Treasure Each Day
Our plan was set: we intended to make a leisurely 8-hour drive back to Chicago, take in a few sights along the way, and be in the city just in time for early dinner and some Windy City sightseeing. We still had some last minute packing to do for our flight back home the next day.
After lunch, we stopped by Iowa's Wallace Winery for some wine tasting.
'Bought a few bottles of Moonlight White, and some bottles of a late-harvest wine called Gewurtztraminer.
Isn't it ironic that we'd come across good wine made from German grape...
...in Iowa?
After P paid for it, a fact suddenly dawned on us: "Wait a minute, we can't even carry them damn bottles in the plane!".
So much for the airline's Cream/Liquid Ban.
Oh well, another good excuse to get drunk tonight.
I was getting a splitting headache from the nonstop madhouse inside the van - the whole day it was talking, laughing, napping, crying, potty-breaks, playing, tantrums, eating, whining, horsing around...
It was almost 8:00 PM when we saw the twinkling city lights beckoning.
It's about time!
I was simply dying to get out and sttrreeeeettcch.
We were all craning our necks to look out of the window when S started to cough.
Then she turned to me and spoke in a raspy, distressed voice:
"Mama, I can't breathe. Feel me".
I placed my hand gently on her chest and felt my heart lurch when I realized that she was wheezing really bad.
S was having an asthma attack!
Her two younger cousins clammed up, sensing that something was wrong.
"Am I going to be okay?" she asked, breathing raspily through her mouth.
"Of course, you'll be just fine." I reassured, as I held her.
Then in Ilonggo (our dialect), I urgently directed my brother to drive to an Emergency Room.
"FAST!"
Thank God he knew the city well and announced that we were just 15 minutes away from the nearest hospital.
The longest 15 minutes of my life.
Gotta keep my cool. Do not panic. Act fast. Think.
Focus. Focus. Focus.
I didn't want S to see me acting like a nervous-wreck and become even more worried.
I think seeing her Dad freaking-out was enough.
Isn't it ironic that we'd come across good wine made from German grape...
...in Iowa?
After P paid for it, a fact suddenly dawned on us: "Wait a minute, we can't even carry them damn bottles in the plane!".
So much for the airline's Cream/Liquid Ban.
Oh well, another good excuse to get drunk tonight.
I was getting a splitting headache from the nonstop madhouse inside the van - the whole day it was talking, laughing, napping, crying, potty-breaks, playing, tantrums, eating, whining, horsing around...
It was almost 8:00 PM when we saw the twinkling city lights beckoning.
It's about time!
I was simply dying to get out and sttrreeeeettcch.
We were all craning our necks to look out of the window when S started to cough.
Then she turned to me and spoke in a raspy, distressed voice:
"Mama, I can't breathe. Feel me".
I placed my hand gently on her chest and felt my heart lurch when I realized that she was wheezing really bad.
S was having an asthma attack!
Her two younger cousins clammed up, sensing that something was wrong.
"Am I going to be okay?" she asked, breathing raspily through her mouth.
"Of course, you'll be just fine." I reassured, as I held her.
Then in Ilonggo (our dialect), I urgently directed my brother to drive to an Emergency Room.
"FAST!"
Thank God he knew the city well and announced that we were just 15 minutes away from the nearest hospital.
The longest 15 minutes of my life.
Gotta keep my cool. Do not panic. Act fast. Think.
Focus. Focus. Focus.
I didn't want S to see me acting like a nervous-wreck and become even more worried.
I think seeing her Dad freaking-out was enough.
S' O2 saturation (gadget attached to her left finger, above right photo) registered 76 when we barged in the ER (ideal level: 95-100). She was promptly given a nebulizer treatment, which relieved her almost immediately.
After a second inhalation treatment and a dose of steroids, she announced that she felt "As good as new".
In less than an hour, she gamely posed for photos as we waited for the doctor to examine and clear her for discharge.
Finally - P and I could BREATH again!
After a second inhalation treatment and a dose of steroids, she announced that she felt "As good as new".
In less than an hour, she gamely posed for photos as we waited for the doctor to examine and clear her for discharge.
Finally - P and I could BREATH again!
That night, I couldn't help but dwell on how fickle life is and dared not think what could have been the possible outcome had S had that asthma attack in the farm. Or while we were driving through a long stretch of highway.
What a huge difference a day makes.
This made me treasure, appreciate, and be thankful for what I have even more.
Well, if we count the road going back to the airport, nothing else.
We didn't even have the time to call and meet up with good friends.
Next time, perhaps.
I'd like to give a special shout-out:
THANKS to the Emergency Room staff/personnel of Provena St. Joseph Medical Center for taking care of S.
But as much as we appreciate everything that they had done, I hope we don't get to meet anyone in a hospital setting again!
LINKS:
http://www.wallacewine.com/
http://www.iowasource.com/food/cooks_1205.html:
posted by Angel | 11:56:00 PM
2 Comments:
I have asthma too while i was growing up. But unlike S, i was sickly and more prone to attacks. By the looks of it, S will outgrow hers (I hope). Glad she's ok.
My grandfather died of a heart attack secondary to an asthma attack. So it was pretty scary for me to see S in distress. I'm quite sure she'll eventually outgrow it. But in the meantime, 'gotta keep the Albuterol pump in hand at all times. Thanks for your comment.
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