This Morning...(Tuesday)

2:15am: after reading a short passage and praying for Jo, I tucked her into bed. As I started my own bout of prayer, she shrieked out in pain "owww, ow, ouch" I immediately jumped out of bed, turned on the lights and turned to her. She was clutching her tummy.

I asked her what's causing the pain, she said "sharp sharp" pointing at her liver area. I froze for a split second just totally dumbfounded, sweating and at a total loss. She had apparently touched her tummy area and somehow this searing pain erupted. I got her to stand and just stay still for awhile...and after sometime, the pain subsided. Amen. She said that it must have been the bloatedness that caused the muscle / tissue near her colon area to be enlarged making it very tender to touch. After sometime, I laid her down to sleep again and she slept quite well.

Flashback: SGH Hospitalisation (3-5 July 2006)
This incident was almost identical to the recent hospitalisation in July (3rd to 5th). The night of 2 July, she had had some rambutans for dessert after dinner. Subsequently she went to sleep normally and later on when waking up to go to the toilet - felt an excruciating pain in the same colon / liver area. We thot it was something else and let it be till the morning. I called our Onco first thing waking up and she said to best check into SGH. Somehow she was constipating so much (due to the chemo) that there was severe bloatedness at her tummy. She hadn't gone to the toilet to pass motion for nearly 5-6 days that time.

At NCC & SGH, doctors did the scan and blood test as usual. Thank God it was not a rupture of the liver, which could have been a small possibility as suggested by our Onco. As usual we checked into Ward 78 - really quiet and peaceful. Doctors gave her all kinds of laxatives to help release her bowels, but to no avail. The poor girl finally had to be assisted by a doctor to physically remove her bowels on the bed. Doctor said that there was blockage at the anus area and therefore this had to be done. After this, her bowels were back to normal and she was eating fine. Sheesh, I can only say that my wife has gone through it all...with this ordeal. I can't even begin to imagine if it were me. We thank God that it was really not anything worse than we envisage.

Strangely we both agreed that the stay at Ward 78 was quite enjoyable due to the serenity (morbid you might think :) It provided me time to reflect and to refocus my energies into prayer once again.