common treatments for sickle cell disease. Two types of transfusions are used to treat sickle cell patients:…

Sickle cell disease is a constant, annoying “companion” in my life. My list of grievances about the illness is never-ending, but one of the things I find most daunting is the disease’s unpredictable…

Living with sickle cell disease comes with a heavy cost. Much of your time is spent seeking to understand your body, how the condition impacts you as a person, and then adjusting your…

One Saturday evening, I was sitting on the sofa with my husband watching a film. Suddenly, I felt a sharp, stabbing pain pierce through my chest. “Babe, call an ambulance,” I uttered just in…

I’ve previously written about the difficulties I’ve sometimes faced when trying to get my prescriptions filled to treat sickle cell disease. In a stroke of luck about a year ago, I found a…

The past few weeks have been extremely difficult — heartbreaking, even. Here in the U.K., I’ve seen two recent reports about sickle cell patients dying from negligence. Both of their deaths were preventable. As…

Although approximately 1 in 6 people worldwide are living with a significant disability, the narrative that those of us with disabilities deserve less continues to be perpetuated. As a sickle cell disease patient,…

An unfortunate reality is that life costs more when you are disabled. Why is this? Simply put, living with a disability often means that extra costs are required to gain access to mainstream society.