The Dog-faced and The Dog-breathed

Someone to hold your hand

Last night, another kid try to take his life.

He is the dog-faced. We (the semi-alert on-call doctors) are the dog-breathed.

He is an 18 years-old. He had met his hurdle in life, and I am sure this might not be his first. There is always a mixed feelings when examination results were released. Yesterday was SPM results announcement. He is unhappy with his results. And he took a total of 50+ tablets, containing a mixture of paracetamol, loratadine, cinnarizine, and maxolon. The mother found him 4 hours later, in severe abdominal pain, but luckily he is not intoxicated.

I could remember how elated my feelings were when I get hold on to the results slip. It wasn't because my results were that good, just seeing that what I had worked for bring fruits and what I prayed for were answered. It is a relief that is beyond words. It is a feeling of putting down a stone from the inside your heart. But soon after that, another stone will starts to grow and the cycle repeats again...

There are many ways we can choose to handle the critical situation. He might had flung his examinations, but there is always a way to go about it. He can ask for help. He can talk to his friends or parents or his teachers. He can share it out. He can get self-help, or learn to forget. Is there something wrong with our society's support system that makes it difficult for young adults like him to get help?

I try to talk to him, to peel into his self defense. Unsuccessful. He choose to keep it a secret. Or he is too shy and regretted to what he did. All his vitals were stable and blood parameter were luckily normal. IV's were pumped in to rehydrate him. He survived, at least for another day.

If we try to see our problem from different perspective, or just stand back and looking at the problems again, the matter might just shrunk and disappeared after all. There is always a way to every situation and there is always something good behind things that seems so bad. For example, you fall sick, very very badly and recovered from it, you will develop immunity and become stronger.

For me, the best way to overcome a problem is with a song. Singing put away all your stress. It is as good as any tranquilizer. And there is just the perfect song for all troubles. "Let It Be" by The Beatles. My all-time favorites.