Tag Archives: health

“[…] In Trinidad and Tobago, non-communicable diseases like heart disease, diabetes and cancer continue to claim far too many of us men far too early. Mental health struggles often left unspoken, add another layer. “Statistics show that men are far less likely than women to seek timely medical or psychological …

Chapter 8: It was an onslaught of information… Reading about breast cancer survivors and their stories quickly shifts from spectator to participant when you yourself have been diagnosed. At that time, I recalled social media stories and went in search of those, just so I’d have a ‘friend’ to share …

The life that Safiya Sinclair describes in How to Say Babylon bears many similarities with lifestyles throughout our region. I have heard enough stories to convince me. The specific nature of her relationship with the Rastafari culture can easily be transferred to fit the widespread value systems that allocate superior …

I had mentioned in a recent column that I was hesitant to review Safiya Sinclair’s How to Say Babylon, because I was afraid I would gush too much. My friend, Patrick, had quickly messaged me to object. He wanted to read my full response, he said. “Write the thing, in …

If you have grown up in an agricultural environment, you have a strong sense of what fruits and vegetables look like in their natural state. You recognise their scents, even when you are not quite aware of it. I recall uncovering a container of shredded cabbage and discovering my late …

Chapter 7: I had some dark days… Imagine moving from a place of ‘normal’ to being told you have breast cancer and having to process that. Now, imagine being told that the lump can be removed, but not before an MRI is done to get a better image. Next, imagine …

I was surprised to find it was in December 2023 that I hosted a pepperpot lime at my home. Seems like it was just last Christmas when my friend Lynette came to teach us how to prepare this national dish of Guyana. My daughter was working on an article on …

Chapter 6: I got really angry… In many marriages, there is balance in terms of personalities. One party can go from 0 to 100 really quickly, and the other is often the voice of reason and calmness. Prior to May 16, 2024, I was the former in my marriage, while …

We don’t have words for everything. We never will. Such is the nature of language; such is the nature of change. All around us, things evolve, develop new characteristics. Things become extinct, disappear from memory. Someone from as recent as a century ago would find it difficult to follow a …

Chapter 3: Paid and Paid … This journey has taught me so many lessons—the importance of savings and insurance being two of them. When my mom passed away in 2002, the hardships associated with her illness and her subsequent funeral were evident. I was already employed at the time, and …

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to speak with two truly inspiring members of the Cocoa Research Centre (CRC) at The UWI: Professor Pathmanathan Umaharan, its head, and Dr Darin Sukha, its food technologist. I met them 16 years ago, when I started working at the university as …

Chapter 2 – Lost my Double Ds… Surgery day came faster than I thought it would. In the days leading up, I busied myself preparing for my absence at work—handover, early report preparation, updates, and generally tying up loose ends. In the weeks prior, my doctor had updated us based …