The return to HUKM: Part 1.

To some people, going back to the hospital can be such a dour moment; rekindling all the suffering and being surrounded by other sick people who share more or less the same plight as you do. What surprised me when I visited HUKM yesterday was that most of the patients have been discharged. I thanked God for that because that can only mean one good thing: they made it through.


The view from my ward.


An empty ward 4.

I walked over to my old bed and thought over the nights I've spent over here in absolute pain and remorse. During my occupancy here, there must have been over 4 new patients who checked in after me. I recall there were a few Malays; one who was roughly half a decade younger than me who got himself bed-ridden after an ugly motorcycle accident. I felt so sad for him because he couldn't get the chance to spend Hari Raya with his family and that his mother had to quit her job just to stick around to nurse him back to health. What big love!


Where I used to crawl, ache and sigh.

Dr. Soon Bee Hong, the neurosurgery medical officer from Penang, was in charge for my seroma aspiration. Lucky me because she was the sort of doctor you'd want to be on your side when you get this done. The aspiration was relatively brief and painless, thanks to my partial facial paralysis. She calmly, with her grace, laid me down on the bed and applied some local anesthetic on my head before proceeding. I seriously didn't feel the pinch of the syringe at all. What caught me by surprise was that it wasn't a 'clear liquid' as initially claimed but resembled 'contaminated, black blood'. Some samples were sent for tests for which I hope doesn't turn out to be abnormal.


Before.


After.

I'll be off again to HUKM next Thursday to obtain some important documents from my surgeon and oncologist. It's about time to start planning for post-operative treatments so those letters will come in handy.