16 Hours

What do you do when you got million things to write about your week but your body has energy for only one post? Gotta listen to my body, I guess?  I had to go through a long period of self-debate in deciding which story to post first, regardless of the order of events, so how about the most recent one?  Let me tell you – this week has been epic.  So much has happened that I forgot to realize that today was Thursday.

Yolanda and I spent about 16 hours together.  I definitely wish it was for a better reason, but we got the most out of the situation.  Yo has been ill for almost two weeks now and just recently found out about the pneumonia that has been haunting her body.  And then, there was a suspicion by the ER doctor of a possible ulcer, or some kind of bleeding in the stomach, that led us to this place: the surgery center.  Yo needed to get a procedure done, and I was asked to be her designated driver.  Initially I freaked out because we needed to be there by 6:30am; we all know how I feel about early morning events.  But this is a friend we are talking, and there is absolutely no way I will turn down a friend’s favor just because I can’t seem to get up early well.  After all, I’m a responsible kid. And a good friend, right? 

It was a nervous feeling to be her driver, her friend, her guardian (at least that’s what the hospital labeled me), and a responsible adult on behalf of her.  I had to sign her discharge paper, test result, and talked to the doctor of her conditions.  This was a very first time for me to stay seriously alerted for someone else. 

After Yo’s successful procedure and the much less-alarming test results, I had to deal with her post-anesthesia moments which ended up becoming quite hilarious for both me and the nurses around.  This, also, was my first encounter of someone going through any type of anesthesia, and it was quite enlightening to discover how one can be so clueless around his/her surroundings while the anesthesia completely disappeared in the system.  By no means I’m trying to embarrass her, but it was quite an interesting moment.

When we got home, we were desperately hungry and I offered to make brunch.  After going to my own doctor’s appointment, I ran some errands for her.  Her fridge looked, what I can only describe as “pathetic”, because there were nothing nutritious left for her to eat as a sick person. At this time, I had decided that my body could no longer handle the internship workload for that same afternoon, so I took the day off.  And plus, I would hate to be alone and attempt to cook when my body is miserably sick; I decided to stay with her for the remainder of the day to keep her lively.  Again, I never took care of a sick person before, so I didn’t know what she would have preferred.  I figured I would at least make dinner for her. 

By the time I arrived with the errands, I felt like my body was about to collapse. I was SO tired.  I took a really sweet nap for the next two hours until I felt ready to be back on my feet again.  Yo was surprising well after the procedure, and she didn’t seem to mind me staying with her all day.  We then spent the rest of the day talking (that’s not good for a pneumonia patient, eh?), watching a fantastically old movie and X-factor.  I then made dinner for us.

I think my first caregiving for a sick friend turned out to be “successful.”  Although there should have been a better reason for us to hang out for 16 hours, but regardless of what the reason was, it was a fun day.  She was a wonderful patient and never gave me a hard time about anything, but personally, taking care of a sick friend was a lot more difficult that I thought.  It’s a lot about thinking in another person’s perspective, especially because I couldn’t understand how she physically felt at the moment.  Essentially, I didn’t want to make a person’s life even more miserable because I couldn’t find a pot or a pan, or the paper towel.  I did my best, though, and I hope she enjoyed my presence.  Once I got home, I popped in some vitamin C to make sure my immune system stays up; the smell of the hospital sometimes freak me out. 

I opened up my windows for some fresh, cool air and feeling more comfortable knowing that she is somewhat taken care of, in terms of food and emotional support and stuff.

Today, I felt good to be a friend I’ve always wanted to become.