Arifa Akbar’s sister Fauzia died in 2016 from tuberculosis. Fauzia experienced night sweats, her lungs hurt, and her face began to swell; despite these signs the doctors at The Royal Free Hospital in London were baffled and she died of a brain haemorrhage. In Arifa’s stunning memoir ‘Consumed’ she investigates how a leading hospital could have missed this ancient but curable disease. Here, Arifa discusses her and Fauzia’s complicated love for one another, from best friends in their teens to years of estrangement. The sisters were pitted against each other and, whilst Arifa was her Father’s favourite, Fauzia had a totally different childhood under the same roof, experiencing emotional cruelty from their Dad. Arifa is brutally honest about the impact that this childhood trauma and Fauzia’s paralysing depression and eating disorder had on them, pulling them apart for years. PAGE 112 looks at how the mistrust had set in but how, ultimately, the sisters were reconciled and all the guilt, rage and pain fell away as Arifa dashed to A&E to be by her sister’s side. This is a deep discussion about the roles parents ascribe to their kids, how families create their own mythologies and how sibling misunderstandings can become so muddy it’s hard to see who started the argument and what it’s even about.
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Abby on Twitter and Instagram - @AbbyHollick
Arifa on Twitter - @Arifa_Akbar
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Consumed - https://uk.bookshop.org/books/consumed-in-search-of-my-sister-shortlisted-for-the-costa-biography-award-2021/9781529347555
NHS supportive links for Tuberculosis, Eating disorders and Depression:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/tuberculosis-tb/
https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/feelings-symptoms-behaviours/behaviours/eating-disorders/overview/
https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/depression/
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Page is hosted and produced by Abby Hollick for Good Tape. To contact us, email abby@goodtape.org
Sound Engineers: Hunter Charlton and Chris Sharp
Original Music: Paddy Gervers and Rob Sell for Torch and Compass
Graphic Designer: Tim Hughes
Web Support: Daniel Benoliel
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Arifa Akbar’s sister Fauzia died in 2016 from tuberculosis. Fauzia experienced night sweats, her lungs hurt, and her face began to swell; despite these signs the doctors at The Royal Free Hospital in London were baffled and she died of a brain haemorrhage. In Arifa’s stunning memoir ‘Consumed’ she investigates how a leading hospital could have missed this ancient but curable disease. Here, Arifa discusses her and Fauzia’s complicated love for one another, from best friends in their teens to years of estrangement. The sisters were pitted against each other and, whilst Arifa was her Father’s favourite, Fauzia had a totally different childhood under the same roof, experiencing emotional cruelty from their Dad. Arifa is brutally honest about the impact that this childhood trauma and Fauzia’s paralysing depression and eating disorder had on them, pulling them apart for years. PAGE 112 looks at how the mistrust had set in but how, ultimately, the sisters were reconciled and all the guilt, rage and pain fell away as Arifa dashed to A&E to be by her sister’s side. This is a deep discussion about the roles parents ascribe to their kids, how families create their own mythologies and how sibling misunderstandings can become so muddy it’s hard to see who started the argument and what it’s even about.
---
Abby on Twitter and Instagram - @AbbyHollick
Arifa on Twitter - @Arifa_Akbar
---
Consumed - https://uk.bookshop.org/books/consumed-in-search-of-my-sister-shortlisted-for-the-costa-biography-award-2021/9781529347555
NHS supportive links for Tuberculosis, Eating disorders and Depression:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/tuberculosis-tb/
https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/feelings-symptoms-behaviours/behaviours/eating-disorders/overview/
https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/depression/
---
Page is hosted and produced by Abby Hollick for Good Tape. To contact us, email abby@goodtape.org
Sound Engineers: Hunter Charlton and Chris Sharp
Original Music: Paddy Gervers and Rob Sell for Torch and Compass
Graphic Designer: Tim Hughes
Web Support: Daniel Benoliel
I’m over the moon Michael Rosen is my first guest on PAGE! Michael is one of Britain’s best-loved poets, a writer and former Children’s Laureate.
In this episode Michael discusses PAGE 163 of his latest book, 'Many Different Kinds of Love: A Story of Life, Death and the NHS'. In March 2020, Michael was struggling to breathe, and he was admitted to hospital with coronavirus. Here, he reflects on the month he spent in an induced coma, and the utterly extraordinary story of how his wife Emma and his consultant Hugh Montgomery, at the Whittington hospital, reached into his frozen mind and woke him up. He acknowledges the love and care he received from the nurses and compares it to the fierce devotion a parent gives to a sick child. Michael reveals how messages from his children enabled him to become conscious and how he is learning to make sense of his recovery when so many around him died. His optimism shines through as he talks acceptance, doing one joyful thing a day and why it’s important to own your challenges. I picked PAGE 163 as Michael’s love for Emma is so moving. This is one of the most beautiful books I’ve ever read about love, life and the NHS: it celebrates the indomitable spirits of the medical staff who kept Michael alive and the love and care his family showed him.
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Links:
Michael's book, Many Different Kinds of Love -
https://uk.bookshop.org/books/many-different-kinds-of-love-a-story-of-life-death-and-the-nhs/9781529109450
2020: The Story Of Us on ITV Hub - https://www.itv.com/hub/2020-the-story-of-us/10a1053a0001
'Chocolate Cake' - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BxQLITdOOc
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Social Media:
Abby on Twitter and Instagram - @AbbyHollick
Michael on Twitter - @MichaelRosenYes
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Page is hosted and produced by Abby Hollick for Good Tape.
To contact us, email abby@goodtape.org
Sound Engineers: Hunter Charlton and Chris Sharp
Original Music: Paddy Gervers and Rob Sell for Torch and Compass
Graphic Designer: Tim Hughes
Web Support: Daniel Benoliel
Page
Arifa Akbar’s sister Fauzia died in 2016 from tuberculosis. Fauzia experienced night sweats, her lungs hurt, and her face began to swell; despite these signs the doctors at The Royal Free Hospital in London were baffled and she died of a brain haemorrhage. In Arifa’s stunning memoir ‘Consumed’ she investigates how a leading hospital could have missed this ancient but curable disease. Here, Arifa discusses her and Fauzia’s complicated love for one another, from best friends in their teens to years of estrangement. The sisters were pitted against each other and, whilst Arifa was her Father’s favourite, Fauzia had a totally different childhood under the same roof, experiencing emotional cruelty from their Dad. Arifa is brutally honest about the impact that this childhood trauma and Fauzia’s paralysing depression and eating disorder had on them, pulling them apart for years. PAGE 112 looks at how the mistrust had set in but how, ultimately, the sisters were reconciled and all the guilt, rage and pain fell away as Arifa dashed to A&E to be by her sister’s side. This is a deep discussion about the roles parents ascribe to their kids, how families create their own mythologies and how sibling misunderstandings can become so muddy it’s hard to see who started the argument and what it’s even about.
---
Abby on Twitter and Instagram - @AbbyHollick
Arifa on Twitter - @Arifa_Akbar
---
Consumed - https://uk.bookshop.org/books/consumed-in-search-of-my-sister-shortlisted-for-the-costa-biography-award-2021/9781529347555
NHS supportive links for Tuberculosis, Eating disorders and Depression:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/tuberculosis-tb/
https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/feelings-symptoms-behaviours/behaviours/eating-disorders/overview/
https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/depression/
---
Page is hosted and produced by Abby Hollick for Good Tape. To contact us, email abby@goodtape.org
Sound Engineers: Hunter Charlton and Chris Sharp
Original Music: Paddy Gervers and Rob Sell for Torch and Compass
Graphic Designer: Tim Hughes
Web Support: Daniel Benoliel
