A Critical Phase of Life I Faced (Part I)

They say health is wealth and I strongly agree with this. However, despite this belief, I put my health and worse my life at risk.

I used to write about my personal experiences in life and this time I will share with you a tough battle I had when a serious health issue hit me.
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It all started with a sore throat and my voice became hoarse. I knew I was getting a cough because every time I caught one, I was experiencing the same symptom.

Dry, it was a dry cough. My throat was itchy and my coughing was nonstop. Oh, no! I'm having a cough and cold. So before my symptoms got worse, I cured it with over-the-counter medicines.

To be honest, I am a person who is less likely to catch sickness, and because I am used to being fine, I thought it was just a simple and common sickness.

I thought with the medicines I bought it would go away for a few days, but that's just what I thought. A few days became weeks and unfortunately, it lasted for months. The dry cough became wet and productive.

A few days after Christmas, I went to the Rural Health Unit in town, where check-ups are free of charge to the public.

I was checked by the doctor and he prescribed me some over-the-counter medicines, again. I asked him if I needed some antibiotics because my cough was too long already, yet he said, he didn't hear any phlegm from my lungs so antibiotics are not necessary.

I felt relieved, it meant, it was just a simple cold or flu.

However, as weeks passed, my cough did not even get better and my symptoms were not getting better too.

My relatives were so worried, they noticed I was getting worse that I experienced shortness of breath and palpitations every time I did the house chores. I also became skinny.

They gave me money so I could have myself checked by a private doctor.

The checkup didn't go well, as expected.

Aside from my main concern which was my cough, the doctor noticed my fast heartbeat and my breathing. They were abnormal, she said. She asked me if I had asthma and I said, I have none.

Then, she implied that I might have a heart problem, a heart failure to be specific.

I am telling myself that time,

"Heart failure? It's dangerous, right? Why am I getting this?"

She then prescribed me antibiotics for my cough and carvedilol as maintenance for my heart like she was very sure that I had a problem with my heart.

She also required me to do a 2D echo test, an ECG to know exactly how's my heart and an X-ray for my cough.

I was in a blackout when I went out of the clinic. Knowing we were still struggling financially and heart failure is a serious illness.

Where would I get the funds for all of those lab tests and medicines?

Fortunately, I still have kind relatives who helped me again. They shoulder the expenses of my medicines. However, the lab tests were too expensive, especially the 2D echo.

We were broke financially, to the point that we were trying to borrow money from other people.

It costs P5200 and there's only one clinic that performs such a test. However, our collected funds were not enough for all the lab tests I should undergo.

It took how many weeks before we accumulated enough money for my lab tests. And as days passed I was just getting worse.

The medicines prescribed to me seemed didn't work. . .
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Maybe this blog is quite lengthy already please bear with me as I also need to rest my body. I will just continue this blog of mine, as soon as possible. Thank you for staying and patiently reading with me. 💚

@eommaZel ✍🏻🥀