[veyron_head]

Many congratulations on this new lease of life. The last few lines you wrote were indeed hard hitting.

That said, I see so many cases like these and some of them not so lucky. people in their 30s not waking up after a night sleep, a guy on linkedin probably in his 20s going through hell because of a neuro disease that put him in a wheel chair with no movement. The recent death of a kannada actor who possibly died because of over work out. Thinking of all these in a single frame, it freaks me out. I mean, how can i function normally if I have to keep thinking about my health all the time. If what happened to Viper happened to me, i wouldn't have bothered to visit the hospital until its too late. Sorry, just some rant!

[n_ramesh99]

This was a shocking read. Kept thinking for some time about it.

While agreeing with all the conclusions from @viper33, my take from this is that one should not blindly trust the doctors and should do their own analysis on the problem and trust their instincts.

[Asif 6959]

Am reading this sitting in a hospital with my Father being operated. Thankfully he’s good.
Hospitals makes you humble and realise how vulnerable life is. Your pointers are not just to pounder upon but a fact of life and realise them only during difficult situations of life. Stupidly I go on leading life normally once am out of the situation and all these thoughts fade away. We take our lives for granted sometimes and God has his way of making you realise it.

I wish you a speedy recovery and pray to the almighty to give you all the strength to fight back.

[KHegde]

Originally Posted by viper33

Hello TeamBHP family, Hope you are all doing good.

@viper33, that was close. I can almost feel what you may have gone through as I was in a similar position just last Month. But, fortunately No Surgeries; only Medication & I am back.

Kudos to your Bravery.

[jeeva]

Originally Posted by viper33

[/b]Finally, life is uncertain, do not brag about anything and anything can be taken away in moment, Cherish the time with your family and make everyone’s day a beautiful as long as it is possible, that might not be your day, but you could help someone’s day as well.[/b]

Absolutely. Those words resonate deeply. Your guardian angels, the pitrs, have been unwavering in their protection over you. Dr. Manas, his devoted team, and your family have orchestrated miracles for you. And credit to you for persistently following up with the doctors, even when initially brushed aside by the doctors.

I recall a neighbor of mine who, after 16 years of yearning, welcomed a child into the world through IVF. She was a beacon of joy, radiating love for every living being, from animals to plants. I often marveled at her profound connection, sensing an old soul within her.

Then came the devastating news of her illness—a tumor in her young mind. Despite bleak chances of recovery, her parents fought relentlessly for her, seeking hope even where it seemed scarce. It's been a year since she left us after the surgery at NIMHANS. I usually maintain composure at funerals, but seeing her, so small and still, surrounded by flowers and toys, adorned with stickers of her beloved Tom and Jerry, shattered my resolve. Sometimes, the divine seems cruel. But, I am happy that he was more than being accommodative in your case and, there must be a good reason for it.
Take care and stay healthy.

[shabih]

@viper33, a big hug and pat on your back for coming out of it. As I read your post, I am surrounded by the sorrow of having recently lost close ones, one after another due to unrelated ailments. But your post provides a perspective and a wake-up call to recognize the priorities of life. Thank you and good luck, you have many prayers with you!

[Raghu M]

Really felt very bad while reading this sir. I thought it would be some small road related incident but that curve ball life threw at you could have gone either ways. You are brave and your family is lucky to have you by their side. I wish you long life and happy health ahead. May Baba's blessings stay with you always.

[raksrules]

I initially thought you will write something related to road accident but it was totally different. I am someone in my home who always thinks I can go off anytime. My wife gets pissed on me when I say this and gets upset too. But if no one thinks like this, then how can I plan for them?
People here, if your family has no idea about finances, please make them aware. I have created a google sheet which is shared with my wife and I make her too update it. It has every single thing written like what mutual funds, stocks etc. we have, what is the current value etc. I have seen cases where the head of family is suddenly dead and family members are scrambling to piece together the information and not knowing what account is where and how much money.

[Vikash Kumawat]

All thanks to god that you are safe, your awareness saved you. Wishing you faster recovery. Get back to the driver seat as soon as possible

[Cruzn]

Originally Posted by viper33

Finally, life is uncertain, do not brag about anything and anything can be taken away in moment, Cherish the time with your family and make everyone’s day a beautiful as long as it is possible, that might not be your day, but you could help someone’s day as well.[/b]

It's amazing how life can change in an instant. I wish you a speedy recovery and your family all the strength to take this on.

I had gone through something similar myself and would like to narrate the same. Who knows, it might help one of our readers.

So this happened to me many years ago but all my memories came rushing back as I was reading what you went through.

The year was 2008 and I was about 26 years of age. I was working in Dubai and was due to get married the following year. I was diagnosed with kidney stones few months before my marriage, and I figured that since I was going to move to India soon, I might as well get treated there. After all, we do have the best doctors, right? But boy, was I going to be proven wrong on that one.

I quit my job in Dubai as I wanted to start fresh in India and more importantly, my fiancé was doing well in her new job and I didn't want her to start fresh in a new country. I thought I would start my treatment post my marriage. We got married in April 2009. Since I didn't have a job yet, I thought we would skip the honeymoon and focus on getting my career restarted. I got my interview scheduled at a famous UK retail company based out of Bangalore in May and started a week later.

The kidney stones weren't really bothering me so much, so I thought I would settle in and get used to the grind before I start my treatment. However, a few weeks later, I started getting some pain and decided to get it checked.

Now, this is where I totally blame myself.

For some reason, I thought Mallya Hospital was a well recognized institution and decided to get treated there. I went in and met a Dr. Reddy in June '09 and after the ultrasound and explaining what I was going through, he wrote a prescription for a tablet, which he said would help destroy these stones. Also, since my uric acid level was high, this pill would help bring it down. For the life of me, I am unable to recollect the name of the tablet now. But he did say, I would need to only take this for a month and then everything would be fine.

So I took the pill, without fail, everyday after dinner, as prescribed and carried on with my daily, newly wed, newly started job life.

Exactly 30 days later, I was in office when I notice my eyes were watery and I had to keep wiping my tears. I turned to a team member sitting next to me and she screamed out that my eyes were blood shot red. I ran to the washroom and it was as if the blood from my body had moved into my eyes. I had no issues with my vision so I thought I'd let it go for now and get it checked the next day. My manager was nice enough to send me home immediately.

That night, I couldn't sleep and I felt my throat swelling up and my body was throbbing with every heart beat. I knew something was wrong then. We rushed to Mallya Hospital to get it checked and the doctors said they were unsure what was happening and suggested I get admitted to be kept under observation.

So that's what we did and somehow I was able to go to sleep by 5 am. Later that morning, I was awoken when the nurse dropped her tray and ran out of the room to call the other nurses. My wife woke up at the same time and saw me and she just had tears down her face.

I looked at my arms and it was covered with black spots throughout.

A doctor came in with some of the nurses and they all looked confused. My wife kept asking what happened and all they could say was, "We don't know, we are waiting for some of the other doctors to come".

They walked out and I went to the washroom and looked at the mirror. I was covered with black spots all over my face and my body. I just started to weep. All I wanted to know was why was this happening to me. I walked out of the washroom and just sat down on the bed. By then, the "specialists" arrived.

"We don't know what is the cause for this. We don't think this is the medication" is what 2 elderly looking doctors said. I was still in a state of shock and didn't know what to say. My wife just said that I got treated here and if the doctors here don't know what happened, then who does? Mind you, Dr. Reddy never showed up.

My wife made a few calls and we heard that this will need to be checked by a dermatologist. We found out that Dr. Anil Kumar from St. Johns was one of the best in the city and we decided that I will get treated there.

Made our way there and met Dr Anil. With just one look, he said "Stevens-Johnson Syndrome". Smartphones weren't a common thing then and since none of us ever heard about this, we could not research it.

I must warn you - PLEASE do not google any pictures for Stevens-Johnson Syndrome. It is not for the faint of heart. I have had people faint in front of me when they saw pictures, so please consider this a warning.

Stevens-Johnson Syndrome is a rare and deadly allergy. This is so rare that before my case, Dr Anil said he had only heard about 10 cases in his over 40 years of experience. And being so rare, it is very difficult to treat due to which 8 of those cases resulted in the death of the patient. I later read that some of the deaths in other cases around the world even happened because patients got a heart attack when they first saw themselves.

Now of course, this was not said to my wife or me. But he openly said that he wasn't very sure on how to treat this but put your trust in God. "We will try our very best." Not every reassuring, but what other choice did I have?

Over the next few weeks, I was pumped full of steroids. These spots were from the crown of my head to the soles of my feet. I looked hideous and was in a lot of pain. These rashes had gone everywhere from the inside of my eyelids to the insides of my excretory system. My eyelids and lips would stick to each other and would result in bleeding when I tried to open them.

As the days went by, we kept praying. My wife never left my side. Her manager was nice enough to give her leave and not even once did she ever complain of having to take care of me. I was pretty much bed ridden and she had to feed me and bathe me as I would be in pain even if I touched a piece of paper. As a newly wed, I don't think this would have been easy for her to do. She definitely didn't expect this to happen when most couples at this time would literally be in their honeymoon period.

Now, this was happening in 2009, a time when the swine flu epidemic was making a name for itself. Dr. Anil suggested that since I was very prone to catching a sickness, it would be better to get the rest of the treatment from home. On Aug 15th, at 11 pm I was discharged. However, I was not completely out of the woods yet.

Someone with SJS is considered to be a burn victim with the addition of an AIDS patient. The reason being, like an AIDS patient, my immunity was down and out. It had to be rebuilt and that is not going to happen overnight. Like a burn victim, my skin was now peeling off. I literally had pieces of flesh fall off from the gums of my teeth to even the insides of my nose and ears just come in my hands everytime I touched them. The bed every night would be soaked in blood and pieces of me. But that apparently, is the healing process.

I lost my epidermis (the topmost layer of skin) and am completely sensitive to the slightest heat or cold touches.

I can now say that after all these years, I am about 95% cured. I still have traces of spots on my body which a few people notice and freak out. But I'm just glad I'm alive.

We also found out that all this had happened because I was prescribed the wrong medication. Dr Reddy's pill contained Allopurinol which is what I am now allergic to. I was never supposed to be even taking this pill. So much for trusting a doctor.

I went through hell and back and would never wish this on my worst enemy.

My life has changed quite a bit after all this. I refuse to take any sort of medication now, even if it is a Dolo. I ensure I get a second or even a third opinion if I ever consult a doctor. And I try to be nice to everyone I meet. You never know what someone is going through or has gone through to act the way they do. Let them be at their worst but you be at your best.

My wife and I did eventually get to go on our honeymoon (a couple of years later). We are blessed with 2 kids and our faith has never been stronger. Don't mean to get religious but I always believed that if there was a devil for which we blame the bad things in life, then there definitely is a God too.

Again, I don't mean to steal your thunder in any way but what you said is absolutely right, life is uncertain. You should really live each day like it is your last and make it better not just for yourself but for everyone around you.

My longest post yet, but thanks for reading. God Bless!

[dailydriver]

@Cruzn, your experience is heartrending.

We see situations like these on screen - in medical dramas. But when they happen in real life, one is left wondering at the possibilities of nature. Good that you were able to shift to the right doctor well in time.

Thanks for sharing.

[fawad0222]

Dear Viper33,

Thanks for sharing your experience.

What do we say about this that where doctors after doctors could not think about the probable cause of your illness, you finally could do it yourself and which led to timely medical intervention.

Hopefully the tumour may not recur. Enjoy your life with wife and the rest of the family.

regards

Originally Posted by Cruzn

It's amazing how life can change in an instant. I wish you a speedy recovery and your family all the strength to take this on.


My longest post yet, but thanks for reading. God Bless!

Dear Cruzn,

You really had a very tough time and thanks to your wife for being such a great support and correct treatment by the dermatologist, you are almost back to your normal self.

Tab allopurinol is a standard medicine for increased uric acid levels but I believe you must be knowing it by now.

Thanks for sharing your experience. Take care

regards

[aadya]

Originally Posted by charanreddy

To all doctors on the forum : I know we operate on if something is likely vs worst case scenario, but would you have tips / suggestions on what can we do as educated folks to avoid these situations ? Is it just a case of visiting multiple doctors or do we have other exclusive diagnostic tests over and above the annual health check up ? I heard a few UHNW Individuals get an annual full body MRI, but some doctors in my circle have denied such a thing exists.

Have a fairly experienced family doctor to guide for Medical treatment. Most of the trouble is due to seeking best Doctor in India and Ultra-specialist in the first go.

For this one case, we have plenty of sarcasms about over investigations and healthcare inflation

[sidhnik]

I had a similar experience earlier this month where i was diagnosed with a brain tumour after i fainted twice in a short span of time but had no other symptoms. Went and saw a general physician, who had the good sense of recommending a CT scan among other tests. The scan showed a lesion in the frontal lobe of the brain, and subsequent MRI confirmed the presence of a tumour there, around 4.5cm in size.

After taking second opinion from the top neurosurgeons in Delhi NCR, got operated within a week of the diagnosis. Operation went off well thankfully, and tumour was removed completely. Recovery has been good so far (touchwood). I am slowly resuming normal life and work, and echo all the thoughts and perspectives mentioned in the original post above.

While the cause of tumour cannot be ascertained with certainty, my learning frok this experience was that it is important to go back to the basics such as doing whatever is in our control to reduce stress in all facets of life, maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle, exercising and build good relationships and generally just keeping it real.

I had full faith in medical science and the doctors who operated on me, and the fortune of having the good wishes and support of my loved ones, which kept me in a positive frame of mind while going in for the surgery and on the path of speedy recovery thereafter.

[Simple_User]

Scary stuff. Life is precious. Treasure your family and enjoy every moment.
Stay safe and all the best brother.