At first glance you'd think today's post belongs in our 'Weekend Reflection' series, as the original phrase "When life gives you lemons make lemonade" is about coping with adversity. Apparently the phrase was first used in a 1915 obituary and has since been quoted often in various forms. Today though we're going to look at variations on the phrase, starting with the one that … [Read more...]
David Clotterfield Saga – scene 6
David Clotterfield and Clara Clearvessel are both on warfarin and as we follow their saga we discover their beliefs about anticoagulation through the various comments they make about their lives. At the end of each scene, you'll get a chance to test your knowledge; Are their comments true or false? Before reading this episode, you may like to catch up with the previous … [Read more...]
Halloween – the link between vampires and coagulation
Happy Halloween - a good day to cover the ways that vampires have come to be linked with coagulation. Dracula Vampires, Dracula teeth and bats have become synonymous with the decorations for Halloween, but the story behind Dracula and vampires is quite interesting and goes back to the middle ages and is possibly linked to a rare blood disorder. It is not quite clear where the … [Read more...]
Frivolous Friday – 4 Halloween blood-related treats
It's Halloween on Monday and we'll be explaining some of the medical links between vampires and coagulation, but in the meantime, we've found four blood-related ways to spoil yourself over the weekend. 1. Watch a movie with the kids (or grand-kids) Who ever would have thought a vampire movie could be described as 'sweet'? But that's exactly what came to mind as I watched … [Read more...]
Why Noah never forgets his medication
When people meet our son Noah for the first time, they usually recognise all he can’t do; you see he has Down syndrome and Asperger’s syndrome. Once you get to know him though, you quickly fall in love with his sunny personality and quick wit. You just accept that he looks different and has some odd behaviours. And we see him for what he can do. One thing he is very good … [Read more...]
David Clotterfield Saga – scene 5
David Clotterfield and Clara Clearvessel are both on warfarin and as we follow their saga we'll discover their beliefs about anticoagulation through the various comments they make about their lives. At the end of each scene, you'll get a chance to test your knowledge; Are their comments true or false? Before reading this episode, you may like to catch up with the previous … [Read more...]
Frivolous Friday – Paul’s birthday presents
You may remember Paul turned 60 recently, around the same time as warfarin! I already told you about the phone case I gave him featuring red blood cells; lots of people at the hospital have noticed this and consider it a great present for a haematologist! But I haven't told you about the three presents his children gave him. The final one has an obvious coagulation link, … [Read more...]
Frivolous Friday – resuscitation humour
When you're in the midst of resuscitating someone, it is obviously not frivolous. But these videos show there can be humour in everything. Please review our post on resuscitation, to be sure you know what to do if you're in a situation where someone's heart has stopped. Then you can reinforce your knowledge as you sit back and enjoy these three videos. 1. Even babies can … [Read more...]
What’s in a name? – anticoagulant name meanings
It took Paul and I a long time to choose names for our kids. We wanted to find something we both liked and had some kind of meaning for us. Our eldest is called Joseph which means "God will add"; this turned out to be appropriate as we now have eight children! Drug companies too, spend a long while choosing the right name for their products. Do you know the meaning of the … [Read more...]
Frivolous Friday – Are you carrots, eggs or coffee?
This story (author unknown) turned up in my Facebook feed. I thought it could be relevant to our readers who are coping with adversity. Carrots, Eggs and Coffee A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It … [Read more...]