In the still of the night

We arrived back to our hotel room around six o'clock Saturday evening. Hoping to rest and then to wake up out of this nightmare, I went straight to bed. Instead, after sleeping for five hours, I woke up in a worsened condition. Weak, dizzy, and vomiting, I attempted to make my way across our hotel room to the bathroom. Crying and barely able to communicate, I said to Nelson, “Something is terribly wrong.  I’m concerned I may have had a stroke.”  Immediately, Nelson responded, “Honey, we have to do something. I’m going to call a doctor.”

As soon as Nelson got me back into bed, I heard him talking to someone with the hotel.  He was requesting a doctor to be sent to our room.  By now, it is eleven o’clock at night and I’m feeling weaker and fading in and out of a state consciousness.  With the room spinning and everything  in the room appearing to be double, I felt like I was slipping away.  And then, I heard Nelson announcing from across the room, “It’s the doctor!”  How was that possible?  It had only been ten minutes since he made the phone call.

The doctor came in, introduced himself; and then, Nelson proceeded to share with him the series of events and what people on the boat speculated to be the problem - major seasickness.  Quietly and gently, the doctor walked over to my bedside and began speaking to me…”Mrs. Roth, Mrs. Roth, I am here to take a look at you. May I exam you?”  Honestly, at this point, I was too weak to interact. I needed an answer.  I needed a miracle.  

Then I heard the doctor say, “Mrs. Roth, you are very ill and I believe it would be best for you to go to the hospital.  I’m going to call the ambulance.”  Immediately, tears began to flow.  Just thinking about being moved and transported in an ambulance made me feel sick; and then the thought of going to a Mexican hospital brought with it all kinds of uncertainty and anxiety.

Although, I was submitted to the doctor’s suggestion, in my weakened state, I grabbed Nelson’s hand and whispered, “No. Please, not an ambulance.”  My mind had flashed back to the car ride to the hotel on the cobblestone streets and I couldn’t imagine lying down flat on a gurney in an ambulance to the hospital.  The doctor overheard our conversation and without hesitation, he said, “Well then, I’ll take you in my car.  You really must get to a hospital as soon as possible.”

Wait a minute!  What just happened?  Did this doctor say, “I’ll take you in my car to the hospital.” ?  Isn’t this unheard of?  Am I in Mexico?  These and the thought that I might be dying were some of the many thoughts going on in my head at the time of his announcement.  Now, transporting me from the hotel room to the hospital by car was the next great challenge.

With help from hotel staff, the doctor and Nelson, I was carefully transported a little after midnight from our room to the doctor’s car.  As I think back on this moment, I distinctly remember the silence, the cool air, and the star-filled sky as we solemnly proceeded on the winding sidewalk to the car. Getting into the car, I looked back at the open lobby of our hotel, wondering as we pulled away, will I ever be back here again?