We don’t sleep at night.

The diagnosis for this symptom is insomnia. G47.0.

In an attempt to be grown up, and reframe it, we tell ourselves our bodies will sleep when they need sleep. When sleep won’t present itself, we think, mull, cogitate, consider, disrupt, deconstruct, unpick, unravel, reknit, and ask ‘why’ far more than could be good for either of us.

In the mornings we write lists. Then we send voice notes, or emails and construct cataclysmic lists of all the stuff we want to do, and think about, and write about, and change. Every few months we get together, either in person or virtually and work together until our brains have turned into semi-set aspic. Its fabulous. And we drink wine. (We are not South Africans for nothing.)

We are both scientists, and grew up in the heady atmosphere of evidence based best practice. For reasons that may well be a blog post in the future, we have landed up practicing this singular branch of medicine, palliative care. In the process we find ourselves smashed up against the worldwide reality that less than 15% of people who need palliative care are able to access it.

We know what some of the problems are. So have decided to commit our insomnia to being curious, shaking things up and seeing what solutions we can shake loose.

We are advocates for the universal human right to person centered, person affirming health care, and palliative care access specifically. Our work together is all about listening, thinking, examining, investigating, and imagining solutions.

Thank you for joining us. If worst comes to worst, our blog may cure your insomnia and put you to sleep. But we hope it doesn’t.

– Barbara & Craig Geoff