CT Scan Result

Location: Tagbilaran City, Bohol (province), Philippines

Blog Chronology:

1. Cliff Dive at Molave Cove Feb 11, 2018
2. The Silent Killer has Arrived Feb 19-22, 2018
3. CT Scan Result Feb 23, 2018
4. The Silent Killer is Baaack! Jan 12, 2021

Tagbilaran Community Hospital
I was up early to avoid the lines, but there wasn't any at Tagbilaran Community Hospital (ct scan is cheaper here compared to Ramiro Community Hospital - P4100 vs P5700) - I was the first one. After waiting for about an hour, I got the plates. I quickly took a look at it...nothing that resembled a crack or bleeding. I read the report and I cannot express in words the relief I felt at that time. It felt like being reborn.

BRAIN PLAIN
Non-contrast axial CT images of the head reveal the following findings:

1. The parenchymal density is normal with no focal lesions evident. The gray white matter interface is maintained.
2. No acute intracranial hemorrhage nor abnormal extra-axial fluid accumulation is seen.
3. The ventricles are normal in size and configuration.
4. The midline structures are undisplaced. The basal cisterns are intact.
5. The sella turcica and pineal gland are not unusual.

IMPRESSION:
UNREMARKABLE NON-CONTRAST CT-SCAN OF THE HEAD

ready for the ct scan

St. Jude Hospital
Without leaving anything to chance, I visited the same doctor who prescribed the Piracetam drug (for nerve damage control) at St. Jude Hospital. He attended my yoga class before...that's how we met. We talked as friends. He was likewise relieved to know the favorable result of my ct scan. He even advised that I can discontinue my Piracetam.

As for the spinning, he explained that if it wasn't coming from any hemorrhage or cranial fracture, it most likely was coming from a sensitive bone in my ear that got dislodged during the impact. Analogy - if you hammer a rusty gate, rust fragments will fall down. It will remain a floater which means my vertigo will recur. He advised that I do the Epley Maneuver - an exercise meant to relocate the floater through gravity, to the utricle where it should no longer cause any more spinning. That will be my mission for the next few days/weeks.

Ending Thoughts
I don't mean to sound arrogant here (after what happened, that's the last thing on my mind), but from the ct scan report and from the plate itself, my cranium didn't have a scratch to it and no blood vessel rupture. You have to understand, I'm not a spring chicken anymore, and my head was hammer-slammed into what felt like solid concrete! That's why people jump off bridges to commit suicide - not from drowning, but from the impact! When I hit the water from 22-feet, I thought I shattered my skull and crushed my rib cage! Others would not have fared as well. Was that yoga? Was that prana? It only fortifies my resolve to deepen and SHARE my practice. But you won't see me jumping off cliffs anytime soon...or ever!

Even though my health would have remained the same without taking the ct scan, it did change a lot of things for me.

1. previously, I had that gloomy resignation to what else might happen. Now I know it's just a manageable floater inside my ear - nothing to feel gloomy about
2. previously, I couldn't workout or do yoga anymore for fear that any exersion might increase pressure to increase any bleeding. Knowing that my cranium is intact with no hemorrhage, I can go full-on with my yoga and workout
3. even if I carried on with my daily life, there was this feeling of a ticking time bomb that would explode anytime...the arrival of another killer. Now, I know there is no silent killer
4. I thought about cancelling my trip for Vipassana. What would I do alone in a different country when I lose my functionality? But now, I can continue with my travel plans with assurance nothing catastrophic will happen

There is a huge lesson to be learned here. My benevolent universe has given me a new lease on life! I could have easily ruptured a blood vessel in my brain that would make me eat my meals from a straw for the rest of my life! I'm talking about LIFE, not just mere existence - the ability to:

1. do what you want to do
2. be what you want to be
3. go where you want to go

Life is tenacious and resilient, but it's not an impregnable force-field. I see it more now as a fragile gift from powers greater than me, to which I am thankful for. No matter how strong you are, life is still fragile. I am given another chance to accomplish whatever it is I need to do - I don't really know what that is, but I do my due-diligence not to just occupy space. Somehow, I feel a heightened sense of urgency about life. I used to say, "time is expensive and life is short". Now, I add something more, "time is expensive and life is short...and fragile".

I am moved and a little surprised at the outpouring of care and love from so many people - those who posted, who PMed, who emailed, etc. I'm TheLoneRider, but with such good friends, I'm never alone...perhaps never been. Love you guys...you know who you are. HUGS ❤!

Lastly, thank you to the 3 doctors who looked after my well-being without asking compensation for it. I'm not sure about your comfort level having your names here, so I did not include it. But please, know that your presence and guidance meant the world to me. I am grateful!

In celebration of my new lease on life, I'm doing a bike ride with Juan to Sikatuna Town tomorrow, an easy 25km two-way trip! Wow, every passing second feels like a celebration of life!

--- TheLoneRider
YOGA by Gigit | Learn English | Travel like a Nomad | Donation Bank

Reader Comments:

Ramon Cabrera

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Loboc Google Map

Loboc, Bohol, Philippines

tourist attractions

• Cruz Daku - 80-foot white cross erected in 1986 on top of Loboc's highest mountain
• Virgen de Guadalupe - giant statue of the Black Madonna perched on a Loboc summit
• River Cruise - river cruise on a floating restaurant serving lunch with cultural presentation
• Busay Falls - accessible only through the river cruise
• Loktob Spring - cold water spring, free admission, huts for rent
• Zipline and Cable Car Ride - at the Eco-Tourism Adventure Park

hotel

• Fox & The Firefly Cottages - SUP paddle boarding, luxury riverside native cottages, mountain bike tours, SUP yoga
  Brgy. Valladolid, Loboc, Bohol

restaurant

• Villagio's Pizza - wood burning oven, hand-tossed pizza
  Loboc Town Plaza, Loboc, Bohol

Bohol

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