Shot down, in a blaze of glory

Our kickboxing extravaganza ended on quite an anti-climax, I must say due to contracting Dengue Fever, which is a nasty virus that lasts fro 2-7 days (the full 7 in our case) and it begins with flush red skin and a very quick onset high fever coupled with a lovely dose of severe back pain, headaches, the sweats/shivers, complete loss of appetite (which they call anorexia) and sharp stomach pains followed by diarrhea. It is a nasty virus and zaps you totally of all of your energy, even going to the toilet becomes a 20 minute endeavour rendering you dizzy and nauseous and unable to breathe properly. I was hit on Wednesday night and then was totally laid up in bed for the remaining 2 days we were at the Suwit Muay Thai training camp and was unable to work out at all. Alex was not hit until Thursday, but in true Alex form, she pushed herself and did the Friday morning workout, but was totally dead right after it. We literally laid in the most uncomfortable bed in the most uncomfortable room sweating and pooping and moaning and aching until we had to suck it up and catch a 5:15am bus to Bangkok (12 hour bus ride, I might add), as we foolishly thought we would shake this pesky 24 hour bug off in time to run up 1,083 stairs. We were such fools. The bus ride was agonizing and we were near death for most of it....there were tears and prayers to the Lord. It was only supposed to be for 12 hours, but due to torrential rainstorms and just the fact that everything in Asia is given improper timings, it was more like 17 hours. We barely made it to the bus terminal and then I found us a cab and some water, as Al was only on her second day of the Dengue and I was into my third so has a bit more strength. Poor Alex, she was in so much pain...her little eyes welling up with tears. We made the 30 minute cab ride to Kho San Road, which is main road in Bangkok where there are cheap hostels. I had to leave her on the ground with the bags while I searched for a place to stay...one with air conditioning, as we were dying. I did find one and thankfully there was a medical clinic in the lobby area, though I did not notice this at the time due to intense delirium that had set in. I made several trips for all of the bags and then for Alex and we just passed out in the beds to awake in sweat covered sheets and after a harrowing trip to the toilet in which I almost passed out, we decided to go to the medical clinic for tests and low and behold 1 quick blood test later, I have Dengue Fever. Alex has it too and it is shit! Some details about Dengue Fever:

"After being bitten by a mosquito carrying the virus, the incubation period ranges from three to 15 (usually five to eight) days before the signs and symptoms of dengue appear. Dengue starts with chills, headache, pain upon moving the eyes, and low backache. Painful aching in the legs and joints occurs during the first hours of illness. The temperature rises quickly as high as 104 F (40 C), with relative low heart rate (bradycardia) and low blood pressure (hypotension). The eyes become reddened. A flushing or pale pink rash comes over the face and then disappears. The glands (lymph nodes) in the neck and groin are often swollen."

Another added bonus to this virus is the risk of severe internal bleeding. That is my favourite part...the doctor gave us some special medicine to prevent this very special symptom and so then we were just left to work the virus through our system. I cannot truly explain or put into any words exactly what it feels like. Minus all of the physically painful attributes, the lethargy and sheer weakness is almost unbearable and this coupled with the beds being made out of stone and barbed wire mixed with broken glass and needles, it is all just barely survivable. I could not move for days...Alex then began to deteriorate as well until she was rendered bedridden and we have both had to take turns based on daily strength level to go get water and clean sheets. Every time we get up for any reason, nausea and fever spike follows with dizzy spells and exhaustion. Today has been the first day that we have eaten a meal...1 yummy orange flavoured ice lolly with a mini snickers bar. We cannot even stomach the thought of anything else. We have also made to to the Internet cafe, but honestly, we are both beginning to fade and need to get back into bed soon. I don't think that these beds are made for 24/7 sleeping, as we have both come up in bruised hips from lying on either side of our bodies. Overall, this has been the worst experience to date since travelling and has made us both severely depressed, though this is a side effect of this lovely fever so I am sure it will pass, but today is allegedly my last day and the final stage is breaking out in a scabby bloody rash all over your body and your palms and feet and just overall body itch uncontrollably...can't wait for that stage.

We are very sad at how our final days of Muay Thai ended and we were too unwell to even say goodbye to anyone. I was able to drag myself to see my trainer, Maw, fight on Friday night and he won by knocking out his opponent in the first round, which was very cool and I was grateful, as I could not have made it for more than 1 round. Not sure what we are going to do next, but until we are feeling much better and able to move about for more than 10 minutes at a time, bed, 7-11 for water and ice lolly and bed again seems to be the schedule.