Not Your Plaything
29 minutes ago
My Random Experiences with Blood
December 8, 2016
School History With Blood.
1. I think most girls have experiences with blood when we encountered our first period. So do I. But, I am not going to talk much about menstruation here. Haha.
2. At first, I never thought to be in my position today, hmm I mean, on my way to be your doctor. I thought I will not have good time with blood. Well, some people can't see blood otherwise they may collapse. Surprisingly, that's not the case for me. So far, alhamdulillah.
3. I started playing with blood during high school for biology class. If I'm not mistaken, my classmates and I were instructed to perform some experiments with blood. Few of my friends fainted. Although I didn't fancy Science or Biology much before, experiments were what I was looking forward to.
4. No, I didn't have experience with any frogs, mice for experiments. I feel more comfortable to cut human beings compared to all those animals. And I tried slaughtering before, but nope nope I just can't.
* do you know that mice is a plural form of mouse?
No Meat For Me, Before.
5. I stopped eating meat since primary school when I witnessed cow slaughtering for my aunt's wedding's food preparation. But, I return as meat lover when I was in first year in Czech. Wanna know the reason why?
Learning How to do Blood Taking.
6. The smell of blood is irritating some time. With a good face mask, I am doing good insyaAllah.
7. I learned more about taking blood during my second year. I had Physiology classes and during Hematology lessons we need to use our own blood for all those experiments - erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), full blood count (FBC) yada yada. Hehe, I am not sure if you understand these but if you are interested to know more, I would love to explain.
* hematology = hemato- (blood), -logy (study of)
* ESR = how long the red blood cells take to sediment in one hour (to measure inflammation)
* FBC = to know amount of blood contents
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| Example of blood results. |
8. In Czech, venipunctures are tasks for nurses. Venipuncture simply means to puncture a vein to withdraw blood or insert drugs/fluid into the veins. Some patients there allow students to do venipuncture, but usually we do it among each others. :)
Blood and Surgery.
9. The most bloody surgery I've observed was the one involving bone marrow. I don't remember which procedure it was. But, just for our general knowledge, surgeons will cut open our body with the help of electrosurgery, this equipment actually looks like a pen but with ability to cut, coagulation our tissues. So, you may expect clean floor of operation room / theater in most cases :)
In some operation, you just can't avoid blood everywhere.
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| Like a pencil. |
10. Blood, for me is like our identity. Blood can be used to trace lost family members and even for police investigations. In health sector, so many things you can discover in the blood. From red blood cell, you may know if you are anemic. From white blood cells, you may confirm any infections that cause you to be febrile (fever). You can check why you may have high tendency to bleed from the platelets.
11. You may suspect something wrong with your organs as well from the blood - heart, liver, kidney etc. There are markers for them.
Blood Donation.
12. Please donate your blood if you are eligible. Your blood cells will be fully replaced in a very short time, at least 8-12 weeks. But, no worries, most of your donated blood is plasma (fluid) which will recover within 24 hours, faster if you maintain your hydration - drink a lot before and after donation.
13. Malaysians living overseas for certain countries within certain period of time are not allowed to donate blood. Yes, that's me. It is so frustrating to know. Refer HERE for the criteria to be a donor.
Blood Taking in Hospital.
14. I feel guilty to ask patients "May I withdraw your blood?" in the middle of the night. But, that's doctors' job to keep track the progression of patients by checking blood regularly.
15. It is easier to find good veins on male patients, just they complained about the pain more compared to female patients.
16. It's hard to withdraw blood for patients with kidney disease and after chemotherapy, especially old patients - tiny veins. Not to forget, patients with peripheral edema - swollen limbs, so hard to find good veins.
17. You are in trouble if you prick yourself with a needle used for other person, even though he / she may not have any general disease . Who knows they may have one - the not-yet-manifested?
p/s - I am going home tonight for few days break. :D Pray for my 6 hours bus journey crossing Banjaran Titiwangsa :D
HUSM, Kelantan, Malaysia
161208
What Are Your Study Habits?
December 6, 2016
I just returned to my room after few hours ward round + meeting patients + reading files + long case class with final year students here. I'm done for today. Oh, maybe I would consider to join the on call students tonight, let's see. :)
Hmm, I am not sure how to describe what am I doing right now. For me, this is my practical lesson, but people may think that I'm doing practical after finishing my studies. No, I haven't finished my undergraduate yet, let alone graduation (insyAllah soon next year). Then, when I said I'm doing elective (which is usually done during holidays), people here keep saying why are you so hardworking to spend your holidays in the hospital?
Adoi. Haha, saya taklah rajin sangat camtu.
I was a very, very, very hardworking student when I was in school. But, I don't think so, now. After realizing so many things I haven't explore yet, I still put my study as top priority but I will never abandon my time for other stuffs. Travel, hiking, eating, yada yada.
Okay! Let's proceed.
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#1 What time you start studying and how long?
Depends. I am a morning person, I go to sleep around 10-12 am and wake up at 5-6 am. So, I prefer daytime to study. I kinda having love hate relationship with winter, one of the reason is because of this.
#2 Do you stay up all nights for study?
Sometimes. When I need to push myself more. But, I don't like it, as I will be exhausted the next morning.
#3 Any favorite place or port while you study?
On the bed, but with table. Hmm I mean, I put a small table on the bed. Otherwise, I will go to the library or any cafes.
#4 Do you listen to music or not?
Yep, instrumental musics.
Masa study, study betul betul.
Masa main, main betul betul.
Masa cuti, cuti betul betul.
#5 Do you start from front page or back page of book?
Jumble up a lot. Medicine for me is not about reading lines by lines but to suddenly turn to another page related to what I am reading to understand more. I use the back page (index) as page references.
#6 Do you study all of section or just the important section?
Used to read all sections when I was in lower year. But now, nope.
#7 Do you highlight your textbooks?
I love colorful notes. T__T But then, I will get confused which one is important and which one is not.
#8 Prefer studying with a book or you like making small notes which can be carried everywhere?
I usually first study with books / Google / Medscape / WebMD / lecture notes / Merck Manual. Then, I try to come out with mind maps. But, now it's really hard to carry papers everywhere, so offline short notes will be nicer.
#9 Will you memorize all chapters or not?
I've passed my age to memorize things. Now, it's more about how to relate the facts. What should I do with this patient and why? Why I need to do this and not that? Why this drug and not the other one? It was really hard for me as I used to memorize a lot but it's getting easier with time, practice and exposure.
I am still learning and on my way there.
#10 What method you have for a smart study?
Mind maps and a good small study group. I agree with most doctors here when they said explaining to other people is more effective than to study on my own.
#11 How you got your motivation to study?
My parents who are getting older but they are still enthusiastic to teach their students.
#12 Do you decorate your study table? If do, how?
Not much. I don't even use my study table most of the time.
#13 What most important things you must have on it?
For me, on bed I guess?
- Study lamp
- Laptop (for easy reference)
- Notes
- Stationery
Tagged by Siqah
*************
Obviously, different people have different ways to study.
You can simply say your way is the best one and others should use that particular style. But it might be only working for you, but not others. Some people can study with vocal musics, some simply get irritated with a sound of dropped pen. Some may remember more with pictures, some prefer words and some may need only YouTube to study.
What can I say is, if you are a student, find the best way for you. You can try this study habits quiz to know more about yourself.
Life is all about try and error. :)
Pray for me, haha I need to study now.
HUSM, Kelantan, Malaysia
161206
4 Things I Can Relate to This 'Subtitles Always Right' Video
December 2, 2016
My November's Highlights
December 1, 2016
Inspired to write a post on month wrap up after reading Siqah's and Fatin's blog. Hehe, bloggers do help each other for inspiration :D
November.
It is honestly a month of my almost full recovery. I had a very hard time the whole October, losing appetite, losing weight (which is good on one side), losing feeling of emotion. I just didn't feel like I was being myself. But, being moody most of times is just not me, still I can be moody too. I don't like to share my sadness and downside to public. Sometimes I do mention bits here and there on my blog. But, usually I will keep it safe in my heart and wash it away.
1/11/16 - Obstetrics & Gynecology Exam.
1. I started my November with one final exam. Obstetrics & Gynecology. I love this specialty a lot, but I am still thinking hard to pursue more on this or not. Didn't exposed much on O&G department in Malaysia but most seniors said it is one of the most emotional ward in the hospital.
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| With the lectures a.k.a examiners. |
2. All of us passed, alhamdulillah :) We celebrated in by having lunch together at Pasta Cook & Look. The funny thing was when these boys mentioned Cook & Look to me, I totally had no idea that it is actually a name of restaurant. They kept on alternating the words, look & cook, cook & look. Haha the non-Malaysian guy in the picture below is Luke, I seriously thought Luke wanna cook for us. :p
If you get what I mean.
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| The pasta was good! |
3/11/16 - Hiking on a Snowy Mountain.
3. :) After few times contemplating of going for this long journey, finally I managed to step very close to the highest mountain in Czech (update - I made a mistake here, actually it is the highest waterfall in Czech T_T) and witness myself the source of Labe river.
4. That hiking trip marked the highest total daily steps in November with 43435 steps.
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| Sunset. |
4/11/16 - Wall Climbing!
5. I planned this with Kevin for our September's activity, but due to my carpal tunnel syndrome and I headed back to Malaysia, we postponed it to early November. Surprisingly, it was not that expensive to rent all equipments :p I should try it again after I fully recover from this carpal tunnel thing. T_T
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| All black. |
5/11/16 - Road Trip to Hallstatt
6. To know and be friend with these girls is one of the best thing that Allah bless me with. I must be grateful to have them in my life through thick and thin living abroad.
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| Us. |
9/11/16 - First Snow in HK (for this term).
7. I think that was the exact day. Haha.
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| Ice ice ice. |
12/11/16 - Newest Shopping Mall in HK.
8. It was opened on Friday, 11/11/16 and I supposed to join the rest of us to its first opening day. But, there's something wrong with my tummy that day, I missed the girls hang out. T_T
9. The highlights of this new mall is Costa Coffee and Running Sushi (both are firsts in HK)
10. Now, to the right of my flat is the new mall, Aupark. Meanwhile, to the left is Tesco & Atrium mall. Hahaha, make my choice. Both are just within 5 minutes walking distance!
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| Found this in one of the shop. Why Czech translated almost all English books?! |
14/11/16 - Supermoon.
11. Well, it was not that obvious in the shot. :)
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| Big enough? |
19/11/16 - Outing in Prague.
12. The main reason was Lush. :D We received quite a lot of orders for newbies like Maryam and I, it was fun anyway to buy all these items even though they were not for us. Stepping into Lush is one of therapy you should try.
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| That smell. :D |
13. Done with Lush, Maryam and I went to have dinner with our juniors in Prague for our weekly halaqah. Yes, we gathered in a Korean restaurant, read Quran together, shared our weekly journey. :)
14. There are so many things we can extract from others' experiences of the day.
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| Kimchi bibimbap. |
20/11/16 - Train to Busan.
15. It was my first time watching it and I could not stop screaming for every thrilling scene!
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| Dinner on bed. |
21/11/16 - Electromyogram (EMG) Visit.
16. Some of you might know that I have carpal tunnel syndrome and it doesn't go away yet. I am currently living with it and most of times, I forget I actually have this thing.
17. After 2 months of being on waiting list, finally I got my appointment date for EMG. Roughly, EMG is about a test to check your nerve and muscle functions, so referring to the results, the doctor will decide if you need surgery to cut open the tight canal that may compress the nerve or not.
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| Appointment card. |
18. The doctor on duty was so enthusiastic about Malaysia, he kept asking about interesting places in out country. :p
19. In my case, my carpal tunnel syndrome is very mild, I hope it will be relieved by medications only.
22/11/16 - On The Way To The Airport.
20. Since my flight was on 23rd's early morning, I decided to go to Prague a day in advanced. I don't think I want to risk my life like my journey experience to Scotland one time ago. :p
21. To handle 28kgs and 15kgs luggages in the center of Prague was a thing I will never do again. Seriously it was really hard. I used to go to the airport directly from the train station. But, that time, I planned to stay in my friend's flat to catch the early bus to the airport.
22. Can you imagine to go down a very fast moving 70-100meters escalator with inclination of 45 degree? And imagine to do that with 2 heavy luggages. Hoho. I was dying.
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| I wish the river doesn't have that color. |
24/11/16 - Hello, Malaysia.
23. Alhamdulillah, I landed safely at KLIA. Spent the first hour at the post office to post most of Marlenka orders.
24. While waiting for the bus, a friend dropped by out of boredom so we had a little chitchat while watching planes. It was nice to know more about how the airports and planes function, well I use all of these at least few times a year.
25. Arrived Perak after 3 hours bus ride.
26. Strolling around Ipoh for few hours and we arrived home at midnight.
25/11/16 - Cousin.
27. My cousin and her family are going for umrah in few days, so my parents and I went to visit them. I love her so much, the one whom I grow up with.
26/11/16 - Road Trip to Kelantan.
28. And here I am right now and for the rest of December. :)
29. I am doing elective attachment in HUSM. Basically for me, it is just another practical lessons because I am still a student who want to be exposed to working environment in Malaysia.
30. I joined on call one night and I was totally exhausted the next day. T_T How am I going to survive?
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| 3am |
30. Basically for the last week of November, my life rotated between the ward, the cafe and my room. T_T Haha, my practical here is honestly more interesting in some parts than in Czech as I got to learn more medical stuffs with Malaysians' styles. Just, I am so tired everyday.
31. I am still trying to swallow the fact that Friday is a holiday.
WOW, my first month wrap up!
Hello, December :)
HUSM, Kelantan, Malaysia
161201
5 Four 'Questions' That Intrigued Me
November 30, 2016
Haha I don't know why I really want to try this tag. It is on Facebook anyway, just I don't really post on Facebook much so why not I post it here :D My blog; my space, my life although it is still open for public to read.
Four names I go by:
1. Hanis
2. Nina
3. Aman
4. Miss Abdul Mutai
When I was a child, my cousins used to call me 'Amoi' as I did look like a Chinese little girl. Haha, everything changed when I started going to school, being active with sports were totally my preference. So... that's why. Actually I am sure genetically my skin is originally dark, just it didn't show much during my childhood.
Four places I've lived:
1. Sg. Siput, Kuala Kangsar, Lenggong, Taiping; Perak
2. BBST; Selangor
3. Hradec Kralove; Czech
4. Kubang Kerian; Kelantan
I consider I live in that place when I spend at least 2 weeks there.
Four places I would love to visit:
1. Makkah + Madinah
2. Fjords in Norway
3. Paragliding site in Switzerland
4. Moscow, Russia; to start Trans-Siberian train
My wish lists. May all of them will come true, one fine day. :)
Four things I love to eat:
1. Tomyam Udang
2. Laksa
3. Potato chips
4. Chicken Chop
Honestly I don't really care about food. I mean, I love food and I love to eat. Just as long as the food is edible, I am okay with that. No special menu needed.
Four favorite drinks:
1. Plain / mineral water
2. Hot Chocolate
3. Watermelon Juice without sugar
4. Mocha (as laxative lol)
I can live without any fancy drinks as long as I have plain water. I am totally not a lover of coffee or tea but yes, I drink mocha or any caffeinated drink to increase my bowel activity. It helps anyway. -_-'
So, what about you? Share yours in the comments below :D
HUSM, Kelantan, Malaysia
161130
6 'Awkward' Moments at Ataturk Airport, Istanbul, Turkey
November 25, 2016
Yes, as some of you already know, I am in Malaysia right now. You will not see my visit from Czech Republic for a while on your blog's live.feedjit widget. :D
Gonna spend about a month doing elective in a hospital here. It's going to be hard (maybe) as I am doing alone. Pray that I can go through every single day with calmness and ease. :)
Again, this time, my homebound journey is by Turkish Airlines via Istanbul. I love this city, honestly but I don't fancy much the airport. Maybe I've set a bench mark of Dubai as my favourite airport for now (despite it's so busy as well). Even though it was my 5th time transit in this airport, I still don't have ideas what should I do here. I've been to almost every inch of public area, walk from gates to gates, I don't know what else to explore.
And the free 2 hours WiFi over a week. Hmmm. Man, I have at least 4 hours to kill here.
I landed Ataturk airport on Wednesday at noon. No security control, no passport control needed - I went straight to connecting flights. Planned to perform prayers, here was the first awkward moment for me.
Can I have that tissues, please?
I went to the ablution room, it was not that big. The first thing I did was to take the tissue from the machine, well I don't want to let my socks wet and smelly. Use tissues to wipe the feet before putting the socks on. When I was literally collecting tissues from the machine with hand sensor, I already took about 4-5 layers of tissues. Suddenly, a lady came to me and ask, 'can I have that tissues, please?'
It was seriously awkward for me.
Like, why?
Prayers time.
The frame that show list of prayer times was not working. I had no idea if Zuhur was already over or not. I didn't know should I do jamak takhir or jamak takdim. There were some lady in the prayer room as well, but they couldn't speak English.
The only thing I ask with appropriate hand gesture was...
"Zuhur..?" "Asar?..."
Awkward, but luckily she understood. She said "Zuhur. Asar no."
"I'm sorry, but your transit time is only 4 hours and half."
And I need only 30 minutes more to be eligible for free meal voucher. HAHA. I would love to persuade him to just give me the voucher, but.... it was a bit awkward.
Told ya, I was so boring that I walked around the airport with my hand luggage and backpack. Gigih sangat. Expecting to meet some Malaysians but I couldn't see any. Wow, that was weird.
Walking around too much, I suddenly feel hungry again. I didn't want to spend € 10 just for a sandwich, so I tried my luck to ask the care point for any meal voucher. At the care point, there was some argument between a passenger and a worker. Not really sure what were they arguing about but it made the rest of us to wait in a long queue. And it's getting longer until a new counter need to be opened. Haha.
So, I didn't get any voucher. And I was hungry.
I checked my backpack if I have any sweets. I totally forgot my friend prepared slices of bread with Nutella. Ya Allah, I feel so ashamed of myself T_T
Thank you Bainun :D
"But, I thought the book is only € 8?"
I went to a bookstore to see the book I've been eyeing since my previous transit. Yes, it's still there and I think I should buy it for my next 10hours' connecting flight from Istanbul to Kuala Lumpur (although I know I would sleep most of the time).
Decided to buy, I took the book to the counter. After scanning, the guy over the counter said 'the total is € 8.50" Eh eh, mana datang lagi € 0.50? "But, I thought the book is only € 8?"
At the end, she still didn't answer. Awkward silence. I just gave my card to be swiped and before leaving the store, I told her, "I'm sorry but please make sure you check the prices from time to time before putting price tags on the book"
I am so sorry to say this. But, at least answer me with something like "I am sorry but maybe there's something wrong with the system." A single sorry can soften someone's heart, remember that.
I learned from someone's experience when he accidentally payed about RM 50 for a bag from Mydin when it was actually cost RM 15!
"Eh, I thought I have one hour more?"
That's my inner thought.
Guess what, I was so nervous when I saw the flight schedules. I was supposed to be at the boarding gate about 18:05 (the flight was scheduled to take off at 19:05). At that time my phone's clock showed 17:05. Eh, why? I have one hour more, right?
Surprisingly, again I totally forgot Turkish Airlines sent emails so many times to inform me that Turkey decided not to follow daylight saving time (DST). The funny thing was, I set my phone's clock to auto-update based on the location since the day I bought it. It never failed to show the correct time. But, I think (maybe) Turkey's decision was quite sudden that the world clock didn't managed to update itself. :p
Seriously, the wall clock in Ataturk Airport showed 18:05 when it was 17:05 on my phone. T_T
What if I go to the gate at 18:05 (my phone's clock)?
Hahaha, I don't want to imagine that! Awkwardly terrifying!
So, moral here is be alert with the local time!
"Boarding completed"
The moment the cabin crew made this announcement, it simply means, they will not receive any upcoming passengers and they will close the door (from my understanding).
I was quite shocked when I heard this announcement, then I looked around inside the plane, "there's still many empty seats?"
And yes, you can imagine how empty the plane was when we literally have a row per person to lie down comfortably, conquering 2-4 seats, 2-4 pillows, 2-4 blankets, 2-4 screens for EACH of us.
Awkwardly heaven.
p/s - Have you experience any awkward moments at the airport?
SS, Perak, Malaysia
161125
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