My Covid Journey — Road Trip — ICU

My oxygen level fell fast.

"We're taking you to ICU." 

 Making light of a serious situation, I responded,

 "Road Trip — ICU!"

Waving the Queen's wave all the way down the hall, I smiled and greeted my new team of caregivers.  

Intensive Care Unit.

 Not a good place for blood cancer patients who have 

  a high mortality rate when their covid-19 diagnosis warrants a trip to ICU.

Like a rock, I delivered the blow to my family. 

 Crushing. 

My husband pledged his undying (appropriate term) love to me.

 My children stayed strong for mom and dad.

Too numb for words.

 

My oldest broke the shock with her comfort and wisdom,

 "I'm glad you are going to ICU. 

They will know how to take care of you and make you better." 

She was right.

Keeping my eyes and thoughts on Jesus,

 I remembered His words on the cross, 

"My God, my God why have you forsaken me?" 

I didn't feel like Jesus felt.

God had not forsaken me. 

He was never closer. 

Total peace, 

calm, and

 excitement as

 I realized,

"Wow! I might see Jesus soon. 

Heaven, here I come!"

I thought of  Jesus.

Days before He died

He asked His disciples to pray with Him. 

They didn't pray. 

They fell asleep. 

My friends, however, continued to keep watch.

 Prayers poured in — all day and all night. 

A mighty army of prayers covered me. 

God never left me.

Thankful for each prayer,  

I slept in the knowledge that

if I died, it wasn't for lack of people praying for me.

Startled.

Bells woke me in the middle of the night.

I wondered,

Why are bells ringing?

Do bells ring when you go to Heaven?

Is that "my bell" announcing my arrival to the Heavenlies?

Startled again.

 A shrill Stop! whistle.

  I hear my husband's voice pleading,

"Please God don't take her from me."

Hallucination? or

Was I so near Heaven, 

I heard my husband communing with God and 

experiencing God's answer to prayer in real time?

Either way, 

the night was powerful and 

the beginning to my road trip to recovery.

How about you? 

Do you know for sure you will go to Heaven?

Are you excited to go to Heaven?

If not,

please read the New Testament, 

speak to a Bible-teaching minister, 

talk to me, 

ask a Christian friend,

 go to a Bible-teaching church,

give your heart and life to Jesus. 

"For God so loved the world that 

He gave his one and only Son, that 

whoever believes in Him 

shall not perish 

but have eternal life."

John 3:16

My Journey with Covid-19 — Hallucinations

God provided entertainment along my covid way and during my hospital stay in the form of hallucinations. 

Covid-19 hits people in many ways. There is no rhyme or reason to this disease. Some lose lung function, others have heart damage, and  not a few have brain impairment. Fortunately, when covid enters the brain, it does not stay. There is no permanent brain damage. Just some stories to tell your grandkids along the way. Enjoy my three run-ins with hallucinations:

1. Honestly, the hundreds of frogs on my ceiling were adorable. They entertained me through some long covid days. 

2. When a friend visited, I was surprised and happy to see her. How did she evade the isolation guards? Visitors were prohibited. But, there she was at my bedside ready to put some fun in my day. 

"Your bed looks too small. Let's make it bigger. In fact, let's turn it into a big boat!"

Next thing I knew, my friend and I were flying around the room in a beautiful and colorful boat. What fun!!! After a time, I grew tired and dizzy and asked my friend to stop the boat.

"Alright," she said reluctantly. "But look at this room. It's a mess! I'm going to move all the furniture around and make your room beautiful!"

When I woke up, my furniture was all in a different place. I have no idea how that happened. The nurses accused me of getting out of bed and moving the furniture, although they had no explanation how I had the strength.  Or, perhaps, that was an hallucination too!

3. Waking up, I had no idea who I was, where I was, or why I was? The walls were bare, the furniture unfamiliar. Where am I? What's my name? Why am I here? I had no clue. My eyes roamed the room until I saw the person at the top of this blog post. (She was not an hallucination). I realized then that I had been abducted by space aliens! Yikes. My nurse was kind and assured me I was Elaine in Corning Hospital being treated for covid-19.

God reminded me, and I want to remind you:

God knows your name.

He knows the walls about you.

He holds you and He will never let you go.

"Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my  hands;

Your walls are continually before me."

Isaiah 49:16

God is not an hallucination.

God is not a space alien.

God is real.

He will knock down those walls of doubt and fear.

Cling to Jesus.

He'll get you through all of life's crises.

Further reading on Covid-19 hallucinations:

According to a recent review of studies in Psychology Research and Behavior Management, COVID-19 infections have been triggering such hallucinations . . .  

It's not fully understood why this happens, but one idea is that patients with severe COVID-19 infection “may have a little brain damage from chronically low levels of oxygen going to the brain, due to COVID causing the lungs not to oxygenate the blood as well,” explains Pravin George, a staff neurointensivist at Cleveland Clinic. “It could also be that COVID itself is attacking the brain directly in certain patients.”

The good news is the brain damage is temporary. I am now in control of all my thoughts. The frogs are gone. My furniture isn't moving. And I know who I am, where I am, and why I am here. Hallelujah! 

Have a splashes of serenity kind of day!