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TITLE: One October Day | Previous Challenge Entry
By Agatha Mangwende
08/17/17
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It was an October Saturday morning and I got up just as early as I would do on a weekday. It was way too hot and humid to stay in bed. Harare, Zimbabwe is hottest in September and October, with temperatures ranging between thirty-five to forty-five degrees Celsius (Ninety-five to One hundred and thirteen degrees Fahrenheit).

I had a mid-morning doctor’s appointment, just the routine blood pressure check, and prescription refill. My doctor’s clinic was a quarter of a mile away from where I lived, making it a short walking distance. That short distance was about to change my whole life and I didn’t have a little premonition like what my fellow countrymen would say after a turnout of unusual events.

“Your blood pressure is slightly high – 138/90, but nothing to worry about. You just need to take things a bit easy, have more rest if possible”. “Doctor, I am traveling to Bulawayo tomorrow for three days work, I will just have to rest when I come back”. “Well, I hope you do; but before you leave my office, is there anything else you might want to talk about?” “I think I’m fine, doctor, though I seem to be drinking a lot more water than usual during the night. I get up at least every two hours to drink a full glass or more of water”.

“Have you ever had your blood sugar checked?” “By who, doctor, you are my physician!” “Well, let’s check it right away.” After the little uncomfortable stab on my finger and the results on the glucose monitor, my doctor briefly acted as if he was failing to come up with the right words to say what he wanted to say.

“Ma’am, your blood sugar level is way too high, in fact, I am even surprised you actually walked to the clinic by yourself”. “It cannot be that bad doctor, I will just go and rest this whole afternoon.” “Your reading is 28mmol/L, the highest I have seen in a long time, even amongst the diabetic patients on my book. You need to go to the hospital for admission right away”.

“Doctor, I am already on high blood pressure medication, there is no way I am going on diabetes medication too. In fact, I refuse to succumb to diabetes and I refuse to go to hospital, in Jesus’ name”. I was pushing my Christian belief right down his throat! “Ma’am, you are very ill and you need to be admitted to hospital right away, in Jesus’ name”, the physician retorted.

I felt cornered. Was this physician really serious? I didn’t even understand what that reading meant, what was high, low or normal? So I asked him. “Ma’am, normal is between 4.4mmol/L and 6.6mmol/L, (80-120 mg/dl). If any of my patients go over 12mmol/L we straightway put them in hospital for monitoring. You and your 28mmol/L are even a scary situation to come across. You are at a very critical level, you must go to the hospital right away please.” I tried to argue that maybe it was the heat which was affecting me. “Not to that level”, the physician said.

I don’t understand why he didn’t just call for an ambulance and force-march me into it. Anyway, though I was now feeling a little feverish, I walked back home. When I arrived, my sons were comfortably seated and having a conversation, so I jokingly told them about the incident at the doctor’s. I was surprised by the reaction of the oldest, “Mama, please pack your overnight bag right away. I will go and get the car so we can take you to hospital”. I wasn’t going to do the Jesus’ name stuff to them even when we all knew of His healing power. We had prayed before for one or other health issues and seen God’s healing touch, but this one had to happen while I was lying down in a hospital bed!

All late afternoon and night the hospital only managed to bring down my sugar level to 22mmol/L. It took a full week to bring me down to 10mmol/L by which then I was discharged. I am happy to report that I am alive today by the full grace of God and an abundance of metformin plus glimepiride tablets.

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