Wednesday 25 June 2025 – Biopsy Day

I was sent off for the biopsy at about 10 o’clock. And then I was in this sort of waiting room — the recovery room. There were at least four or five people recovering from biopsies. Each one was given a sandwich and some tea and then off they went. In terms of me, I […]

Tuesday 24 June – Biopsy time

We arrived in the dark. But arriving in the dark at a world-class hospital that runs 24/7 isn’t so bad. Admissions was running like clockwork, and there was a wonderful coffee shop on the ground floor with big, comfortable chairs. Ashley—my daughter—had become very protective of me over the past few days. As soon as […]

Tuesday 24 June 2025 – The Ambulance

Tuesday was ‘Big Wait Day’.  We needed to be allocated a single bed at “The ‘A’ Team Headquarters”. There were simply no beds available. That morning, I lay in bed and reminisced on the three days of my first hospital visit in 25 years. The Admissions Process was a shocker…

Monday 23 June 2025 – Waiting for Transfer

I noticed distinct changes within the staff over the next two days. I remained hooked up to drips and painkillers. Whenever I complained of pain … another drip was put up. Staff were professional and cordial. But there were far fewer staff in my room than before. Was it possible that I was now the […]

Sunday 22 June 2025 – Wake up – Shake up

The Sunday midday diagnosis had been brutal.  Retreating to the ‘nothing box’ in my brain was a pleasant relief. Regretfully, wallowing in my ‘nothing box’ turned out to shortlived. At 14h00, the advanced reconnaissance troops arrived.  My 34 year old daughter, Ashley (straight off the Air France flight) and my best friend, Jane just walked […]

Sunday 22 June 2025 – Zoning Out

My bed in the hospital became my sanctuary. Nurses came and went. I zoned out in a blur of  drips delivering nutrients, antibiotics, antacids and painkillers.  Having struggled with fatigue for so many weeks, my body just imploded. As a news junkie… I watch every aspect of war, politics, volcanoes, floods and earthquakes. I had […]

Saturday 21 June 2025 – The Ultrasound

It was an ordinary, cold midwinter day in Johannesburg. Blue skies. Get there early, I was told. The radiologists are not crazy about walk-ins on a Saturday. I got there at 09h30 and with my doctor’s script requested an ultrasound to check for gall stones. It was a last-ditch effort to try and understand the […]