The Pen Project Volume 1 Issue 2 | Page 18

real life by Brayton Meyer

On July 26 , 2016 , life threw me a curve ball . I went to bed at 12:00 a . m . and was up constantly shaking ( hot and cold ); I had a spiked fever of 103 degrees . The next week , I visited the clinic several times to try and figure out what was wrong with me . Many doctors saw me and tried to advise a plan that would help , but nothing was working . I was tested for mono and strep throat . Although the tests were negative , my white blood count was high . As a result , they put me on antibiotics and steroids . As time went on , the pain and sickness in my throat got so bad it was time for an ER visit . But it was the same story ; they gave me a shot of steroids for all the pain and sent me on my way .
The following week the pain at night got so bad I had to go back to the ER a second time . They gave me a shot of steroids and an IV . The IV was horrible . I was so dehydrated , and they could not find my veins . They had to bring in an ultrasound machine to figure out where my veins were . Even with that machine they struggled . They gave me a shot of strong pain medicine . As the meds kicked in and the IV fluids were replenishing my body , I realized something … How blessed I had been my whole life with my health . God had been watching over me throughout my entire life . When the doctor came back in , he told me that I possibly had an abscess tonsil and needed to see a specialist the next morning . ( If you don ' t know what an abscess tonsil is , I encourage you to look it up with caution .)
Waking up that next morning , I was in pain - the worst pain I have ever experienced . While we drove to the hospital , I sat in the front seat constantly fading in and out . I felt like I was going to pass out because of the infection in the back of my throat . As my mom and I walked into the clinic , my dad met us at the door with a wheelchair . I was so weak and could not walk . After an hour wait , I was in the doctor ’ s office with the specialist . This is when it all went downhill . He confirmed that I had an abscessed tonsil . It needed to be drained immediately ; otherwise , the pain and infection would get a lot worse .
( This next part is graphic , so please skip ahead if you have a queasy stomach .) He came back with a needle that was the size of ‘ Texas .’ He thoroughly explained what was going to happen and it started … He took the needle and numbed the back of my throat , and began to make a small cut in the back of my throat . Then he then slowly pried open the cut looking for the bacteria that needed to be drained . He did this several times and finally hit the sweet spot , a bunch of grey and purple liquid came pouring out . It was awful . I was as white as a ghost , and I almost passed out . He did it a second time and told me he thought he got it all . I wish he was right .
Two days later , I was back in the same office . The doctor told me I had to get my tonsils out . I was worried , but I knew in the midst of all of this God had a plan for me . I thought to myself , ‘ surgery could be in a week .’ But no , I was wrong again . He told me I needed them out within the next few hours . Before I could even think , I was being wheeled back to the operating room .
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