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Growing up, my mom would always tell me that I needed my sleep just as much as she Deleted: Wake Up Call

did. Naturally, I thought I was invincible so I continued to brush off her words of wisdom. I Deleted: and brushed her wisdom off.

always questioned how she could possibly know that my body needed rest if she wasnt in it. I

listened to my mom tell me this for nineteen years before I was forced to accept the truth;

moms are always right.

Sophomore year of college is known as the best year of a students life. The semester Deleted:

began with syllabus week, which is a week full of parties. I didnt want to miss any of them due

to FOMO- fear of missing out. Staying in my dorm while my friends went out without me Deleted: I couldnt s

wasnt an option; so I pushed. My mom would call every morning and ask how school was going Deleted: ,

and my answer would remain the same, Its great mom! It was obvious that she was hesitant

to believe my robot-like response because she would never end a conversation without

reminding me, Dont forget to get your rest! It was my body though, how could she possibly Deleted: She would continue the conversation with,

know what was best for me. I continued to push.

On September 9th 2016, I woke up in tears. I called my mom and she began the

conversation just like every other morning, by asking how school was going, but for the first

time it wasnt great anymore. I wasnt upset, but my tears wouldnt stop flowing down my

cheeks. My body ached and my throat felt like I swallowed a million nails. It was the most Deleted: was in the

excruciating pain that I had ever felt. My mom told me to keep on pushing and Id make it

through. Its pretty ironic that the thing that put me in this position was going to also get me

out.

It was evident that something was very wrong with my body and the only person who

would be able to diagnose the issue was a doctor. My fear of missing out soon turned into a
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fear of finding out. I received a call from the doctors at health services telling me that I had

strep throat. I was extremely relieved because I had strep multiple times as a child and a few

doses of penicillin would cure me every time. I began my treatment, but instead of my health

improving, it declined. I was lucky if I could produce enough energy to get out of bed, eat, and

make it back to bed. My fever would increase despite the medicine I would consume. Three

months passed, along with countless courses of treatment. My body rejected everything. My

doctor told me there was no treatment left that she knew how to perform. She had given up on

me, just like my body. Its very hard to stay optimistic when the only person available to treat Deleted: My doctor reached the point that she told me
there was nothing left for her to do.

you gives up.

After being rejected by my general practitioner, my family and I decided that it was time

to consult a specialist. I met with a Dr. Boey who specialized in the ear, nose, and throat. He Deleted: n
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took a very quick look at me and was effortlessly able to establish that I needed my tonsils Deleted: N
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removed as soon as possible. I left Rhode Island on December 19th, after my last final. I had the Deleted: doctor named Dr. Boey.
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next four days to enjoy my winter break because my surgery was scheduled for December 23rd. Deleted: 4

I arrived at the hospital at 7:30am to be prepped for surgery. As soon as I stepped into

the building, my body began to tremble. I looked to my parents for reassurance that I would be Deleted: I
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okay, but both of their faces were filled with fear. After signing in at the operation desk, I was

led down a series of hallways. My parents asked the nurse to follow because regardless of how

old I was, I will always be their little girl. I was lucky enough to have a great operating team for Deleted: am

my surgery. My anesthesiologist told me he was going to give me a nice cocktail through my

IV. That cocktail was stronger than any drink you could order at a bar. He injected the

mysterious liquid into my veins and I was fast asleep. I woke up in the post-op room next to a
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nurse that I hadnt seen before. As soon as my eyes opened, she began feeding me what

seemed like countless painkillers. This wasnt my first surgery so I was confused why so many

medicines were necessary when my previous surgeries didnt require nearly as much. As the

painkillers wore off, I soon understood the necessity of the abundance of drugs.

The next few days were brutal. My meals consisted of ice, ice, and more ice, including

Christmas dinner. My body became extremely frail and weight continued to shed off of me. My

diet of mainly ice made me extremely lethargic. After getting past the five-day mark, I began to

feel slightly better. I weaned myself off of the painkillers, but I still wasnt able to eat as wide Deleted: many foods

variety of food. I could not wait until I reached day ten so that I could be healthy for the first

time since the summer, or so I thought.

Day nine: I felt great. I was ready to take my life back. It barely hurt to swallow. I was

able to talk and I could eat foods that were partially solid. The clock struck midnight and

immediately everything changed for the worse. I began to taste blood as I laid down for bed. I

assumed it was my scabs falling off, which wouldve been completely normal. I warned my

parents about the bleeding and my mom suggested I suck on ice to stop it. I tried to ignore the Deleted: the

bleeding and fall asleep but ten minutes later, my throat was filled with blood. I ran to my

parents room in fear. I stood over the bathroom sink and let the blood flow out of my mouth Deleted:

like a volcano erupting with molten lava. We realized that I needed to be rushed to the

emergency room after the sink became full of my blood within a five-minute time frame. We

grabbed a spit-bowl and began our seven-hour journey in the emergency room. Deleted: bowl to catch the blood and we

My fear of hospitals and emergency rooms became much more intense when I realized

that I was the center of the emergency. Every doctor and nurse that I saw had nothing more to
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say other than, Wow, thats a lot of bleeding, as if I wasnt already aware. At one point, I Deleted: .
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heard the doctor on-call say to the nurses, I dont know what to do. Luckily, she called a Deleted:

doctor that could help. Everyone was confused why my wound had opened after day nine Deleted: did know what to do

because its extremely rare for post-op bleeding after the first week. Four hours of constant

bleeding had passed and I was on my way back to the operating room. As I was waiting to be

pushed into the O.R., I saw a familiar face. The bartender that made my knockout cocktail

was back to take care of my anesthesia once again. As soon as he realized who I was, he came

over to my hospital bed and said to me, Do you remember our conversation after your first Deleted: d

surgery? I replied with a simple No and he continued by informing me that he knew I would Deleted: n

be back when he asked how I was feeling and my answer was This is going to suck. It turns Deleted: t

out that I was right because it really did suck.

My second operation was supposed to be a ten-minute surgery to re-cauterize my

wounds. Ten minutes turned into forty. The doctors had to pump my stomach because of the

excessive amount of blood that I had swallowed and then they decided that a breathing tube

was necessary as well. When I woke up from surgery, I realized that my previous ten days of

recovery were nulled and my already weakened body was going to need to fight harder than

ever. I was back to a diet of ice, ice, and more ice. After ten more days had passed, I was finally

healthy once again.

Surgery is always the last option. I didnt expect to undergo two surgeries after being

diagnosed with a virus as common as strep throat. I didnt understand the importance of rest

because I was caught up in the excitement of college. Its second semester of sophomore year.

My mom still calls me every morning and asks how school is going. I always robotically reply
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with Its great, mom, but now its genuine. She no longer feels the need to remind me of the

importance of rest. Ive learned the importance of not only listening to my body, but also Deleted: and she always responds with Good, Im glad.

listening to my mom.