Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Day 25- Phoenix, AZ

For those of you that may worry, let me start by saying that I am totally fine. I didn't feel well when I was riding this morning so I pulled over. I am fine. I was suffering from dehydration. So, I'm going to stay with Nina and Nino at least another day in Phoenix, even though I am fine now. Now that you know I am fine...

I got my first ride in an ambulance today. Wow, was I out of it. I pulled over feeling a little dizzy, a little faint, a little like I could throw up, a little shaky, it was a little harder to breath. I felt horrible. I was only about 30 miles from Nina's house. I went in to a Jack in the Box, asked for a cup of water and just sat there trying to calm myself. My heart rate was up and I was feeling a bit nervous and very weird. After a while and feeling no better I asked a guy sitting near by if there was a hospital close to us. Next thing I know this really nice guy is driving me to a health clinic a few miles away. They did nothing. Eventually they called 911. Then the firefighters and the ambulance crew showed up and started hooking things up to me and asking questions. I was really not feeling well. I got oxygen and a liter of fluid through an iv bag. About half way through the bag I lifted my head in the ambulance and started to slowly come back to normal. The hospital gave me water also and ran some tests as the iv bag finished. By the time I was released from the hospital I felt normal, but a little weak. That's the crazy story.

I'm staying here an extra day to rest and drink more fluids. The doctor said I was stocked up pretty well with the bag they gave me so dehydration should not be an issue now if I maintain my fluids. I'm drinking water and orange juice now and the juice is rejuvenating. My chest now looks like a three year old's sticker book. The medical staff put stickers all over me then hooked up monitors to the stickers. All is fine with me. They checked my blood pressure, blood sugar level, and heart, all okay. Just dehydrated.

I'm feeling pretty good now. It is amazing how quickly I went from normal to out of it because of dehydration. I thought I was drinking enough but I will certainly be paying better attention to my water intake from now on.

When I do leave, tomorrow or the next day, I'm going to leave very early to beat the heat and get in to a cooler climate before the sun starts to do much. In the mean time, I'm staying hydrated and resting. Feeling better and grateful to have such a good family looking after me. Missing Tami.