War or the worst medical consultation of my life
When I was in Poland in the summer, I decided to see a doctor. I thought of the visit as getting a second opinion, just to allay my slight worries. It turned out that I had just about the worst medical consultation in my life, well, as far as I remember. This blog is an account of what happened as I remember it. Needless to say, it is told in a way to make it interesting, so I omit fragments of the consultation which were not significant in the context of this post (such as, for example, taking family history). Continue reading “War or the worst medical consultation of my life”
How to speak about suicide. A non-guide
For some time now, I have objected to guides how to talk about suicide. I keep repeating that banning the word ‘commit’ makes little sense and has consequences that are not considered by the guideline authors. Today I want to change my perspective. Today I want to write my non-guiding guide to the ‘language of suicide’. Continue reading “How to speak about suicide. A non-guide”
On medicine’s ‘dirty words’
A friend sent me an article on ‘dirty words’ in medicine. It’s yet another postulate to replace a set of words with another set of words, another exercise in futility. I thought I’d respond, though, increasingly, it does feel like banging my head against a wall. Continue reading “On medicine’s ‘dirty words’”
Language and suicide
A few days ago, I was asked to complete a survey on the language ‘around suicide’. As I qualify as a person who ‘has been affected by suicide’, I completed the survey. Here I want to offer a few comments on it. I think parts of this post might be seen as controversial by some readers. Continue reading “Language and suicide”