One day, on my usual workday as a tour guide, I visited some beautiful places in Bali. We started at an art museum called the Agung Rai Museum. There, we saw many Balinese paintings, from classical to modern styles.
After that, we went to the Monkey Forest in Ubud. We walked among playful monkeys and very old trees, together with other tourists. Everything felt normal, like any other working day.
As the day went on, I began to feel tired. While walking inside the Monkey Forest, I dragged my feet and felt heavy. I remember thinking, I wish this day would finish soon so I could go home and rest. At that moment, I did not think anything was wrong. I thought it was just a long day.
Then I noticed something strange. I found it difficult to talk. Some of my words were not clear and hard to hear. My client noticed this too. She looked at me with concern and said, “I think you might be having a mild stroke. You should see a doctor immediately.”
I was shocked. I kept asking myself, What is happening? I felt fine, only tired. I never imagined something serious could be happening inside my body. She told me that she once had a friend who suffered a mild stroke. She said I was slow with my hand and that I was not walking straight. Hearing this made me afraid. Suddenly, the day did not feel normal anymore.
That night, my mind was full of questions. I started to blame myself. Maybe I was careless with my health. I ate too much meat and followed many Instagram reels about non-vegetarian diets without really understanding them. I wondered if my lifestyle had quietly led me to this moment.
After I finished work, I returned to my boarding house in Denpasar. I could not ignore the signs anymore. Finally, I decided to see a doctor.
At the local hospital, the doctor asked me what happened. I explained that I was struggling to speak because there was a lot of saliva, and it made talking difficult. He asked me to smile, lift my eyebrows, and squeeze his hands as strongly as I could. Each small test made me more aware of my body in a way I had never been before.
That night, the doctor confirmed that I had suffered a mild stroke. Hearing those words changed something inside me. I realized how fragile health can be, and how quickly life can shift. What I thought was just another tiring workday became the moment I learned to listen to my body—and to take my life more seriously.