Wednesday when we each got a Priesthood blessing, I joked that the elders should bless us to survive the trip, given how sick we were with a cold. Little did I know that might actually be an important part of the blessing!
From Detroit we departed on time, and I went right to sleep and missed dinner. After about 6 hours, I woke up and asked my wife to let me out to the aisle so I could go to the bathroom. A few rows down I started feeling very lightheaded. The next thing I knew I was on the floor with my shirt half off, staring at the ceiling surrounded by medical personnel -- there happened to be two nurses and a young ER doctor in that area of the plane. I was rather disoriented, as you can imagine. The doctor said that when he got to me, I wasn't breathing and had no pulse, so he started CPR for five compressions. I came to almost immediately, and he said that I probably did that on my own, so he apologized for how sore my chest would be in coming days. Not sure exactly how long I was on the floor, probably around an hour. They gave me juice to drink and let me lay there. My vitals seemed ok, but I was in no condition to get up for a while. Finally they had me sit up in a seat right next to where I fell -- the couple sitting there switched seats with us -- where I remained for the rest of the flight. The pilot later said that they were charting a course to land at the nearest suitable airport in France, but after I stabilized they decided that they could make it to Rome, which was just over an hour away by then.
Everyone was so nice and helpful, offering their seats, blankets, and pillows, etc. The doctor said he thinks it was a perfect storm: lack of sleep, being dehydrated, not having eaten much all day, sitting for hours in a cramped position, recovering from a cold, and the fact that I had also been at some altitude in Provo. Also, I recalled that the night before, in the chaos of packing, I had inadvertently taken my BP-lowering medication, which I normally take in the morning, so I had doubled up on that. I have been known to faint in the past (the last time was over 8 years ago, due to a cold and being at altitude), so it all kinda fit.
Once we got to the airport, we waited until everyone had deplaned and then I was able to walk off slowly on my own power. The airport staff offered to call the paramedics to take me to a hospital, but, after discussing things with the doctor, we agreed that I could go as long as they put me in a wheelchair to conserve my strength. So an airport employee named Ugo wheeled me a very long way through passport check (we got to skip the line!), luggage pickup, and customs, where the Thackers were waiting for us. My wife had called them from the plane when we landed, and I'm sure we caused some concern with them and the mission staff. I spoke
with the mission president on the phone from the car, and he ordered me
to take it easy and skip everything planned for today, which was wise. The Thackers took us straight to our apartment, which they just vacated, and we slept like logs for 2-3 hours; they actually rang the doorbell when they came back with some groceries for us, but we didn't hear anything. The mission nurse, who lives in our apartment complex, came by to check up on my after I awoke. We'll meet with the President tomorrow morning.
During all this, my wife was not feeling well herself, partly because of the cold, but probably more so because she had had so little sleep the past few nights. However, during the drama she didn't let on, so they could focus on me. She slept even longer and sounder than I did. Hopefully we can get a good sleep tonight and start to get over jet lag, but we both still feel cruddy. Yes, my chest does hurt, especially when I laugh, and it will probably be worse tomorrow.
When Ugo got our luggage for us, he said that he was going to turn me over to somebody else to take me out to the car, so I reached in my pocket to give him a 20-euro tip and say thanks. Later I realized that I had given him 50 euros (about $60) -- no wonder he was so effusive! He proceeded to go all the way to the car with us, which was quite a hike. I guess I was pretty out of it 😊
As far as health goes, this mission has been terrible so far, but it can only go up from here! More about the apartment and other stuff in coming days -- this is enough excitement for one post.