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An Unforgettable Nightmare

Ting Kwan Tong (Brian)

BAM, City University of Seattle

ENG101: English Composition 1

Faye Findlay

May 12, 2022

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An Unforgettable Nightmare
“He dodged, and he scored the winning point for his team. The crowds went crazy...” the

sound of the news reporter on the television keeps going with the sports story as I sat down on

the sofa. “Now let’s get back to the news about Covid-19, there is a new update about the

infection as the number of cases is rapidly increasing…” the Covid-19 infection and death data

in news pulled me out of the excitement of sports and it reminds me of the painful trauma 13

years ago. In 2009, there is an outbreak in China, the virus is called H1N1, also known as swine

flu, and my wife was one of the critical patients of H1N1 and she was near to death many times

during that period.

The story started on a Saturday in October of 2009, my wife and I were still at home.

“Ahem.” I looked toward my wife when she cleared her throat. “Are you okay?” I asked, “Do

you need a doctor?” “I am fine.” she answered and coughed again, “It is just common flu.” I

asked again, “Are you sure?” She rejected my suggestion again, but I still suggested that we

should make an appointment with our family doctor the next Monday, and she agreed. Little did

we know, my wife was infected with the swine flu, which could cause pneumonia, it could even

cause death if it was serious. Moreover, her condition became worse and worse as days went by,

so we changed our plan from going to the family doctor to going to the hospital directly on

Monday morning. By the time we arrived at the hospital, her condition had deteriorated to the

point where she could not walk into the emergency room by herself. Eventually, I found a

wheelchair and pushed her in. I rushed into the emergency with all the energy I had, and I prayed

in my heart, “She will be okay! She will be okay!” I touched her ice-cold hand and comfort her,

“You will be fine.”

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I ran through the long corridor of the hospital, and finally, got to the emergency room. By

the time I got there, I was panting loudly, I was exhausted from all the running, but I did not care

about it. I quickly checked in and then we waited. Even though many patients were waiting in

the emergency room, the professional nurses were very aware that my wife had a critical

condition. It did not take us too long to get into the isolation ward, the nurses and doctors were

just telling me, “Calm down! It’s okay, you don’t need to worry about her”, but their action of

playing with their finger and pressing the pen, told me that deep down, they think it was very

serious and very deadly. When we entered the emergency room, the nurse seemed to suspect my

wife had swine flu. They immediately changed into protective clothing and brought out their

protective gear. They did some blood tests and X-rays for her to make sure that she had swine

flu. During the emergency department, my wife's condition gradually deteriorated. For example,

she started to breathe more difficultly, she could not sit up straight, and she had purple nails. I

could not stop trembling, sweats were running down my neck, I started pacing back and forth,

hoping that she will be fine. A few moments later, my wife was sent to the isolation ward. I was

worried sick, I stood there, shocked, thinking that this was not real. About five minutes later, I

grab back my consciousness. “The only way for me to help her is by giving her supplies.” I

thought. Therefore, I went back to grab some daily necessities for her.

My wife was in a coma for three weeks, she was treated in the intensive care unit.

Pneumonia resulted in multiple organ failures and there were dozens of death threats during that

period. When I got back to the hospital after grabbing my wife some supplies, she was already in

intensive care. Because of the damage to her lungs, she could not breathe without equipment to

support her. The doctor put her in a coma to make her feel better in a breathing machine. During

the ICU treatment, my wife's condition started to fluctuate. Several organs had been infected
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with bacteria, causing high fever, including the lungs, heart, and kidneys. Doctors have also told

us to mentally prepare for her death several times. Two weeks had passed, but her high fever did

not improve with medication or injections. Lastly, the doctor suggested one last solution which is

very brutal, “Maybe we should put ice water in her stomach and suck it out. That way we can

make the fever go away faster.” The high fever finally went away after this treatment. Then I

visited her, and I touched her body. It was as cold as ice, her skin and muscle were very rigid, it

felt just like a living corpse. Fortunately, her condition started to turn better after the treatment,

she even got out of ICU. After three months in the hospital, she finally recovered and was

discharged from the hospital, however, her lungs were permanently damaged, and she could not

do strenuous exercise in the future.

"Hey, Brian! Don't stare at the TV all day, help me with the housework. Clean the toilet

first, then..." My wife's order woke me up from a nightmare that happened 13 years ago. My wife

and I have been together for 22 years, and of course conflicts and quarrels occur between us from

time to time. I am always the one that apologizes when there is conflict because this experience

taught me to cherish the people in front of me. It is also a blessing to have your other half

arguing with you in your life.