by Carolyn Thomas ♥ @HeartSisters

Are you “battling” heart disease”? Have you “beaten” cancer? Are you “fighting” a chronic illness? These wartime references are metaphors as described by Dr. Jack Coulehan, a physician, an award-winning poet, and editor of the 5th edition of The Medical Interview: Mastering Skills for Clinical Practice, a best-selling textbook on the doctor-patient relationship.(1) Dr. C explains that there are several of these basic metaphors used in medicine that to a large extent generate the vocabulary of doctor-patient communication.
Here are three of the most prominent metaphors encountered in health care: Continue reading ““She’s a fighter!” and other metaphors in medicine”

I’m glad that the movie theatre is dark while I’m eating my popcorn. I say this because I once had a traumatic experience watching the man sitting in front of us gobble down his gigantic tub of popcorn before the house lights were dimmed for the film. He was shovelling in that corn like there was no tomorrow. It was mesmerizing to
Heart attack survivors often celebrate two birthday milestones during the year: the actual day they were born, and the fateful day they survived that heart attack. When I read Elizabeth’s reflections last month on the occasion of her 4-year “heart-iversary”, I asked if I could share her journey of recovery with you here.