Tuesday, August 01, 2006

Pushing Beyond My Comfort Zone

... is something I try to do on a regular basis.

I have always been curious about getting a tattoo, and knew that I wanted to, but thought I was too much of a chicken to ever go through with it. So I figured it was time.

My older brother and I have had a Superman "thing" for years. We each have several medical conditions that defy explanation and cause the docs to make funny faces and scratch their heads, so we laugh about it and call ourselves Kryptonian. My most recent blood test confirmed that my bizarre -- and evidently, benign -- blood condition* was probably caused by a rare genetic mutation. I smiled and thanked my hematologist for medically confirming my status as a mutant being. It explains a lot, really.

Other outrageously happy associations with this symbol have emerged along the way -- linking it with my strength and health and good luck -- so it was clear to me that it was time to make it official.

* Essential Thrombocythemia -- I have enough platelets to stop the bleeding of four adults. Go ahead, laugh. It's funny.

3 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

{{{Kay}}}

all right, girlfriend! :D

8:54 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

So basically, you have super-rich blood? This is a good thing, right?

I mean, it doesn't make you sick or need to be thinned, right?

4:45 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Well, the concern is clotting/bleeding problems, and I don't understand why, but it can go either way. I take an aspirin every day to keep the platelets from sticking together, which also very conveniently reduces the frequency of my very annoying migraines (which are very likely a direct result of the platelet thing.)

Another weird phenomenon that made everyone go "Huh?": with each pregnancy, my platelet count slowly decreased and was within the normal range by my due date. As soon as each baby was born, my counts shot right back up again.

5:18 PM  

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