Strained and Pained!

So I’ve been out of sorts lately. Well, I have had quite a time to contemplate actually. Let me tell you what happened some time during the first week of November. 

I am a late riser that’s a given and hardly can I be called a morning person but there are instances that I do rise earlier than usual. On the 6^th of November, Thursday, was one of those rare times, I woke up early, to my mother’s surprise. Since I didn’t particularly felt sleepy anymore I decided to go to the kitchen and eventually ate a hearty breakfast with my family (trust me, this is a rare occurrence in our household). It was nice change actually, we laughed and bantered. Later, I organized some of my stuffs. Since I had no tutoring session and I had no other plans that day, I decided to nap.

At around 12 in the afternoon, I woke up disoriented, I was about to get up when BAM! This pain shot up from my hips. I fell back on my futon and let out a whimper. I thought I was dreaming, a rather realistic and painful dream for that matter. I gathered my wits and tried to get up again, but this pain took all my reasoning! To cut the chase, I eventually got out of my room, literally crawling my way out! Thank heavens for a sturdy banister that I used to support my weight whilst I went down to the kitchen.

Then, I felt the need to pee! I could not make my movements faster as the pain intensified. Fortunately, I was saved from embarrassing myself (it was a close call, though!). My mother initially thought I was acting up, she then realized that I was really having a hard time moving around. She had my father call a neighbor who also happened to be a manghihilot (masseuse). I was told that the muscle in my pelvis had gotten knotted. In lay man’s term there was lamig. It was not surprising, I’ve been told of that before, but I didn’t actually think it would one day turn as an affliction of sorts. I mean, I have always taken cold baths around the late afternoon to the early evening. It was a reprieve from the hot weather and it wasn’t unheard of, I wasn’t the only one who does this (tropics here, remember?!).

I spent the rest of the day in bed, feeling like an old woman with a bad case of arthritis. My mother then gave me hot compress and kept painkillers at hand, just in case. The next morning was no better. I was able to eat my meals downstairs but boy, was it a journey! I was then told to soak my feet in hot water to warm me up. My father tried for levity and joked about the way I walk, I didn’t mind, it was better that he made fun of me than pity me, anytime!

With all the effort and scolding my mother did, the pain and discomfort subsided. I walked with less difficulty after less than a week, albeit I was partial with my right leg and the muscle in my hip area was still quivering. Standing erect was still a strain, but I pushed myself to endure the pain. Most of the elders who knew of what happened told me to walk it off, since I was lax in exercise and could not sit for long anyway; I did what I was told. Yet getting up was such an ordeal! Though I refused to take any more painkillers, I had medicated patches plastered all over my hip. They were life-saver (sigh) plus they didn’t smell as horribly as I thought! It took a few more days for me to walk normally.

I guess the lesson here should be “don’t take cold baths” ever! No really, I learned that the human body can’t take so much. I shouldn’t have taken my health lightly. Sure, I’m still young but that doesn’t mean I’m in perfect health, I still catch cold and stuffs. Moreover, I shouldn’t shrug off elders’ “know-hows”, they still know better than I, right? This incident affected me immensely. I don’t take cold baths anymore! Not if I can help it.