Santhosh's ramblings

Last week, a friend came to me for a medical opinion. He is diabetic, hypertensive, and has some airway diseases. After listening to his concerns, I asked him about his current medications—a routine question for any physician.     He began taking out packets of medications, one after another. Each packet contained at least three different types of medicines.      First packet: Medications for diabetes prescribed by a diabetologist. "But then," he added, "I was travelling, and a family friend’s doctor told me to add one more tablet, so I’m taking this too."      Second packet: Medications for blood pressure, prescribed by a cardiologist. "Since I felt funny at night, I started taking this twice a day instead of once, as originally instructed. And sometimes, when I feel my BP is high, I take another tablet given by my friend's doctor, just in case."   Third packet: Medications for his cough—two tablets he had been taking regularly.  F...

Seasons change; it is a fact of life. How much should I change or should I change itself is the question!  One thing I have enjoyed in the North has been the changing seasons - winter and a short spring, the long summer with a short monsoon added in, and then the short autumn. Despite the severity of some seasons, there is always something to hope for: this too shall pass! Some other parts of our nation have only hot, hotter, hottest, hot and humid, and back to hot. (I am not really looking forward to this.  😞 )   What we learn from observing these changes is that many things change, but some things do not. Many things perish, but new life emerges. Observe the tree outside our window. Leaves turn yellow; most fall and die, but soon, new ones emerge. Birds move out for some time but return. Some birds keep watch, like watchmen waiting for dawn to appear and for the season to change, since their habitat is also affected by seasonal change! Amid all these changes, the tree ...