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PALLIATIVE CARE

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  When we are in medical school, we have a totally different mindset, we enjoy learning the science and the pathophysiology of diseases, and we are eager to save the world. Later , during our clinical rotations and patient interactions, we eagerly await hearing the cardiac murmur, lung sounds, and crackles, among other findings . Then we grow up a little more, and we learn the various blood investigations and imaging. As time goes by, we probably touch the patients less and spend more time figuring things out through the investigations.  There are certain clinical situations when a diagnosis has been made, and the patient’s prognosis is poor. We feel like we have done our part, and perhaps not much can be done from our side. There is still so much that the team looking after a patient with end-of-life issues can do. It is important to be straightforward with the patient from the day the diagnosis of cancer, or organ failure such as cardiac failure, liver failure, or dementia, ...
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MY FIRST MAMMOGRAM

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  I can not be an advocate for women’s health and not look after myself. The challenge with a screening test is that a lot of women have no symptoms, and they tend to postpone and not make time for it. Another factor is that most women feel uncomfortable getting that gynaecology exam or getting naked and getting their breasts exposed for the screening test, or they might be terrified of the findings.  I was trying to get the mammogram done during my leave time, but the appointment was full, and I finally managed to squeeze it in the morning of my work day.  Overall, I had a pleasant experience. The staff in the radiology department were very friendly. The atmosphere was pleasant and welcoming. There was a private changing area for me to change my clothes and get into a gown. There wasn't a long waiting time until the mammogram was done. There was an interval between the mammogram and the routine ultrasound. I had a cup of coffee. The sonographer who examined my breasts wa...
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ME AND MUSIC

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 I have a special relationship with music. I am listening to a 90s playlist and writing this. I grew up in the eighties and '90s in a Middle Eastern country where music, especially Western music, was banned. I had some music exposure while I stayed in South Africa between 98 and 2000. We were struggling financially and still didn't have a CD player. I remember the new Westlife Album was released, and my High school friend Sandra recorded it on a cassette for me to listen to. It must be somewhere in my grandparents’ house, along with a hundred other cassettes I recorded from different radio stations and channels. I used to be crazy about Celine Dion. I would play her music, record my voice with the microphone, and feel like a diva! These days, when I listen to her old songs, I feel sad…I think about the days I used to be wild and young and free.  The world of music became more colourful for me after we managed to get a satellite TV around 2005, and in those days, I could watch ...
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MY HAPPY PLACE

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 I am an introvert. When I was small I enjoyed doing my own thing, listening to children’s story cassettes, playing with my Legos, or drawing. Whenever we had visitors I would get irritated as a child because the house was so messy, mom was busy cooking, setting the table, or clearing the table and washing the dishes. Later on, I started having a special interest in books. I enjoyed reading a wide range of fiction. From Authors back home, and the classics from British and Russian authors.  Another introverted and creative joyful activity for me was drawing and painting. It started with sketching in high school art classes and then became more sophisticated such as watercolour or oil on canvas. A lot of the artworks are framed and on the walls back home. Three of my favourite works are framed by mom’s house, 2 other nice oil paintings are by my brother’s house and a small daffodil painting and some random watercolour work are in my office. My life has been crazy with all the me...
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THINGS I WISH I TOLD MY MOTHER

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 This book caught my eye in the public library in May. I was very excited because it is dedicated to mothers! We are all in the Mother’s Day hype. The book offers a contemporary look at a mother and her adult daughter’s relationship. The daughter is an only child in her late thirties, she is in the marketing business. She is divorced with no children. She is not into glamour brands and cosmetics. The little that she knows is through her marketing job. Her father passed away a couple of years ago from pancreatic cancer. Her mother is a very well-known and busy obstetrician and gynecologist. She is in her sixties, she makes good money and also spends it well. Full skincare routine, make-up, glamour, branded clothes, shoes, and handbags.  The book gives a brief background of how the daughter has been traumatized by her mother’s critical behaviour and has chosen to me to be more withdrawn and hide her opinions. Another factor that came up that traumatized her in her adult life was...
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MOTHERHOOD REFLECTIONS

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 Reflecting on my motherhood journey, I can't believe that my little one is two and a half years old! I was looking at my graduation pictures from April 2022 when I was 12 weeks pregnant, and I realized how much I have changed. The beautiful long hair is gone, I have put on more weight and have more wrinkles on my face. I thought going through specialist training and long hours of work makes us age faster, but the burden of responsibility of looking after another baby is worse. With all the running around and sleepless nights.  She is tall and beautiful. Her speech is starting with a bit of delay but we are getting there. Her new words and phrases are teacher, I'm talking, no George, daddy pig, orange. She calls my husband’s mother Auma, my mother FaFa which is short for Fariba!  Potty training attempts have not been successful. She sits on the potty but with her clothes on and refuses to take out her pants. She has become more aware of her nappy and last week when she ma...
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A DAY IN MY LIFE AS A WORKING MOM

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  I would like to explain how my days look as a full time working mother. Aryana usually goes to school three days a week which is Monday to Thursday. The rest of the week or the weekends she stays by my mother. I am up by 5am, shower and get ready by 5:45. I always make toast or muesli and yogurt which I eat while driving. I also make tea for the road. When I am ready wake Aryana up, change her nappy, dress her and we leave the house by 6:20. She is in school in 10 minutes and I drive to work. The drive in traffic takes me approximately an hour.  I work in an Academic Hospital, so every morning our registrars present their admissions in the morning meeting. All the consultants usually pull a straight face and ask random questions. Last week Wednesday I was covering the labour ward. After the meeting we attended the handover in the high care and labour ward. After that we did a ward round to see the patients in the antenatal ward. I usually take a little lunch break before the...
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