Friday 5 February 2010

..a gentle reminder..

..yesterday pakmat visited a neighbour, 70, who suffered a stroke whilst cycling back from tending to his cows a few days ago..it has affected his left side, restricting his movements and slurring his speech....it started mildly but has since worsened..

..I gave my salam and walked through his many sons to sit by his side..he sat propped against the wall on a cotton mattress..a daughter was feeding him roti canai.. and he sipped water through a straw held in a glass by another daughter..he could not moved his hands..so I clutched and stroke his..there was no recognition in his eyes..

'Aren't you taking him to the hospital?'
'We have engaged a renowned  masseur. He comes every alternate days.'

I tried to tell them, gently, what little I know of strokes, what causes them..about blood clots and bleeding in the brain..and that maybe, a trip to the hospital would be better..they could ascertain things..but they were adamant that he be treated at home by this renowned masseur..seeing the reluctance, I kept my peace..

..later at home, I told my wife, in no uncertain terms..that when I showed signs of a stroke..


  • Sudden numbness, paralysis, or weakness in your face, arm, or leg, especially on only one side of your body.
  • New problems with walking or balance.
  • Sudden vision changes.
  • Drooling or slurred speech.
  • New problems speaking or understanding simple statements, or feeling confused.
  • A sudden, severe headache that is different from past headaches.

..
..to just bundle me up and send me immediately to HUSM, Kubang Kerian, no matter my protestations..no matter how stubborn I am..and no matter what others say...

..for a full bloom flower will one day wilt..oceans dry and stars dim..indeed, the only constant is You, Lord..

15 comments:

Justiffa said...

Sihat sebelum sakit ya pakmat... and i've long realised that most of us are ill equipped when it comes to emergencies. take cpr for instance.. the last session i took was years ago & dah lupa dah pun nak buat macamane :( this is indeed a timely reminder, tq pakmat.

Cat-from-Sydney said...

PakMat dear,
If that had happened to me (the stroke), they'll surely put me down! purrr...meow!

pB said...

Salam Pok Mat

keno us'ho .
at least keno cubo duo duo caro. Cha'ro moden n cha'ro tradisional.

anneaziz said...

Salam Jumaat pakmat!

Baru balik ngaji...pakmat sihat?

Your entry reaffirms my personal feelings the last few weeks since the sudden death of Rahman Putra (al Fatihah)~ that life is indeed fragile! You just don't know when it's your time..

You take care...and GOD BLESS!

Lili said...

Dear Pakmat,

In a way, you've reminded us all the same... thanks pakmat. These days, sakit tak tunggu yang tua saja, the young ones are not spared either.

Let's hope your friend's children will come to their senses and have their father be taken care of by the doctors.

Kama At-Tarawis said...

i live on edge too, pak mat, of the day kalau2 Allah swt ambik balik kesihatan yg ada. this posting is melancholic, to say the least.

Snakebite said...

i agree with you pakmat,

i've seen people who suffered stroke fully recovered after treatment at the hospital and doing the therapy exercises. i've also seen people wasting their hard-earned money on various kind of dukun and bomoh.

even if they went to both, it is always due to the bomoh that they recovered from the illness, even though they have gone to the doctor before seeing the bomoh.

in the case of my father in law, he recovered from stroke after going to the hospital and doing the therapy dilligently. he is one of those rare orang kampung who doesn't believe in bomoh.

yet kampung people keep asking which bomoh treated him that he recovered fully and refuse to believe him when he said he never went to see one.

Unknown said...

.ladies and gentlemen, thank you for the above comments..pakmat just would like to add that like all of His Blessings, we must take care of it..especially health..set up early warning systems through regular checkup no matter how healthy you are..check the basics..sugar, chlosterol and bp..you'll never know what you gonna missed until its gone..:)..mix conventional and traditional if you cannot do with the other..but watch you diet..eat more fish..eat more veggies..eat more fruits..and add cereals to your breakfast..and make love as often as possible, no matter your age..:)and regulate your bowels to at least once a day..exercise regularly..and stop smoking before the doctors forced you to..other than that, just enjoy your life..smell the flowers..ooh and ahhh at things of beauty..and keep blogging..keeps the mind trim..do your prayers, no matter what..cheers..

Anonymous said...

salam pak mat,
in case of emergency, ambil a sterile needle and poke once at each finger.biar keluar darah sikit then picit.lepas tu tarik both right & left ear then poke twice kat each ear.biar keluarkan darah sikit aje.then cepat2 bawa g hospital.no harm in trying kan...
u take care pak mat
cheers, rose

Fadhil said...

Salam Pakmat,

The instructions you gave to your wife are sound and clear. I gave similar ones to my wife.

But I pray that both our spouses need not comply to that anytime soon.. you take care, Pakmat.

Unknown said...

..salam rose, oldstock..hmm thats new..never heard of this before..trying to figure out the rationale behind it..:) but as said oldstock, lets hope there will be no need for it yet...and you take care too, both of you..

mekyam said...

leceh lah baca you, pakmat!

now i nak kena gi gym la jugak hari ni. after bangun lambat, i was quite set on spending a spuddy saturday... :D

Unknown said...

..gym in classy Manhattan?..40th floor with a view of the sea..? :)..love that..ahh..dont mind the sweat..

Pat said...

Hello Pakmat,

I hopped over here from CO78's blog - when I saw a comment from you there.

What a lovely place you have here! I recognised an old friend - Oldstock - and a new one - Kama - right at the start, and knew this would be a good visit :)

And I have to agree with Mekyam here: Thanks to this post, I've lost my excuse to not climb onto my cross-trainer and exercise!!!

Unknown said...

..welcome, Pat..to a recluse for old and antiquated stories..mind the cobwebs, lady..:) hmm..owner of 3 blogs..and a muffins for breakfast..u r a lady after this old man's heart..:) cheers