Last Saturday, I felt slightly “under the weather”. I went to bed with a sore throat, thinking nothing of it. The weather in Siping was getting colder, and, with changes in weather, I often get some sort of sore throat/cold going on. The sore throat was worse on Sunday, but, again, I felt fine.

I woke up Monday morning to numbness in my left hand. I had a sore back that night, so I thought it was just the way I slept. The numbness gradually spread to my feet and face (both on the left side). I became a little concerned. I was looking up information online in regards to these symptom, but there was a ton of stuff on it. I told Jennifer & Daren about it; they gave me some medicine, some advice to just monitor it, and watched out for me.

It was Tuesday morning that the numbness persisted – not any stronger than Monday – and, I found myself calling a doctor with SOS in Beijing. The doctor said I should take a shower, a couple of Ibuprofens, and rest for 3-4 hours then call back. It was while I was in the shower that I noticed the numbness had spread to my lower back, abdomen, and groin (again, all on the left side). I called SOS back, and they recommended that I go to a hospital in Siping.

Steve, one of the foreign affairs officers in my school, took me. This was my first experience in a Chinese hospital, and I was a little freaked out, but Steve was great, always willing to give me a correct translation, explaining all of my questioning, and doing an A+ job at helping me out. I had a CT scan and an ultrasound. The neurologists that I saw said I had high blood pressure (which I had never experienced before) and recommended a couple of medicines that are used traditionally in China. I began taking them and over the next 24 hours, I felt better with the numbness slowly going away (but not completely).

It was during the next day (on Wednesday) that I received a call from an SOS doctor in America who had been looking over my case. He recommended a trip to Beijing, have some extra tests done, and to see a doctor who speaks English and perhaps could give a secondary diagnosis. So, by Friday evening, I had booked a flight for me and a friend to go to Beijing, reserved a hotel room in Beijing, secured a doctor’s appointment for Saturday, and headed out.

At Beijing United Family Hospital, I saw Dr. Hilka, a sweet and funny German woman. I explained my symptoms, and she checked me out. I gave her the names of the Chinese medicines and showed her all of the test results that were done in Siping. After further exploration of my symptoms and performing rudimentary neurological testing, she thought it necessary that I have some blood drawn for some tests and to submit to an EKG. Blood was drawn, the EKG was done, and I headed out for some lunch awaiting the results.

When I returned after a couple of hours, Dr. Hilka told me that nothing was conclusive as to my problem. She mentioned that I may possibly have had a TIA (Transient Ischemic Attack), but more tests were needed. I did have high blood pressure – that was comparable to the blood pressure tests done in Siping – that would be handled and controlled, at least temporarily by some blood thinners to be taken daily. Blood tests showed normal in many key areas, like white blood cells, triglycerides, glucose, and cholesterol, but the TIA was not ruled out. I will need to return to Beijing next week for an echocardiogram and have a 24-hour period of blood pressure testing with a brace on my arm. As of now, that is where I am. Thank you in advance for remembering me.