The Plot Sickens...

Remember how I told you that my recollection of what happened right before and right after things got really scary was somewhat murky? Well, that begins now. In fact, I had to ask Chayie exactly what happened next. So I now know that I checked into Beth Israel Saturday night, January 30th. I was there for just two days, Sunday and Monday, before the conclusion was reached that if I stayed there any longer, I would be leaving in a body bag. Their last ditch effort to keep me breathing was that contraption you see in the picture, the unwieldy, insanely uncomfortable C-PAP machine. C-PAP stands for "Continuous Positive Airway Pressure", which means exactly what it sounds like: it basically just pushes oxygen into your lungs for you. trust me on this one: it's not fun.
When I got to Columbia Presbyterian at about 2:00am on Tuesday, I talked them into taking it off. Only problem was, I couldn't really breathe without it. They gallantly tried to leave me with just a regular oxygen mask, but I think we all knew that wasn't gonna work. My siblings came to see me and as they tried to converse with me, they realized I was so winded I could barely talk. At about 4:30pm, February 2nd, the decision was made to put me on a ventilator. It was a decision that would ultimately save my life; it also changed my life forever.