My Kinky Brain

Before I write about Anna and Zach's beautiful wedding at Excellence Riviera Cancun, I just have to blog about my "Mexican emergency room" experience! At least I made it to the wedding . . .

And the wedding was beautiful! The rain held off until after the ceremony on the beach. Anna glowed as a bride, and Zach's father Patrick officiated the ceremony beautifully. It was truly a God-blessed time, and we so enjoyed spending time with our new "Cali-bama" family in the days up to the wedding and after!

While Casey (and her husband/assistant John) made photos after the ceremony, we hosted a cocktail reception on one of the piers that jutted into the water. Anna and Zach made it there just before dark clouds came up and it looked like it would downpour any minute. So we all headed for the reception in the main building.

We had just made it to the outdoor dining area called "The Grill" when it began to rain in earnest. It was just Zach and Anna, maid-of-honor Jenna, and Stacy and I there -- and it didn't look like the rain was going to let up any time soon. Zach's sister-in-law Emily brought an umbrella to the newlyweds to head on to their reception as we waited for it to let up.

Impatient me thought I could make a run for it (the wind on the beach had pretty much blown my hair to pieces anyway) -- so I took off my shoes and took a step out onto the walkway. Huge mistake! About the time I took the step, I thought to myself, "Don't do this, Cary. It's very slippery when wet and barefoot!" (I had almost slipped by the pool on the wet concrete a couple of days before.)

Too late -- my foot slipped out and back I went -- falling on my back on the concrete in the rain, my head bouncing as I fell! I don't think it knocked me out, but I remember looking up into Stacy's panic-stricken face and saying I thought I was okay. Then I heard someone yell, "Is there a doctor in the house?" (I thought that only happened in movies!)

A man who said he was a doctor in New York came up and had me wiggle toes and hands and repeat the date. They determined I had most of my faculties, so they sat me up into a chair and he had me perform some tricks to make sure I wasn't dazed. I remember my hands were tingly, but I hadn't start to hurt yet except on my shoulders. And Stacy asked him if he really was a doctor, and the man said, "No, but I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night!" I laughed -- it really was funny -- but Stacy didn't think so much! But he really was, and I wish I could have found him the next day and thanked him -- so wherever you are out there "Doctor from New York" -- thank you for helping me!

Then someone arrived with a wheelchair and rolled me into the main building saying they wanted the resort doctor who lived on the property to check me out. I felt so bad -- I knew Anna and my mom would be so worried -- and I didn't want to ruin Anna's wedding for my stupid mistake! So the resort doctor checked me -- and I repeated my tricks of knowing my name and the date -- then said it would be best if I went to the emergency room and had a cat scan. I really didn't want to leave -- but in the back of my fuzzy brain I kept remembering the actress that had a ski accident in Canada and refused treatment and died. I knew it would really mess up the wedding if I died on Anna's wedding day (plus I really didn't want to go yet, God, but I'm ready when He wants to take me, you know)!

So then we had to decide who was going with me. I tried to get Stacy to stay because we were the hosts of the reception, but he said he was going and John (son-in-law) stood in the did duty for us! (Thanks so much, John. Everyone said you did an excellent job!) So Casey said she would go -- and Joanna (McLaney Berry), Anna's best friend from high school and one of the bridesmaids said she would go since she's an RN. (Thanks to her husband, Jason, also for letting her leave you alone at the reception!) Then they called a taxi (we were about 30 miles from Cancun) and we loaded up for the ride (after waiting for boxes of food the resort was fixing for my escorts).

We arrived at the hospital, and they loaded me into another wheelchair and rolled me through a door to the emergency room. As Stacy was explaining why we were there (and we had a note from the resort doctor), they would only allow one person in the "examination" (and I use that term loosely) room and poor Joanna was elected to go with me!

So I'm still in my turquoise wedding garb, soaking wet with silver flip-flops on my feet -- and I get up on the bed but can't lay down comfortably because of the huge lump on the back of my head -- so I sat cross-legged on the bed (thank goodness the skirt was kind of flowy to cover my legs and a thinner chiffon material so it began to dry some). They didn't seem to be real busy for a Saturday night -- but it was still early around 8 p.m. But there was someone in the next room, and a lady kept coming out of it and peeking at the "strange American lady" in the next room all dressed up like she was going to a wedding or something!

A young man in a lab coat came in -- didn't know if he was a doctor or nurse or what. You know how in the hospital or doctor's office they have a clip-board with questions to check off? Well, this guy had a little slip of plain paper torn out of a pad and folded to write down my answers to the questions I could barely understand! Never took my blood pressure or temperature. Never checked my eyesight or reflexes. Then we waited -- and waited. So he comes back and says they want to do a cat scan, and a different guy comes to get me and takes me to another room for my scan. The place was very clean, but looked like an older building -- but the scanner appeared to be pretty new (like I'd know!) and I had my scan and then back to the exam room!

And we waited some more. Then a man came in who apparently was a "specialist" -- Joanna could understand him better than I could -- and I told him that she was a nurse. Evidently he was a neuro-surgeon! He enjoyed showing off for Joanna and took her down to show her my cat scan. He asked if I had seen my scan, and I said, "No, does it show I don't have any brains in there?" and he said something about my "kinky brain"! I hope he was making a joke -- I laughed some anyway!

He said they wanted to keep me 24 hours for observation. I remember looking back at Joanna in panic (I was NOT staying in that hospital overnight if I could help it!) She explained about the wedding and that we would like to get back to the reception -- so he says with his heavy Mexican accent, "No problem!" With a tilt of his head and grin, he said, "You just sign paper and you leave!" Because by this time everything in my body was beginning to hurt, I asked him about taking something for the pain and said all I had was Ibupropin. He said, "Yes, Ibupropin good." (I was thinking something a little stronger!) So I looked back at Joanna, and we said maybe something a little stronger? He said, "I write you prescription!" So he writes something out on a large piece of paper. Before he left, he said, "You tell everyone at American emergency room you just see doctor. In Mexico you see 'specialist'!" When Joanna looked at the prescription -- and from what Mexican we could decipher -- Joanna said it was the same thing as Ibupropin! Brother -- let's just get the heck out of here!

Stacy and Casey were in the waiting room on the other side of the counter we came in through -- so we had to go outside and walk down the sidewalk and in through another door to get to them. Stacy was paying my bill -- they didn't accept my PEHIP insurance -- of 12,000 pesos (about $1,000)! He asked about where we could get the prescription filled, and the guy behind the counter replied, "I don't know. Ask your cab driver." (It's even better if you say it with Mexican accent.) At least the cab driver was still outside with the cab waiting on us! I just said, "GET ME OUT OF HERE NOW!"

By the time we get back to the resort (about 3 hours later), the DJ is winding up -- but Stacy got to have his father-daughter dance and then they played "Tonight's Gonna Be A Good Night" -- I really wanted to dance to that but didn't want to shake up my already-kinky-brain --and finished up with a big "Waaaarrrrrr Eagle!" (After all, Anna and Zach met at Auburn!) And I got to have some wedding cake the next morning at the brunch and it was delicious! But all through the night Stacy would wake up and shake me to see if I was okay -- and one time I felt him reach over and check my pulse to see if I was still alive! I shook my hand and told him to leave me alone (in so many words!)

Now I've been checked by PrimeCare who said the can scan was actually very good quality, and had an MRI today just to make sure my "kinky brain" is still intact. I feel a little better each day, but it's still hard to get comfortable laying down! But I am so thankful to God for blessing me that I wasn't hurt any worse -- and for everyone praying for me, especially Zach's brother Josh who prayed with us before going to the hospital -- and that everyone had a wonderful time on this destination wedding week and we got to become close friends with what we're now calling our "Cali-bama" family (Zach's family lives in LaQuinta, California)! And as they say . . . "All's well that ends well!"