Waking up from a nightmare

What is stroke? This question passed my mind as we were about to visit a friend in the ICU Department of a leading hospital.  He was rushed in the ER after he was seen in the car he was driving almost unconscious.  Fortunately, they reached the hospital ‘s ER before his condition became fatal. He had a stroke, they were told.  We readily visited him in the ICU the following day but before we were allowed to enter his cubicle, the nurse on duty obliged us to wear scrubs and medical caps.  As we went near his bed, I saw the loads of medical gadgets and apparatus attached to his body, just then I recognized the gravity of what a stroke could bring.  He couldn’t talk and neither could he move half of his body.  He only responds through his hand’s squeezing motion.  We wanted to stay on his bedside for a long while but a med tech in lab coat had to extract blood from him. Hence we left the premise so as not to hinder the medical lab process.  Likewise, visiting time is limited so nothing we could do but bade goodbye to our friend. As I was leaving his ICU cubicle, I couldn’t help but worry if he could still recover fully.. 

Now, after three months or so of his religious physical therapy, I’m more than glad to see his significant progress.  He can now talk, walk and move around slowly.  The young man in scrub uniform, his private nurse told us that he is happy for him although it could mean losing his job.

Stroke can truly be a nightmare.  And for our friend, it is indeed a blessing to wake up to reality leaving the  horror behind..