The little things you take for granted . . .

The above pic was taken in Airlie Beach on arrival on my last trip as you can see from the stack of rubbish on the aft deck which I needed to get into a rubbish  bin on shore pretty quickly.
 Since then I have only posted two Blogs. One in October 2017 upon my return to the Gold Coast from that trip, " As the sun sets on my Winters Sojourn" and the other, "Hawaii, The Big Island - Kona & Hilo" about my pending trip to catch up with a couple of life-long friends.
This Blog however is something totally  different. It's the reason why I came back from that trip and what I did during my convalescence.

At left is the Proserpine Hospital, which is part of the Mackay Hospital system that serves the Whitsunday region.
It was while Bob, Kerry and I were over in beautiful Nara Inlet, see image below, in the Whitsundays, and a  couple of Sundowners after getting stowed away and settling in for the night, that I suddenly started seeing double - No It wasn't the Buddies!!!
Bob, who used to be a lifesaver came back to Fete to give assistance and recognised the symtoms as a possible Stroke.

He immediately called emergency and a boat was despatched from Airlie Beach VMR to come the 40 minutes over to the inlet with a paramedic to render assistance.
I was taken back to Airlie Beach and that's how I ended up at the Proserpine  Hospital where I stayed for 5 days. To that end, I would like to thank the staff, especially Dr Trimble, for all the care that she and the staff provided.
The Result was that I had suffered a TIA - Micro Stroke which is why I am writing this Blog, as a warning to all and sundry to watch your health.

Upon release, I was lucky enough to have another life-long mate, John McCouat seen here at left, collect me from the hospital and deliver me back to Airlie.
As Fete was still out in Nara Inlet, I had to get back out there to her and as I was still seeing double, which the specialists said that would dissipate over the next couple of days+, I would need assistance. Again, two yachties, Billy Gleeson & Gazza (a friend of Bob's from back home in Wilsons Creek), came to the rescue and took me out to Fete and assisted in getting us back to Airlie safely.

But, again, that is not why I am writing this Blog . . . below are the symptoms that I  suffered and the effects that go along with them and how useless you feel  when something like this happens.

Even though I was seeing double, walking was like having drunk a carton of Buddies (Budweiser). I was completely uncoordinated and likely to fall into the drink at any moment. Other things you take for granted, like tying shoe laces on your favourite deck shoes becomes a totally new experience, since I didn't have full use of my left arm or hand.

Again, shaving was a chore as my left eye was affected, seeing the left side of my face became a challenge, which I eventually gave up on until my senses came back a couple of weeks later. The pic of Norman Gunston, below, is what I looked like  after my 1st attempt. And finally, squeezing toothpaste - wow, I can't tell you how much I spilled by squeezing the tube so hard without realising it, and  cutting my nails was an impossibility.

Eventually, as stated in a previous Blog, "End of my Winter's Sojourn", I had a couple of good friends bring Fete back to the Gold Coast for me as I was incapable of sailing in the state I was in as you can imagine. I have now been back almost 2 years and have regained all of my faculties and am planning a new trip next year which I am sure you will see in future blogs. . . .

But the Moral to this story is . . . Never take anything for granted and enjoy every minute of your life and always have your health checks when your doctor tells you otherwise you could end up wobbling around like I was . . .

So as always - Cheers for now & until next time, take care of your health!!!