Number 138

A Birthday Tale

 So this happened the other day. January 9th to be precise; which, coincidentally, happens to be my birthday. It was 7:00 AM, and I had just woken up. Bleary-eyed and wanting to stay under the warm covers just a little bit longer, I nonetheless stood up - I had an obligation at 7:30 I needed to get ready for. The next thing I know, I'm laying on the floor at the foot of my bed fuzzily trying to make sense of, well... anything. I had passed out to the point that even my bladder let go. I felt tingly all over, I had the shakes, and I felt incredibly weak, as well as vaguely nauseous. My partner put in a call to 911.

Here's what I knew as I lay on the floor, taking hesitant sips of water and waiting for the EMTs to arrive. As part of my hormone replacement therapy (HRT), I take a drug called spironolactone ("spiro" for short), because it inhibits the production and distribution of testosterone in my body, which, in turns, causes "feminizing" effects. Unfortunately, it was originally developed to help treat those folks with high blood pressure, which I don't have. As a result, I have grown used to the light-headedness I often feel when I go from laying down to standing. I will grab a hold of whatever's nearby, and after a few seconds the feeling predictably goes away. Obviously, in my foggy state upon waking, I had neglected to brace myself when I got out of bed. Simple, right? Wrong. This time there was a little more to it.

You see, over the past 2.5 months I have been hardcore dieting. In that time I have lost approximately 40 lbs. (It's OK if you take a moment and say, "You go, girl!"). I have done this, in part, by pushing the parameters of my diet plan, as it turns out, to dangerous levels. In short, I was eating even less than I was supposed to. I knew I shouldn't be doing that, but stepping on the scale and seeing a lower number each time proved to be intoxicating. Also, I stopped being vigilant about ensuring that I was getting enough water each day. Plus, I was doing my best to maintain my pre-diet workout despite a drop off in available energy.

When the EMTs arrived the first thing they discovered was that my blood pressure was really low. The next thing they discovered was that my dehydrated blood vessels - very shy at the best of times - couldn't be accessed. Oh well, off to the ER then. I wish I could tell you how exciting the ride was, but that would be a lie. I may not have been unconscious, but I surely wasn't very alert. In any event, I can cross "ride in an ambulance" off my bucket list.

Long story short (or in my case, short story getting too long, time to nip it in the bud), I was extremely dehydrated, my current dosage of spiro was still based on my old weight, and I was completely fatigued from my extreme dieting. After a few scans to rule things out, as well as a tasty bag of IV fluids, they kicked me out (well... they discharged me). Since then, my prescription has been amended, and I'm being more prudent/less fanatical when it comes to my diet plan. And water - I'm drinking plenty of water. All in all, I was never in serious danger, but it was scary enough in the moment. On the bright side, I'll always remember what I did for my 55th birthday.

Postscript: This all took place at the same ER/hospital where Rebecca died one weekend, almost five years ago; but that was only mildly disconcerting. The point I wish to make concerns nursing care. On the day Rebecca passed, one memory that I choose to hold on to is the care she received from the ICU nurses assigned to her. Though she was never conscious, they treated her with kindness and respect. They spoke to her and explained things to her as they did the things they needed to do. They were exceedingly professional, but they never lost sight of Rebecca's humanity. It was an act of love, and I remain as grateful for it today, as I did back on that horrible day. In my case last Saturday, I was only there for a minor, very solvable problem; but my nurse treated me with the same level of professionalism and kindness. Of course, Rebecca herself was a nurse, so I'm a bit biased, but I just gotta say, "Nurses rock."