Corpus - conversations about medicine and life

Scarlet Fever, 1941: a memoir

6 February 2017 1 Comment

Wendy Fearnley

In 1941, at the age of five, Wendy Fearnley caught scarlet fever and spent seven weeks in isolation at the Monsall Fever Hospital, Manchester, UK. She explains what that was like:

It was 1941, and I was five years old and living in Manchester when I contracted Scarlet Fever. My memory begins in a side ward, with a doctor giving me an injection and me whining, ‘that’s 13 injections. I don’t want any more.’ He replied, ‘Not many more.’ This was before penicillin was available and I think I was treated with sulphur.

Art can handle us

30 January 2017 1 Comment

Rata Gordon

I work with young people who are experiencing so-called ‘mental illness’. To me, ‘mental illness’ is a misnomer. What I see are stunningly courageous and sensitive human beings who have somehow come to the conclusion that there is something fundamentally wrong with them. Maybe they’ve been told that they shouldn’t look the way they do, or love who they love. Maybe they’ve been denied opportunities, or had their voice shut down. Somewhere along the way, they have internalised this sense of not being good enough.

[Read more…] about Art can handle us

“The whole world couldn’t be mumbling”

30 January 2017 1 Comment

Ruth Arnison

When I first met my husband he mentioned that he was brought up in a terrorist house. That simple statement spiked my interest and I decided this was a guy I’d like to get to know. I was brought up in New Zealand South Island manses, absolutely tame compared to his London childhood I thought. By the time I figured out that he’d said terraced house I was in love with him which just proves that a hearing loss needn’t be construed as a negative disability!

The ‘Phow’ moment: In praise of catch and release

30 January 2017 2 Comments

Dr Hamish Wilson

In the last couple of decades, I have watched many fishermen carefully release their trout back into the river. Then they often let out a great sigh as they sit back on their haunches and breathe out for the first time in several minutes. This particular sigh sounds like ‘Phow’, an exclamation that seems to combine ‘Phew’ (a feeling of relief) and ‘Wow’ (an amazing success).

The author and his father, Waitahanui River, 197 — The author & his father, Waitahanui River, 1970

It is only in the last 20 years or so however, that I have learned how to catch and then release each trout. It was always winter when Dad took our family to the Waitahanui River near Taupo, and the trout were all rainbows. We used a sinking line to cast across and down the river, swinging a fly in front of the trout as they made their way upstream to spawn. We used a Red Setter fly exclusively, a large fluffy fly which probably imitates trout roe – or perhaps those fish just snapped at anything that moved. Once we had figured out the ‘lie’ in each pool where fish rested, we usually caught a few, and kept them to eat. My mother would bake the trout in the oven, or we smoked them to enjoy later. [Read more…] about The ‘Phow’ moment: In praise of catch and release

Corpus break: We’ll be back 30 January 2017

26 December 2016 Leave a Comment

Sue Wootton & Barbara Brookes

It’s been a big first year for Corpus. We have published 91 articles since launching the site on 30 May. Thank you to all our contributors.

We are taking a short break to rejuvenate and will be back on Monday 30 January 2017.

If you want to read or re-read some of the popular articles, here are the five most read in 2016:

Touch. The neglected sense? – Dr Louisa Baillie (6 June)
A privileged job – Jillian Sullivan (17 October)
A urine sample? You’re taking the piss – Dr Jo Oranje (13 June)
Chemical legacies: Thalidomide in New Zealand – Susanne M. Klausen (11 July)
Muses and marble – Jamie Trower (30 May)

If you’ve enjoyed what we have published, please spread the word among your friends and colleagues and encourage them to also read and subscribe.

We are looking forward to your continued support and readership in 2017.

Sue Wootton & Barbara Brookes are the co-editors of Corpus.

I like to watch

19 December 2016 Leave a Comment

Doug Lilly

This is the time of year where you may turn to a newspaper or magazine to search for recommended titles to read over the summer holidays (apologies to our Corpus readers in the northern hemisphere).

However I am not a “reader”. Those who have seen my not too insignificant collection of books might find this surprising. Over more than 45 of my adult years I have built a library of books that I had (and probably still have) every intention of reading – some day. Many have been leafed through and partially read. Many more retain their mint smell and feel. My vast, obsessive and largely unread collection of books on Bob Dylan fool many into thinking I am some sort of expert on the man.

[Read more…] about I like to watch