Yesterday certainly opened up new perspectives for me. I went to work as usual, blogged a daily weekday post and proceeded with my work. Towards lunch time, i started to feel very weak and cold, feverish in short. And after failing terribly in trying to down a meal of fish soup rice, they call it fish porridge although it is only rice in fish soup, i went to tell my boss that i cannot make it and have to go see a doctor.



Took bus 91 out to the main road and took a taxi back. So cold i was i had to tell the driver to turn off the aircon and lower the windows. Visited a clinic near my house, got a queue number 15, checked the lcd display, currently serving queue number 6. So i sat there waiting for my turn.



I never thought this would happen to me, but as i waited, i started to hyper-ventilate. The quick short breaths soon saw my hands go numb. Then as the agonizing moments passed, the numbness spreaded to my legs, cheeks and even tongue. Bet you didn't know the tongue could go numb huh :p



"Ding", serving number 15. I ambled in to see the doctor. Compared to having to amble with both legs suffering from cramps in the sheares bridge run, think i would prefer cramps. I had wanted to tell the doctor i felt weak and cold. But when i sat down, i only manage to say that my whole body is numb. Doctor did the sop, including poking my ear to measure my temperature. A little more about these ear poking device later. Doctor said i had high temperature.



We waited awhile for my hyer-ventilation to subside, but it didn't. Called my brother to come and get me while doctor wrote a referral to tan tock seng hospital. Doctor asked me if i wanted an ambulance. Now isn't it nice that i was being asked and that i had a choice? Knowing the high cost involved, i said "no, i'll take a taxi with my brother". Waited a couple more moments, the doctor asked a different question, "You like that how to take taxi?" Doctor being the wiser on such matters, we called an ambulance.



Now, for one who had never taken an ambulance in his entire life, one who have never seen a doctor for the past couple years, well i did see a doctor, but not for being sick, it was for dog bites and possible fractures, taking an ambulance becomes a daunting task. My first thought is that "i'm gonna die". My second thought is that, "Be a man, stop crying."



Ever felt like a package? More object than human? Take an ambulance :p The ride was pretty uneventful, poked my ear again, said i had low fever. Anyway the time taken was enough for my hyper-ventilation to subside. By the time i reach tan tock seng, my numbness was gone. I was ready for discharge before i even entered the hospital. When they were unloading me from the ambulance, the first words to my brother was, "This is a waste of money"



In the hospital, the staff all wore a mask. They came and did their stuff, didn't tell me their names or their position. All they said was what they were doing. One of them said, he was gonna do an ECG for me. For all i know he could have said EGG. Coz EGG is high in protein and is good for patients despite costing 60c per EGG. Apparently, he really meant ECG, not EGG.



When they started clipping metal contacts onto my limbs, alarm bells went off. Metal conducts electricity so did he mean ECG or ECT? I'll do an ECG anytime, but i'll never do an ECT. You hear ECG on tv program 'ER' all the time, and you hear ECT from my mum all the time. Fortunately, they were really doing ECG and not sending electrical signals into my brain. I would have prefered the EGG though.



Waited more, then doctor came, did more sop, which again included poking my ear. Average fever. Now the bits on these ear poking devices. How could my temperature vary so quickly within a couple hours? Doesn't it say something about the accuracy of these devices? If it is as accurate as in my case, then why is the hospital using such equipment? Bleah.



Anyway, went home with a couple slabs of panadol, and $70 dollar lighter bank account. Went to bed at 1800 and missed mooncake day with my family for the fourth year in a row. *sigh* Happy belated mooncake day.