At my age, people fall in love and most would inevitably suffer from heartache of unrequited affections or love which has withered prematurely. Not me.
I have not fallen in love. Not yet. What I have been 'privileged' enough was the experience to fall on something else.
My bathroom floor to be exact.
If you are a korean drama fan, I could probably hear gushes of how romantic the scene could be. Imagine 'My Girl' where Lee Dong Wook rushes into the bathroom and scooped an undressed Lee Da Hae who had just slipped on the wet tiles. And that's the start of a beautiful romance.
Well, the bathroom as well as the undressed parts were there alright. Come on, if I can admit falling on the bathroom floor, everything else is pretty relative. Lee Dong Wook was unfortunately missing from the picture though.
Anyway, I fell alright. On a hot Saturday morning which I will always remember as 28th May 2011, what started out as a prelim to a routine shower became something else. One moment, I was standing upright. The next moment saw me staring at the ceiling and a searing pain at the back of my head. For the first time in my life, I felt what it was like to be lying on my dry bathroom floor.
The first reaction was feeling scared. I didn't know what to do. I think I cried. Then, I tried moving my hands and it worked. So my limbs are still working, phew. But it didn't feel right to continue lying on the floor waiting for people to discover me. I had to move myself from the floor and that I did. After I wrapped myself with a towel, I went to my mother. From here onwards, everything was from Mama's recollection as my memory went completely blank.
Mama said I went up to her and told her that I had fallen in the bathroom and hit my head. Think there was also a few episodes of vomiting before my parents rushed me to UH's trauma centre. I really didn't know what was going on. I could sense my parents with me and myself being ferried from one place to another in a wheelchair but that was it. For a scaredy-cat like me, I didn't even remember the doctor who inserted the plastic thingy into my veins and drew blood before I was wheeled for a CT scan.
My parents must have been worried to death. What was supposed to be a Saturday morning turned out to be hours at UH. The best part was that I had given my handphone (as well as other important confidential info) to my mom without me realising it. I couldn't help but wonder if there were not-to-be-told secrets disclosed in my moments of blankness.
I'm extremely thankful to God that despite the fall (which my Dad confirmed as a loud thock which he heard from the tv room below), the CT scan didn't show any fracture to my skull. There was however, swelling in the center area at the back of my brain. Later viewing of the brain image shows a smiling face with the darkened image of the swelling serving as the protruding nose. See, my sense of humour is still intact despite the fall!
No thanks to the fall, I spent the following 1 week plus at home on medical leave. There were moments of dizziness, especially when I was trying to lift my head from the pillow or standing still. Then, there was the painful episodes of me being unable to sneeze due to the tight ribcage. I will never treat the ubiquitous 'Ah Choo!' in the same way again. And the simple luxury of sleeping on my back was no longer mine thanks to the bump at the back of my head. My familiar sleeping style had to be changed to sleeping on the sides and stiffened my neck along the way.
A follow-up visit to the neurosurgery clinic revealed that I needed to undergo the MRI scan. Will see how it goes and whether the outcome warrants a subsequent blog entry.
But the 'best' part of all would have to be the voluminous amount of papaya I had to consume!!! I've never been a fruit lover so it is extremely pathetic that I have to associate each medical episode of my life with a fruit. Back in 2007, I had the chicken pox and that period was marked with coconuts. Now, it's a hit to the head and papaya is the word of the day. My dad said that it was either papaya or pineapple to help bring the swelling down. A classic case of the devil or the deep blue sea.
There is a nagging feeling that what triggered this episode is somewhat along the lines of a supernatural intrusion. Yet, I'm not keen to write on this part lest I pose unnecessary scare to some of you. It's enough to say that I will never again enter any bathroom or toilet without a prayer to ward off all evil forces.
Since I'm writing this entry, I wish to record my thanks to the following people -
(a) first and foremost, my parents. I've never been so thankful that I'm still staying with them. I hate to think what would have happened if I was living alone;
(b) a close second, my concerned sisters. Though they are in Australia and Korea, I think I could feel their worry;
(c) my effarogy. I apologised for not telling earlier but your visits as well as the food treats are deeply appreciated;
(d) my bosses for paying a visit and being understanding of my medical condition. Oh, and not forgetting my dishevelled image which I greeted them with. It must have been more than a fashion scare; and
(e) the well wishes and concern from other family members, friends and individuals. To name you all would be more than an entry on its own. I like to think that I will thank each of you personally when I have the chance to do so.
* I had originally wanted to blog about my travels for year 2011 thus far - memorable holiday to Korea in January and effarogy's first ever overseas trip (together) to Hong Kong in April. Yet again, I've been distracted and for that, I could only be reminded of a Yiddish proverb taught by a friend -
"Men plan, God laughs".
I have not fallen in love. Not yet. What I have been 'privileged' enough was the experience to fall on something else.
My bathroom floor to be exact.
If you are a korean drama fan, I could probably hear gushes of how romantic the scene could be. Imagine 'My Girl' where Lee Dong Wook rushes into the bathroom and scooped an undressed Lee Da Hae who had just slipped on the wet tiles. And that's the start of a beautiful romance.
Well, the bathroom as well as the undressed parts were there alright. Come on, if I can admit falling on the bathroom floor, everything else is pretty relative. Lee Dong Wook was unfortunately missing from the picture though.
Anyway, I fell alright. On a hot Saturday morning which I will always remember as 28th May 2011, what started out as a prelim to a routine shower became something else. One moment, I was standing upright. The next moment saw me staring at the ceiling and a searing pain at the back of my head. For the first time in my life, I felt what it was like to be lying on my dry bathroom floor.
The first reaction was feeling scared. I didn't know what to do. I think I cried. Then, I tried moving my hands and it worked. So my limbs are still working, phew. But it didn't feel right to continue lying on the floor waiting for people to discover me. I had to move myself from the floor and that I did. After I wrapped myself with a towel, I went to my mother. From here onwards, everything was from Mama's recollection as my memory went completely blank.
Mama said I went up to her and told her that I had fallen in the bathroom and hit my head. Think there was also a few episodes of vomiting before my parents rushed me to UH's trauma centre. I really didn't know what was going on. I could sense my parents with me and myself being ferried from one place to another in a wheelchair but that was it. For a scaredy-cat like me, I didn't even remember the doctor who inserted the plastic thingy into my veins and drew blood before I was wheeled for a CT scan.
My parents must have been worried to death. What was supposed to be a Saturday morning turned out to be hours at UH. The best part was that I had given my handphone (as well as other important confidential info) to my mom without me realising it. I couldn't help but wonder if there were not-to-be-told secrets disclosed in my moments of blankness.
I'm extremely thankful to God that despite the fall (which my Dad confirmed as a loud thock which he heard from the tv room below), the CT scan didn't show any fracture to my skull. There was however, swelling in the center area at the back of my brain. Later viewing of the brain image shows a smiling face with the darkened image of the swelling serving as the protruding nose. See, my sense of humour is still intact despite the fall!
No thanks to the fall, I spent the following 1 week plus at home on medical leave. There were moments of dizziness, especially when I was trying to lift my head from the pillow or standing still. Then, there was the painful episodes of me being unable to sneeze due to the tight ribcage. I will never treat the ubiquitous 'Ah Choo!' in the same way again. And the simple luxury of sleeping on my back was no longer mine thanks to the bump at the back of my head. My familiar sleeping style had to be changed to sleeping on the sides and stiffened my neck along the way.
A follow-up visit to the neurosurgery clinic revealed that I needed to undergo the MRI scan. Will see how it goes and whether the outcome warrants a subsequent blog entry.
But the 'best' part of all would have to be the voluminous amount of papaya I had to consume!!! I've never been a fruit lover so it is extremely pathetic that I have to associate each medical episode of my life with a fruit. Back in 2007, I had the chicken pox and that period was marked with coconuts. Now, it's a hit to the head and papaya is the word of the day. My dad said that it was either papaya or pineapple to help bring the swelling down. A classic case of the devil or the deep blue sea.
There is a nagging feeling that what triggered this episode is somewhat along the lines of a supernatural intrusion. Yet, I'm not keen to write on this part lest I pose unnecessary scare to some of you. It's enough to say that I will never again enter any bathroom or toilet without a prayer to ward off all evil forces.
Since I'm writing this entry, I wish to record my thanks to the following people -
(a) first and foremost, my parents. I've never been so thankful that I'm still staying with them. I hate to think what would have happened if I was living alone;
(b) a close second, my concerned sisters. Though they are in Australia and Korea, I think I could feel their worry;
(c) my effarogy. I apologised for not telling earlier but your visits as well as the food treats are deeply appreciated;
(d) my bosses for paying a visit and being understanding of my medical condition. Oh, and not forgetting my dishevelled image which I greeted them with. It must have been more than a fashion scare; and
(e) the well wishes and concern from other family members, friends and individuals. To name you all would be more than an entry on its own. I like to think that I will thank each of you personally when I have the chance to do so.
* I had originally wanted to blog about my travels for year 2011 thus far - memorable holiday to Korea in January and effarogy's first ever overseas trip (together) to Hong Kong in April. Yet again, I've been distracted and for that, I could only be reminded of a Yiddish proverb taught by a friend -
"Men plan, God laughs".
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