a scary hairy adventure.

This past weekend was supposed to be my special day to get away.  And, well...I guess I succeeded in that.  Just not the way I intended. Let me explain.

For any mom out there, you know those days away from the kids are few and far between.  Don't get me wrong.  I adore my kids, love them to pieces and am so incredibly grateful for my husband getting a job that allows me to be home more with them.  But, it's nice to have a day away sometimes.  I haven't had my haircut in quite some time and planned to drive up to Bellingham for the day to have some girl time.

I woke up on Saturday morning really tired and not feeling great.  But, I assumed it was because Lucy was up early and I hadn't had any coffee yet. I just ignored it, ate a small piece of toast and drove up north.  I actually felt much better once I got to the hair salon.  Amy, my wonderful hair stylist, started foiling my hair as we caught up on life from the past few months. She moved me to another chair to let my color set while she saw another client.

I settled in with a good magazine, sipped away on some water and just relaxed.  And then it hit.  Something just didn't feel right.  I started to get a little shaky, dizzy and just uncomfortable.  I figured I was getting low blood sugar from not eating much that morning and embarrassingly stood up to ask for a snack.  Well, standing up just caused the dizziness to escalate and I started to lose my footing and began seeing spots.  Somehow I made my way back to the chair, but that's all I remember.
I woke up (I was told about a minute later) with a sweet old woman slapping my hand telling someone she thought I had diabetes (haha!) and having some orange slices put in my face to eat.  I was still dizzy, really disoriented, sweating like a cow and numbness spread though my arms.  I heard Amy talking to the 911 dispatcher and finally started to realize what had happened.
About a minute later 3 male paramedics came in and hooked me up to check my vitals.  I heard someone say I was very pale (and somewhat greenish) and just "didn't look good." The paramedics called for back-up and said I needed to go to the hospital.  I was alert enough by then to get super embarrassed.  I still thought it was from low blood sugar and felt silly having to go to the hospital, where many of my friends work.  And, I still had foil in my hair!  Luckily, Amy spoke up and asked the paramedics if she could wash my hair before I left.  She didn't want the color to sit in too long and wanted me to look "cute" before I went.  Haha...only a hair stylist would be concerned about my hair in the middle of a medical emergency.  The men were so considerate and even though it was a bit strange to have a girl hooked up to a blood pressure cuff and oxygen saturation while getting her hair washed, they just went along with it.
2 minutes later I was sitting in an ambulance (probably the most expensive ride I'll ever have....not looking forward to that medical bill) and asking to call Matt to let him know what happened.
I was rushed into the ER and had fluids just dumped into me via IV.
I honestly thought I would only be there for an hour or so, have a friend drive me back to the salon, finish up my hair cut and drive back home.  Little did I know I was extremely dehydrated and my blood pressure refused to rise above 85/45. Bloodwork was taken and a CT scan was ordered.  4 hours later I was diagnosed with dehydration (duh) and pneumonia (what!?!).
Now I have doctor's orders to rest, drink fluids and stay home from work for a week.  This is not an easy task.  I am a mom, a busy mom.  I rarely sit down, I love to be productive and I love to be active.  I am so blessed to have wonderful friends, in-laws and a babysitter who all came to the rescue to help us out.  Lesson learned:  listen to your body and take care of yourself.  Otherwise you'll end up in the ER with wet, partially colored hair and a very memorable story to tell.