Now that the summer months have passed, I find that it’s harder to forget that I have sickle cell disease. You may be thinking, “How can she ever forget that she has sickle cell?” Well, I never really…
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The spread of the coronavirus means that those of us with sickle cell disease need to be extremely cautious. We have all been advised to practice social distancing. I have been in my house for a week now…
Swimming is an essential life skill. Everyone should learn to swim, as it could be the difference between life and death. My parents believed similarly and signed me up for swimming lessons as a child. However, I don’t remember…
I rarely leave London, but this weekend I went on a mini “staycation” to Kent with 24 of my friends for a birthday celebration. Packing We rented a mansion on Airbnb with enough space for the 25 of us,…
Many things can trigger a sickle cell crisis. The first triggers I experienced ranged from temperature changes in my environment to dehydration. But as I got older, I began to experience a new trigger that took me by…
Fatigue is a common symptom associated with sickle cell disease. Due to the smaller size of our red blood cells, we cannot carry as much oxygen as those with healthier red blood cells. This leads to a lack of…
Living with sickle cell disease is not easy. It affects every area of one’s life. An important part of managing the challenges that come with the disease is having a solid support system. I…
My hospital also is a university full of medical students. Trainees follow their supervisors from patient to patient to get a sense of how their work applies to real-life situations. Nine times out of 10, I love interacting with…
For most of my life, I hid the fact that I have sickle cell disease. People only knew about my health if they needed to know. In other words, the only ones I could talk to about it were…
We were nearing the end of a biology lesson. In an attempt to excite the class for the next lesson, my teacher put up a slide that read, “Why people with sickle cell die young.” I froze. I knew…
Sickle cell disease is a condition that mostly affects people from an African or African-Caribbean origin. Nevertheless, the majority of those who have treated me for this condition have been healthcare professionals of other races. I don’t think…
I previously shared some tips for managing sickle cell. If you found those useful, I have a few more suggestions that also may help. Deep Heat I find that when I am in pain, balms such as…
Whenever I feel ill, I exhaust my options. To make my sickle cell pain go away, I drink hot water, take painkillers, fill my hot water bottle, find a distraction, or sleep. Most of the time it works,…
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