Monday, May 9, 2016

Paratyphoid Fever - Revelation (Part 3)

If you haven't read parts 1 and 2, go read those first!

We went to the general Hospital two more times but honestly I don't remember when anymore, the things I do remember were the that on one trip I was assigned this really rough doctor that gave me my first ultrasound (because I haven't pooped for like 3 weeks). The gel is super cold guys, no joke but I remember him just really ramming the scanner into my stomach cause he couldn't get a clear picture. He even pressed down on the lower part of my stomach, telling me it's hard because of all the "waste" deposited there. I understand the severity of my situation but peeing was hard enough so I guessed my body just simply couldn't handle number two. We left with some poop medicine, pee medicine and painkillers.

The other trip I remember quite vividly because it was the first time I ever got a rectal exam (am I being to informative here? I don't know) and I must say it's highly unpleasant. I still wasn't defecating so he wanted to check whether... I actually don't know why he wanted to check THAT part. As for the experience, I would accustom to having a baseball shoved up your butt. Because it's such a long time since I last pooped, he said he was going to induce it, because it was getting dangerous. You know that liquid they squirt up your butt when you have constipation? I did exactly that, and though pooping felt so good, it felt like my intestines were burning the whole time. The first poop I've had in three weeks and it was induced, what a monumental chapter in my life.

It was nearing the weekend, and my mom was going to take my grandfather to the doctor, something about his back. She suggested that I come along, because like why not right? And this doctor was considered one of the best in my town because he tries to tackle an ailment from all angles, very thorough. You know, maybe 7th time's the charm, right? And considering my twin was coming back to here tomorrow, I didn't think it was a bad idea. I just wanted to get better, to get rid of this headache, the double vision, fatigue, muscle pains and I wanted to poop, badly. The thing you don't realize unless you haven't pooped for two weeks is that you're constantly feeling bloated, your farts stink like crazy, you feel full all the time and you just feel uneasy. They have a medical term for that, believe it or not, MALAISE, you can check it out yourself, really helps explaining what your feeling in one word.

But I digress, we met up with the doctor, and went through the usual Q&A session, and I loved the part when I told him I haven't pooped in two weeks, his eyes grew wide with surprise and just stared at me. It's nice to see someone comprehend how bad you feel, without you telling them, he knew the implications of that and I knew by looking at him as well. Then we did an ultrasound, yeap, my second trimester and then, surprise, surprise, they needed my blood. But somehow I felt this visit gave more information compared to those other visits, and I hoped for the best, even more so judging by this doctor's reputation. So we returned home, it was Chinese New Year so my results weren't coming for another week. And so the waiting game began, my twin came back home and so did my sister. I was really excited but I was still bedridden most of the time so I couldn't really do much with either of them. My twin made attempts to play Monster Hunter 4 since our friends were on holiday as well but honestly I couldn't even sit up, let alone play an intense game. For real though, as a person that loves playing video games, I would if I could right? So I clearly couldn't.

Another thing they don't tell you about being sick is how depressing just lying in bed and staying in can be. Because I didn't even know I was depressed, (just a note though, this was not like hardcore "omg so depressed gonna kill myself" kind of depression,  there are people actually suffering from that but I wasn't) and I actually found out because I felt down and wanted to cry all the time. Not to mention tear inducing ads which I could just watch without feeling anything, suddenly broke me, it was like I was looking for reasons to cry just to make myself feel better. And clearly it didn't work cause I kept feeling that way. My family were really nice because looking at the state I was in, you just had to believe what I was telling you, there weren't any visible clues that could tell them what I was going through but they were very accommodating and let me be a lazy slob by just lying down all the time.

As expected, Chinese New Year was uneventful, I didn't visit anyone, which was a bummer because I really wanted to visit my boss' house, I left on a good note, and I wanted to keep it that way. I was actually excited because the week after, if all was well, I could finally know what was wrong with me. I was treated to a wonderful gift on the weekend, I POOPED. And not just any poop, a poop that lasted for half an hour with excruciating pain cause you haven't flexed those muscles in a long time (if you know what I mean) but at the same time, with that pain I was rewarded with one of the best poops in my life. Not induced whatsoever, a totally natural poop, like my body was telling me, "yo faruq, this is yo body man, you don't worry, you gettin better bruh". It was so monumental (haha this is so sad) that I went down stairs, and hugged my mom, and I was like "guess what, I pooped". She was glad as well, so yeah, story of my life. My full appetite kicked in too and how I craved spicy food, from which I proceeded to poop 2 more times.

We could finally get the results on Wednesday, and the doctor said those magic words everyone was waiting to hear. PARATYPHOID FEVER. Which was a lesser version of Typhoid Fever, and he was surprised I actually got it considering they were only common is rural areas, and not a city like Miri. I was happy, I finally knew what was wrong with me but then came the bad news, Chinese New Year was from 7-13 February, and I only got my results on Wednesday which was on 17 February, I needed at least 2-3 weeks to fully recover. And I was going back to university on the 25th. I was worried that my parents would worry, I was worried I couldn't make the trip, I was worried I had to live with the sickness alone in KL until I got better. I had to get better in 2 weeks, it's true I was going back on the 25th but my classes would only start the week after was was more than 2 weeks. Renewed hope, I just had to survive and not push myself too much until I got better.

We left the clinic, all contented (still sick though) that we finally knew what it was. I even googled it on the way home. Symptoms included, constipation, fatique, high fever for the first few weeks of illness, muscle pains and headaches. All the things I've been suffering from the past few weeks and they at last made sense! I did also have double vision, which was one of the reasons why I couldn't drive, because the lanes would merge together and I was scared I would drive into other cars. The doctor wasn't sure if it waa related but if I still had double vision after the 2-3 weeks were over I would have to see a specialist again. I continued to take the medicine he gave me, and here comes another bit of advice, check the side effects of the medicine the doctor gives you. Because the medicine he gave me for my fatigue, headaches and vertigo could cause insomnia, I couldn't sleep properly (hereby referring to going to sleep at 12 but being unable to do so until 4 am in the morning) for 5 days, it's like having red bull in your system, 24/7, when the initial kick has worn off, your eyelids heavy and tired but your brain keeps running. I rationalized that I didn't need the medicine, so I stopped taking the ones for fatigue and headaches, I only continued taking  medicine for the liver and pooping.

I still couldn't bake or play games, I have to get better in 10 days, I'm going back to KL soon and I just wasted more than a month's worth of holidays. What is life people?

To be continued in part 4, hehe~

Ok guys it's official, I'm posting every month which is a far cry from my initial plan to post every week. I'm having fun writing this series though, it's like writing a story, which is probably why it's long and winded. I promised myself I wouldn't post anything else until I got this series done, my original plan was to write a four part story, I wanted to get it over with and end it with this one, but it turned out longer than expected so I guess there'll have to be another post! BTW Tracer's (super fun hero) out already and I've been meaning to write a first impressions post, I've also been meaning to write about Li Ming, I've learned quite a bit about how to use her abilities and talents to the fullest. All those coming up next! Final year is no joke guys, I'm struggling to find the time to write so I appreciate that you still follow my blog!

Have fun and be careful what you eat!!


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