Health is characterized by a state of total physical, mental, and social well-being in addition to the absence of disease, is the cornerstone of a happy and full life. A healthy diet, consistent exercise, enough sleep, and an optimistic outlook are all necessary for achieving and preserving excellent health.
Hello everyone, for today’s blog, I want to share with you what happened to me on November 30, 2024. I am still in shock and unable to believe what is happening in my body. I hope that this blog will raise awareness and encourage you to take care of your health and practice proper hygiene for prevention.
Around the 3rd week of November, I started feeling like I had a low-grade fever. Every time I touched my neck and forehead, they felt hot. When I used the thermometer, my body temperature was around 37.5 - 37.7°C, so I immediately began taking paracetamol to prevent it from increasing. Yes, it relieved my low-grade fever, but eventually, it would come back. In short, it was on and off. Another symptom I experienced was a tingling sensation every time I urinated, and my urine had tiny bubbles and a strong smell. At first, I thought I was just dehydrated, but even after drinking plenty of water, there was no improvement.
Fast forward to November 30, 2024 – my body felt weak, and my temperature was still slightly elevated. While I was at my boarding house, waiting to move to work, I suddenly started feeling chills. I felt cold and looked pale. I could hardly move my feet. I put on a jacket, but it didn't provide any relief. Despite feeling so unwell, I went to work. After about an hour, the chills subsided, but then I started sweating heavily and even vomited. At that point, I decided to file for undertime and go home.
When I got home, I slept for an hour, but suddenly woke up feeling chills again. The worst part was that I felt like I was going to pass out, as everything around me became blurry. Fortunately, it was a holiday, so my boyfriend wasn’t working. He took me to the hospital, along with my insurance card, since I’m still dependent on my mother.
When I arrived at the emergency room, I felt extremely weak and heavy, and my fever was slowly rising, reaching up to 40°C. That's when the doctor decided to admit me for further monitoring. They checked my vital signs, ran laboratory tests, and even performed a whole abdomen ultrasound to investigate any additional symptoms. After all the tests, the nurse started administering fluids via dextrose to hydrate me and gave me antibiotics. I vomited three times and experienced chills once while at the hospital.
I was waiting for my doctor to do her rounds so she could check on me. At that point, I had no idea what was going on in my body. I didn’t know if this fever was related to dengue or some other illness. When the doctor came, she explained everything to me. What I was experiencing was a strong infection in my body that was starting to affect my kidneys. In the past few weeks, I had been feeling back pain almost every day, which I thought was normal since I didn’t have proper ergonomic support while sitting, but it had gotten worse. The doctor also mentioned that the infection originated in my UTI and had almost reached my kidneys. Although I don’t usually drink soft drinks, the infection was likely caused by poor hygiene. While I do practice hygiene, it’s important to be more thorough, and the lack of sufficient fluid intake, such as water, may have also contributed to this issue. The doctor also explained that my ultrasound showed that my kidneys were in good condition with no damage. My spleen, bladder, appendix, uterus, pancreas, gallbladder, and liver were also all in good condition. Thank you, Lord! It didn’t affect any of my organs, and I’m grateful that I went to the hospital urgently so it could be treated.
During my confinement, they always provided food for the patients. If you really know me, chicken is my comfort food. So, when I received my meal, I felt sad because they prohibited me from eating chicken and eggs. My gosh! It felt so empty, and the food they served was bland and had no taste at all. It was something strange for my taste buds. My boyfriend ended up eating my hospital food instead.
As the days went by, I couldn’t imagine I had to stay in the hospital for four days. I was starting to feel better and really wanted to go home. After the doctor’s explanation, I felt very sad and even cried because I was still in denial about having that illness. I prayed and spoke to God in my mind, asking for healing, and despite the illness, I trusted that God would heal me urgently.
When the bills came, my mother assured me that there would be no other fees aside from the miscellaneous charges we needed to cover. I trusted the insurance, but when the bill statement was given, I was shocked to see that we needed to pay more than 5,000 PHP. The worst part was that I didn’t have enough money; I only had 1,000 PHP in my wallet, which was meant for my take-home medicines. I contacted my mother, and a long argument ensued because there were many hidden fees. My boyfriend tried to ask the billing station, but they just responded that those charges were not covered by the insurance. At 7 PM on December 3, 2024, I was finally discharged! My mother sent me money so that we could proceed with the discharge but I already don’t have the money to buy antibiotics, but it was very stressful.
Before I end this blog, I want to extend my appreciation to my boyfriend, who stayed with me during this difficult time. It was really hard, and it felt like a roller coaster ride. My boyfriend was the one who took me to the hospital, and whenever I needed to pee or poop, he was there to help me. Whenever I had concerns about my IV, he was the one who approached the nurses. When he needed to go to the ground floor to pass some papers, he was willing to travel back and forth between the 7th floor and the ground floor. I know he felt my pain every time he watched me suffer with the injections. Lastly, he even stayed awake because I constantly interrupted him. I don’t know how to say thank you for being by my side in the hospital when my mother was at work. You are truly a man! Thank you for always being there for me, even though I smelled because I hadn’t taken a bath for 4 days, and for styling my hair. And for everything, thank you.
And also to my mommy, who visited me last Sunday. Thank you for always paying the insurance, and now I can benefit from it. Thank you for bringing Jollibee, even though chicken wasn’t allowed for me at least I got to eat it once, hahahaha! Thank you, mommy, for the financial support, even though we are not financially stable. But at least we were able to pay the bills.
Right now, I am still recovering, but I can finally return to work. The doctor gave me a take-home antibiotic, and it's very pricey. As of now, I can’t afford it because I still need funds to buy it. I am reaching out to your hearts, hoping that if you have any extra money, you could kindly help with a donation for my medications so that this illness can be fully treated. Even a single peso would be a big help to me during this time. Whatever this blog will bring, this is all for my medications. Thank you.
And to everyone, I hope this blog serves as a reminder that health is wealth. Always take care of yourself. Even though I am a nurse by profession, I can still get sick. It’s important to remember that no one is immune, and prioritizing our health is key to living a happy and fulfilling life. Health is truly wealth because we never know when an illness might strike our bodies. Often, we take our well-being for granted until something unexpected happens. It’s important to remember that taking care of our health through proper nutrition, regular exercise, and self-care is the best investment we can make. When we're healthy, we have the strength and energy to live life fully, but without health, everything else becomes much harder. So, let’s prioritize our health and appreciate it while we have it, because good health is the foundation of everything else in life.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read and connect with my thoughts today. I’m excited to continue sharing my journey with you, and I hope you found something here that resonated or sparked an idea. This blog is a space for growth, inspiration, and conversation, and I’d love to hear your thoughts, feedback, or experiences in the comments. Feel free to share if something stood out to you. Here’s to many more stories, lessons, and moments of connection ahead! See you in the next post!