@Flutterbug9 I am glad your GP does regular check-up appointments and tests 🙂. Neutropenia would carry a lot of risks, especially during the most severe covid years as well as every cold/flu/covid season and other outbreaks.
I don't know much about it; is there any treatment they can do? Do blood transfusions help at all? (I am assume not long-term, and would only help if you needed extra neutrophils during an infection? But even then -- do the blood donation products include neutrophils or only the platelets, plasma, etc?)
Yes, knowledge and awareness of trauma and impacts and especially childhood exposure has improved a lot thankfully. But I also suspect there is a lot that still does not get actioned too sadly. Through doing my volunteering with the youth mentoring I have become a bit more aware of very subtle indicators that something might be going on at home - but of course sometimes these things are not. e.g. if a young youth talks about staying overnight at another friend's house during the week. In the past I would have assumed from a comment like that that they were just having a sleepover or that the parent was away (work, sick family, etc). But now I know to ask a bit more, gently, around whether it was a planned stay at the friend's, and how they felt about it, and if they want to talk about the reasons for staying over. Make it safe to say if it was purely social, but also give space for them to mention if it was because of an argument/fight/DV, etc.
Watching penguins from in a tent sounds so nice 😍. As a young child, we would sometimes go to Victor Harbour (SA) to watch the penguins come ashore after dark. But it wasn't somewhere we could camp overnight, always had to make the long walk back to the car and parents drive home. I haven't gone to watch penguins for a long time, maybe I should do that next time I visit melbourne or adelaide.
Oh, are you good at snooker/pool?
I enjoy the very few times I have played with a friend (less than 5?). I am not very good at it - with how hard or soft I need to hit the ball, and with aligning the cue to actually go where I intend. But I understand the mathematical geometry of how a ball would need to be angled to rebound.
I am trying to recall your favourite colour, but I am not sure what it is?
Mine is purple. Prior to that, it was black and greys but I was always told they weren't a colour. So cadbury-purple, and then deep-emerald-green. Then I was told they were the "gay colours" and I shrugged and said maybe that is because gay people (stereotypically) have better fashion sense. 😋 I never let people saying purple & green were the gay colours get to me!
I will be off to my remedial massage appointment in a few minutes, so I shall stop here for now. 😊 As you know - I am not ignoring the rest, just working through at my pace. 😊 Your anxiety is a valid response of your childhood and other experiences; I am reminding you that your logical brain can help to reassure this vulnerable part of you because it can know that it is safe and being heard and cared about. Re-read this as many times and as often as you like/want. 🤗
