Adolescence

Most children will have learnt to manage their own haemophilia before puberty. This should include knowing when to ask for treatment, judging the dose of clotting factor needed, mixing the concentrate, administering the injection and clearing up afterwards.

The key to this typically difficult and challenging stage of life is allowing the child to have some control over their environment, their body and their haemophilia. Learning to put life first and the condition second is the single most important feature of growing up. Common sense and a little forward planning will ensure that life can run smoothly without the disruption of an untreated bleed.