Tag Archives: medicine

In My Hands Today…

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Written in Bone: hidden stories in what we leave behind – Sue Black

Our bones are the silent witnesses to the lives we lead. Our stories are marbled into their marrow.

Drawing upon her years of research and a wealth of remarkable experience, the world-renowned forensic anthropologist Professor Dame Sue Black takes us on a journey of revelation. From skull to feet, via the face, spine, chest, arms, hands, pelvis and legs, she shows that each part of us has a tale to tell. What we eat, where we go, everything we do leaves a trace, a message that waits patiently for months, years, sometimes centuries, until a forensic anthropologist is called upon to decipher it.

Some of this information is easily understood, some holds its secrets tight and needs scientific cajoling to be released. But by carefully piecing together the evidence, the facts of a life can be rebuilt. Limb by limb, case by case – some criminal, some historical, some unaccountably bizarre – Sue Black reconstructs with intimate sensitivity and compassion the hidden stories in what we leave behind.

In My Hands Today…

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Seven Signs of Life: Stories from an Intensive Care Doctor – Aoife Abbey

Grief. Anger. Joy. Fear. Distraction. Disgust. Hope. All emotions we expect to encounter over our lifetime.

But what if this was every day? And what if your ability to manage them was the difference between life and death?

For a doctor in Intensive Care this is part of the job. Fear in the eyes of a terminally ill patient who pleads with you to not let them die. Grief when you make a potentially fatal mistake. Disgust at caring for a convicted rapist. But there are also moments of joy, like the rare bright spots of lucidity for a dementia patient, or when the ward unexpectedly breaks into song.

Dr Aoife Abbey shows us what a doctor sees of humanity as it comes through the revolving door of the hospital and takes us beyond a purely medical perspective. Told through seven emotions, Seven Signs of Life is about what it means to be alive and how it feels to care for a living.

Recipes: Ginger, Lemon & Honey Drink

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Over the weekend, both GG and I came down with rather bad colds. I was really suffering and the hacking cough made it really difficult to sleep.

Then I remembered a drink I used to make many years back and decided to try to replicate it. It turned out to be this nice soothing gingery and lemony drink which I have been spamming over the past few days. I also make some and give it to GG in a small thermos to take to school. It has really given me a lot of relief and really soothed my throat which was raw from all that coughing.

Ginger, Lemon & Honey Drink

Ingredients:

  • 1-2 inch piece of ginger
  • 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp honey
  • 2 glasses water

Method:

  • Grate the ginger and add it to the water in a largish utensil. Heat the water.
  • Let the grated ginger and water come to a boil and once it reaches the boiling stage, lower the heat to a medium and simmer for 10 minutes.
  • Remove from the flame and strain into another large bowl.
  • In this bowl, add the lemon juice and honey and stir well.
  • Adjust the honey and lemon juice according to your taste.
  • Store this drink in a thermos and sip throughout the day.

If you find it too strong for your taste, then dilute it with some warm water and drink.