Long Day

Man…I’m feeling so tired right now. I woke up at 6AM to head downtown Oakland for a computer class for my new job. I fought through traffic, burned gas, only to find out that the class was cancelled and noone freakin called me! Grrrrr! It did give me more time to run some Birthday plan…

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Exercise & Diet

One of the perks I guess of having sickle cell is that it keeps me in my ideal weight zone. My BMI never goes above 20, mainly because when I do start gaining weight…one crises has the power of taking off 10 pounds in a week. Right now I’m a luscious 135…my ideal weight for…

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I’m NOT a Drug Addict

Okay America, I know there is a plethora of drug addicts out there that come to the hospital seeking narcotics, but must you lump every young Black person into that category? I can’t remember how many times that I’ve been denied pain medication because the nurses & doctors felt I was ‘drug seeking’. If you…

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Sickler

Of all the words used for patients with sickle cell, the one that irritates me the most is Sickler. Grrrr! There is something about that word for me that makes me feel like an anathema, a blight or something out of the ordinary. Why can’t they just say…the patient, or Vixen, or something else. Why…

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Romance & Relationships

I’m sure those of you with medical conditions know this, it’s hard to find a good man while you are grappling with an illness. There aren’t that many guys who are capable of handling a debilitating disease, and even less who are willing to. When I was younger, I read a story of this girl…

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The Exes

Okay, now that you’ve gotten a little background, lets get to the nitty gritty. As you remember, there was this whole stigma in Nigeria having sickle cell, needless to say, there wasn’t any romantics to write home about except for this one stalker boy in freshman year but as I said…not that important. In fact,…

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Updates

Hello darlings, I’m doing great, I’m back to working in the field I love and adore, so my timing is a bit off with blogging right now—less play time=less blog time. Don’t worry, I’m well. And I’ll be back!

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My First Job

For starters at my first job post graduation, I told my boss upfront that I had sickle cell and how often I fell sick. This was news that I told her at the interview before she even thought about hiring. I’ve done this with every other interview ever since. Boss Lady, as I affectionately called…

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Genetics & Causation

If you are a carrier of the sickle cell trait, it’s good to know this before you start falling in love and making babies. I will stress that it’s essential to know what your partner’s hemoglobin recessive gene is. Say you were like my parents, who are simply blissfully ignorant and in love, with every…

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