I think just knowing now what I got has made a huge psychological difference. I just finished my first attempt at a meal since Saturday. I think it will stay down. I hope.

Here’s the thing as I see it through my still somewhat feverish haze …

I went to Mona Fong clinic & Tseung Kwan O hospital 3 times. Saw 3 different docs. They took my temps. Listened to me breathe. Took my blood pressure. Asked some questions. Gave me some pills and said come back in 3 days if still have fever.

Went to a private doctor yesterday. First thing they did after temp and blood pressure was take a urine sample. They did a “quick dip” and that told the story. Blood and pigment in my urine. So full blood and urine work-up and chest x-ray. My liver function numbers are off the fucking charts. Tomorrow I’m going for ultra-sound and maybe more tests. Because there’s something else that showed up in those tests, not gonna say what it is right now.

Why didn’t HA do this? Not the first time, not the second, but when I was back for the 3rd time in a week and still no progress? I don’t know. Why didn’t I ask them to? Never occurred to me. I think those doctors were doing their best to help me within the guidelines or whatever set up by the HA for treatment. But at a certain point, when I was still waking up with fever every morning, still throwing up every night, I felt I had to get off the assembly line and find a private doctor who would charge shitloads more but also do more for me. “I promise you, I am going to nail this for you,” that’s what he said to me.

Funny thing is that I’ve cut down on drinking so much in the past few years. I’m famous now for going to bars and only getting coke or juice or water. At most I get drunk once a month, and because I don’t drink much, it doesn’t take much to get me drunk. Last alcohol I drank was three weeks ago when I shared a bottle of wine with my gf for her birthday dinner. (Ok, then 1 glass of sherry and then 1 shot of tequila. But still by Hong Kong gweilo standards, that’s nothing, right?)

I had mono/hep/jaundice when I was 20 years old – 35 fucking years ago! I walked around with it for about two weeks. I knew something was wrong with me but just thought it was a batch of bad cocaine. (Those were the days.) Then when the color of my urine changed, I knew I was sick and I was, and it took a few weeks for me to get back to normal again.

Hongkie Town
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