Life on the Spot! Life and Leisure in Doha, Qatar

I had to take myself to the Hospital the other day. I suddenly felt abdominal pains on my right side. The pain was tolerable but never having been able to feel that before, I decided to go the hospital to have it checked. I took 2 antacids at 2:00 PM, called the office to tell them I won't be coming back, tried to sleep it off but woke up still having the pain. I felt bloated but didn't throw up, though I tried to force myself to. By 5 PM, we were at the Emergency room of Bahrain Specialist Hospital, with the nurse getting blood samples onto three (3) vials and having an IV needle placed on my right hand. They suggested that an Ultrasound be done so I had to finish about 1000ml of water to get my kidneys full. Mavis and I were telling Xiane that they're going to check the baby twins in my tummy. He he he. The doctor thought is was an inflamed appendix which is causing the pain but to be sure, he suggested that I undergo a CT Scan. As I was lying down on the CT Scan bed, I was hoping it wasn't appendicitis for they would surely cut me open and we'd miss Desperate Housewives, Lost and 2 more CSI's. We already missed the early Extreme Makeover and CSI at 7 as it was already about 8:30. They tried to pump some Iodine through the IV but was told that the needle was too small. Eventually, they felt that they didn't get a clear image of my body so they asked me to guzzle down 1500ML more of water and come back in 2 hours. Later did I find out that the water is actually mixed with Iodine. The iodine solution, also referred to as "contrast", makes the bowel show up more clearly on the CT images, so that it can be more easily differentiated from other organs in your abdomen. After 2 hours, we came back for my CT Scan. Another general surgeon came in to inspect me while I was on the CT Scan table. After sometime, he told me that he doesn't think that it was appendicitis as I would have not been able to move at all and the pain subsided instead of escalating. He was telling me that I should stay in the Hospital for the night for them to observe me but told them that I'd rather stay home and be more comfortable. I still feel a bit uneasy at times and am feeling weak right now. Still, I don't know what happened nor what caused it and hopefully, I'll get better in the next few days. My doctor sister tells me that it might be Gastritis... need to research on that.