Running After Dengue

Everyone's dengue story is different. But one thing for sure - it is hell! 


The Dengue


It started with a bout of high fever - 40 degrees.  Then came the chills. Then the muscle and joint aches. Then came the terrible nausea. Then came the rashes. And the migraines. For me, the nausea was the worst. I could hardly stomach anything for the first couple of days. I felt so weak. All I  could do was sleep! I slept for almost 3 days straight, only waking up to take panadol. I surprised myself by how much I could sleep. Just when I think there's no possible way after sleeping that much to sleep some more, I surprise myself by sleeping even more, and more, and more. I was like sleeping beauty.

I was really weak. Just walking up the stairs would render me breathless. My heart rate would go through the roof. Going to the doctors for my daily blood test was oh-so-tiring! A 30 minute trip out of the house would require me to sleep for the next couple of hours. The constant nausea felt like like someone constantly had their hand in my gut. It felt awful. It would become what I would term as the worst 2 weeks of my life! 


The Recovery 


I had to take many doses of papaya leaf to boost my platelets count. And trust me, papaya leaf juice - isn't very pleasant. But I happily downed every dose because it felt better than going through dengue. All the symptoms I was experiencing was far worse than the taste of the papaya leaves. Kiwi fruit was another thing that rumour has it would boost my platelet count. And I took a lot of coconut water - specifically coconut jelly. I recommend Joez coconut from KL central, they serve up hands down the best coconut jelly - ever! 

Post-Infectious Fatigue Syndrome 


But, recovery from dengue is a long process. Already it takes 2 weeks for the dengue to go away! But then you're still hit with this constant fatigue. Some say it takes another month for the fatigue to run along and go away! You are constantly tired. According to a study, this happens in 25 per cent of dengue victims, and affects the female sex more than the male.

So people, moral of the story is buy insect repellant, use insect repellant diligently, and avoid dengue - at all cost! 


Running After Dengue 


Running after dengue has been slow. I started off with 20 minute runs

Thursday 20 minutes run - 624 pace (out of breath and tired. it was the best I could do)
Friday 20 minutes run - 551 pace (again out of breath and could not have ran any further) 
Saturday 4km hike - I went to Kiara initially thinking I could hike the uphills and run the downhills. But nope. I could not. I had to stop 3 times during the 2km walk uphill. I had no energy to run at all. I felt unfit. and sad. really really sad. 
Monday 5km run - 517 pace (I had to sit by the road side after my run. I was so out of breath, it felt like I was going to pass out and it would leave me needing 10 hours of sleep). 

Eventhough I was running an almost 27 minutes 5km, it's a seasonal best for me at the point. It's sad I guess from where I was, but in some ways, I'm at least better than Thursday. Yes, it takes out a lot of me, I really feel super exhausted from just a mere 5km, but slowly and surely, it's going to be worth it.



Comments

Popular Posts