I'm aware September is all but over, this is a post I have been planning for a little while but just haven't gotten round to. There have been a few bloggers who have beat me to it so I'm not going to go into the ins and outs of it all.
Miss Ginger invited me to participate in a survey a little while ago about sickle cell anaemia and its effects on society in general, it made me think long and hard about how people treat people who are 'sicklers'
I have two beautiful friends, both of whom are successful, funny and a joy to be around. One of them has been looking to get married for about 4 years now. She has no problems getting boyfriends, its as soon as they get serious and she presumably has 'the talk' with them, they run a mile. No one wants to be tagged as being married to a 'sickler'.
My question is how DARE them? Who the hell is ANYONE to judge someone else and refuse to be with them as a result of a disorder they have? Tomorrow is promised for NONE of us, the very same guys who are running a mile now could very well contract HIV or terminal cancer in a few years. Would they then feel like they are not worthy of love?
My other friend, I've known since I was 12 years old, she is the smartest, bravest, most beautiful person I have ever met. She used to get so frustrated st Secondary school when people treated her differently because of her health, I remember her always being picked last for sport with me. The only difference is that I didn't actually want to be picked at all (different story for a different day). She is the reason I started giving blood when we moved here at 15. I know there probably next to no chance of my blood being passed on to her but the thought of it helping someone possibly in her shoes is more than enough to keep me coming back
I've also heard the other side of the coin, 'two AS' should not get married, they should not think of having kids as its not fair to the children to feel pain'. I know a couple who where tested and were fine. During further testing when the wife was pregnant, it was discovered that she wasn't in fact AA, she was AS, this put their kid in the 25th percentile of being born with sickle cell anaemia.
I ask the sickle cell brigade, what should they do? Abort the child who already has fingers and toes, a heartbeat, fully formed organs because it doesn't fit into the norm of what is socially acceptable?
My problem is with the prejudice people have to face everyday over something they have no control over, its simply unacceptable. More emphasis should be placed on the fact that anyone who has this disorder is a person first and should be treated as such.
My name is Pretty Lashes and I'm proud to say that I'm not narrow minded. Can you say the same?
xxPretty Lashesxx
I beg of you all, if anyone is 'AA' and based in the UK, PLEASE GIVE BLOOD, YOU NEVER KNOW WHO'S LIFE YOU MAY BE SAVING.
image source (google)
