Last Wednesday morning, I had grand plans. I wanted to arrive at work early, complete my tasks efficiently, and return home with time to organize our new rented house. The recent move had left everything in disarray, and I felt compelled to restore order to my slightly altered life. Lately, I'd been feeling physically drained, lacking motivation to tackle these necessary changes. I wondered if the rainy weather or the lingering knee injury might be contributing to my lethargy.
As I began my workday, an intense pain gripped my body, accompanied by chills far beyond the usual effects of office air conditioning.
How illness makes me see the world
I promptly informed my colleagues, partially completed my morning tasks, had breakfast at the office, and decided to head home on sick leave, my mind racing with a million thoughts. Usually, I avoid doctors - I can't even recall my last visit. Assuming I'd caught the viral fever making rounds among my friends, I figured a week of rest would suffice, regardless of medication. My feverish mind could only focus on how to endure the coming week and return to normalcy. Despite the fever's fog and discomfort, I hopped on my bike, intent on getting home to sleep it off.
I promptly informed my colleagues, partially completed my morning tasks, had breakfast at the office, and decided to head home on sick leave, my mind racing with a million thoughts. Usually, I avoid doctors - I can't even recall my last visit. Assuming I'd caught the viral fever making rounds among my friends, I figured a week of rest would suffice, regardless of medication. My feverish mind could only focus on how to endure the coming week and return to normalcy. Despite the fever's fog and discomfort, I hopped on my bike, intent on getting home to sleep it off.
Now, two weeks later, having survived this dengue fever ordeal, I realize it's nothing short of miraculous that I'm alive today. The odds were stacked against me at every turn. Let's break down the probability of my survival:
- Deciding to go home instead of staying at the office - 50%
- Opting to seek medication rather than just sleeping it off - 50%
- Choosing to visit a doctor instead of just buying pharmacy medicine - 50%
- Finding a competent doctor who suspected dengue and ordered appropriate tests - 50%
- Actually getting the blood test after two days (as someone who never takes blood tests and didn't suspect dengue) - Should be 1%, but let's say 50%
- Returning to the doctor, discovering it was dengue with low platelet count, and getting hospitalized - Again, should be less than 1%, but we'll say 50%
- Having sufficient platelet count for the hospital to administer saline and increase platelet levels - 50%
So, that's 50% * 50% * 50% * 50% * 50% * 50% * 50% = 1/128, less than one percent chance of survival.
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Even if we exclude the first step, which might seem less critical, we're still looking at roughly a 1/64 chance of survival. It's mind-boggling when you consider all the situations where we could have died but didn't - wars, diseases, accidents, natural disasters. Is there some internal mechanism in our brains guiding us towards safer choices? It's hard to comprehend.
“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
― Albert Einstein
During my recovery, sleep was my primary activity. When sleep eluded me, I found myself pondering life's intricacies, leading to some valuable insights. If you want to be happy, please consider the following:
- Eliminate mosquitoes on sight. Invest in effective mosquito-killing tools.
- Take action against those who ignore the mosquito problem.
- Drink at least 100 ml of water or other liquids hourly.
- Consume plenty of fruits and maintain a healthy diet.
- Get ample rest and sleep.
- Slow down when needed. (I often rush without purpose. Now I remind myself to pace myself and rest when necessary.)
- Six hours of focused, smart work outperforms ten hours of distracted effort.
- Exercise and meditate regularly.
- Constantly revisit life's important lessons.
- Spend time alone contemplating life's mysteries and seeking solutions.
“There is more to life than simply increasing its speed.”
― Mahatma Gandhi
I hope this post, my attempt to productively use time on my new tablet, proves useful or interesting to you. Thank you sincerely for reading my musings. Until next time!