Hyperemesis Gravidarum (HG) robbed me of my life the past few months. If morning sickness is a misnomer because it strikes in the morning, afternoon, evening and night, HG is a hell ground that consumes me every day.
I am currently 21 weeks pregnant and after 5 months, I feel like I’m finally getting my life back. I still feel nauseous and queasy. I still suffer from occasional giddiness and severe headache. I still feel like my intellect has gone down and I cannot formulate proper sentences but at least, I can function like a normal person now.
Before I was pregnant, I had always envisioned myself as a happy and healthy pregnant lady. One of my gal pals even said that she could see me being one of those active mummy who would still run about and practise yoga with a big belly. Alas, I never expected to have such a difficult pregnancy when HG struck me.
I could not function like a normal person at all
I vomited so much that I learn that vomit comes in many forms. There is shallow vomiting when I cannot keep anything in. There is deep vomiting that comes with extreme pain, tears and panting. There are the foamy phlegmy ones. There are those that resemble whatever I eat or drink. There are the yellow and green bile that come from deep inside especially when I have nothing else in my guts. There are also the bloody ones when I vomit too much. Due to excessive saliva production, I was also spitting loads of saliva in between vomit sessions.
Other than feeling nauseous and vomiting many times a day, I could not do normal things at all. I was mostly bed-ridden or sofa-ridden. I did not have the strength to stand up for long without feeling giddy, headache or pinking out (blacking out but in my vision, everything is pink). Walking to the toilet many times a day to relieve myself was agonizing and every successful walk out of my room was an achievement.
I could not even look after myself, not to mention looking after my cat, Miyo. Miyo was severely neglected and I had no choice but to send her to my parent’s home. I respect all HG mummies who have to look after their other kids even while suffering.
I could not do simple household chores which really put a toll on my hubby when he had to juggle his busy work schedule and household chores. My parents had to come over to my place to look after me and made sure I get food into my system each time my hubby was on long hours at work or had overnight duties. They also helped me do the daily chores like the dishes, basic cleaning, feeding and clearing Miyo’s litter box, throwing away my many puke bags etc.
There were times when I thought perhaps I was well enough to switch on my laptop and work from home or to catch up on my blog posts but nah, I had never been that well enough to do those.
I spent my days doused with anti-nausea medication and sleeping all the sickness away. My awake time was spent going to the loo, trying to eat, watching mindless TV and replying to messages on my phone. The only places I travelled to were my parents’ home, my OBG clinic and the chiropractic clinic. I even stopped the fortnightly visits to my TCM clinic coz with each long car ride, I needed a few hours before and after to settle my guts.
I was almost handicapped and depended heavily on my hubby and family to get by my daily life.
Drastic weight loss
I vomited everything I consumed and was losing weight when I should had been putting on weight with a human growing in me.
During the initial phase, my weight kept plummeting with every single visit to the OBG. My lowest weight recorded was 45.1kg when I used to weigh 48—50kg before pregnancy. I became so skinny that my parents who saw me every day could not help noticing me growing so thin and frail as the days passed. The bimbo in me liked how my legs looked though. I finally had nice slim legs like my 2nd sis.
I was so weak and dehydrated that each time my gynae saw me, she would ask if I wanted to get myself hospitalized. As I was given home hospitalization leave, I thought it was unnecessary as I was able to rest in the comfort of my home. I did outpatient IV drip as I was too weak and lazy to check myself into hospital. I read that many HG mummies feel better after having IV drip but I felt that it did not really help me much. The drip was cold and made my whole right side so cold in freezing air-conditioned clinic. I felt very nauseous but I could not move to a comfortable position with the added restriction of being hooked up. I don’t like needles being poked on the top part of my bony hand and would bruise badly.
Supersonic sense of smell, taste and hearing
It really sucked to have heightened sense of smell, taste and hearing because everything grated on my nerves and made me even sicker. Everything broke down into layers of disgusting smells and tastes.
Smell
Every human, every product and every place has their own unique smell and I could smell them all with this dog nose of mine.
You know how you could smell the lovely scent of someone close to you? I could smell every human’s individual scent and trust me, you wouldn’t want to smell those scent every single minute. I could smell my hubby’s scent many times more than before and it was nauseating to me.
The smell of food is obviously the enemy of anyone who is nauseous and cooked food nauseated me the most. I hated the smell of Chinese cooking which means I could not stand the smell of all my favourite home-cooked food. My parents had to cook everything without garlic because I totally hated garlic then. I could smell all the neighbours’ cooking wafting from their windows and had to close all windows, jump under my comforter and still smell all these disgusting smell. The smell of the stove and blue fire triggered me too so I could not do simple cooking when I was well.
Other than food, every product had a base, middle and top note smell to me and as long as there was a base soap smell, it would trigger me. I puked at what was supposed to be fragrant shower smell. It got so bad that I dread showering. I had to change a few shower foams till I found a fruity one that did not trigger my vomit. I could no longer do the dishes and the laundry because all these smell triggered me even on days when I could function more normally. I stayed over at my parents’ home when the hubby was overseas for a few weeks and also intermittently when he had overnight duties. My sis had to remove the air freshener in her room and seal it in a Ziploc bag just because of me. She had to quickly run to her room after her shower because I hated the shower foam that she used. Heck, I could even smell the shower smell from their neighbours’ home. My dad had to change my sheets and blanket when the softener smell overwhelmed me on the first day I moved back. He took out sheets after sheets from the cupboard to let me sniff for my stamp of approval before changing a new set.
I could smell the unique smell of every place too. I could only rot in the comforting smell of my bed because every room in my home and my family’s home has their unique smell. I could not watch TV in the living room when the smell of dried flowers on the shelf triggered me and I used to love the smell of flowers whether fresh or dried. The carpentry smell in my study room, the mixture of different smell in my parents’ and sis’s room and the unique Miyo smell in the room we keep her in would trigger me badly. Even the bedroom I grew up in in my parents’ home, the very same room I retreated to from disgusting smells didn’t smell the best too. The smell of every place outside the sphere of homes was worse. For example, the lift at my parents’ place has an atomic bomb of smell of many different people, smoke, pee, perfume and products all in one confined space. I used to love the scent of Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital which is where my OBG clinic is located. During the last few months, I felt so nauseated by the scent that it was an agony to visit the clinic. I could go on about smell but I guess that by now, you would have gotten the drift.
Taste
Moving on to taste, every fresh food had its various layers of taste too. It was so bad that I hated food so much for somebody who used to be a foodie. My body rejected whole real food especially meat, fish and eggs. I retched them out and simply could not swallow them at all. I could taste the urea taste in meat especially pork. Every kind of chicken boiled, fried, steamed, well-marinated etc had a frozen chicken taste. No matter how fresh a fish was, I could taste the pungent fishy taste. I also finally understood why some people dislike eggs. They just had a kind of eggy taste that’s so nauseating.
Hearing
A lot of sounds grated on my nerves and triggered my nausea and headache. The sound system in my hubby’s car is a little spoilt and the static base sound made me so nauseous that I had to command him to switch off the radio when I could bear it no longer. My pounding severe headache sounded like a troop of galloping horses. I hated the daily tuneless whistling of one my neighbours that I felt like screaming for him or her to shut up. I even wished for the sound of the splashing pool water feature downstairs to stop.
Sight
Yeah, if only my vision heightened on top of everything, that would be great. My vision did not improve but perhaps you could say that my sense of sight was heightened because even looking at pictures of food and reading text about food would induce vomit. I could not look at my handphone screen for long as I would get very bad headache and nausea. There was once I puked big time after watching a funny song video about Little India that my colleague sent. It was probably the mixture dynamic colours and food in the video that triggered me.
I started to empathize with those super heroes with heightened senses. Give me normal human senses any time!
Emotional to the point of depression
I cried a lot during my 5 months of pregnancy. I could not control my tears. I was feeling so sick and miserable that I cry myself to sleep while wondering why I was suffering so much.
I cried when I thought about how lousy and useless I was each time I saw people going all out of the way for me.
I cried all 3 times Miyo jumped hard onto my tummy.
I cried and whined a lot to my hubby and he always looked so helpless whenever I did that. Sometimes I would feel like punching him when he said that it was all in my mind, that I should not coop myself indoors, that I should walk around and get some fresh air etc. I feel like punching anyone who said that because it really isn’t all in the mind at all and f*** you I was so weak to even stand, how to walk around and get fresh air? The first time I tried to get fresh air and walked in the reservoir park, I vomited nonstop when I got home till my guts and shoulders hurt badly and cried while thinking why I was so weak and lousy.
I cried for weird reasons. There was once my hubby opened the blinds saying that the darkness was causing me to feel depressed. My tears flowed down uncontrollably at the sight of sunlight streaming in and I begged him nonstop to close the blinds.
My gal pal who went through multiple HG pregnancies would often remind me that "it's the damn hormones". Well, damn those hormones!
Counting my blessings and how I coped with HG
The Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, certainly brought awareness to HG when she was afflicted by it for the 3rd time this year. If not for her, there would be many people who are still unaware of HG.
There is no known cause of HG, and no proven cure. Tips for alleviating morning sickness do not work on HG patients. Medication only help take away the symptoms and most of the time, we have to suffer while trying to live a normal life. I read somewhere that some HG mummies had to terminate their pregnancy because they are unable to cope with it. Having a kid was difficult for us so I would never ever terminate my pregnancy though I would be lying if I said the thought never crossed my mind.
While most mummies with morning sickness have their symptoms subsiding after 1st trimester, HG mummies take a much longer time. Some HG mummies suffer for the whole 9 months of their pregnancy. Many HG mummies I personally know or whom I got to know from Facebook groups recover from 15 weeks to 20+ weeks with most of them recovering after week 20. And when I say “recover”, it simply means to function more normally. Most of us still continue to have symptoms of nausea and vomit occasionally even after recovery.
I am currently at 21 weeks and have officially returned to work. I started to function better at 20 weeks but with very bad symptoms in between that it was difficult to predict when I was actually recovering. In fact, my symptoms returned while doing this blog post and along with the uncontrollable tears, I moped and sobbed in bed till dinner delivery arrived.
I think I fall in the middle range in terms of HG severity and I am only able to cope with it because I am fortunate in many ways.
Supportive people around me
I have a supportive husband, family, in-laws, friends, bosses and colleagues who empathize with me. I always hear of HG sufferers having people around them who do not understand what they are going through and do not take their predicament seriously. Sometimes, even fellow women with morning sickness discount HG women's suffering thinking that they are exaggerating their condition. I am blessed with kind people around me who empathize with my condition.
Other than empathizing, I am thankful to the people who help me get through the past few months. A HG hubby is a sufferer too. I know I had been a nuisance and huge liability to my hubby with all the added load I gave him at home and how he had to pander about me. The list is too long but I'm sure you get a rough idea.
I am thankful to my mum for coming all the way to my home to buy food or cook for me during the initial phase. I am thankful to my dad who ferried me around when my hubby was not available and cooking for me when I stayed over. I had my regular serving of fresh fruits at my parents’ home because my dad would skin and slice them for my comfortable eating and “served me” while I lazed on the sofa. My hubby never did that until I compared him to how my dad spoils me and forced him to slice apples for me. I am thankful to my 2nd sis for being Miyo’s main caregiver, accommodating to this arrangement without complaints even though she is already very busy. My in laws also helped out in little ways they could like calling me to ask after me and buying food when they visited.
I need not worry about work because my branch colleagues and immediate boss covered for me. They did not bother me about work unless it was really necessary to get urgent information from me. Sometimes the lack of them disturbing me for work made me wonder if I would be asked to leave but to be honest, I was often too sick to worry too much about it. My colleagues had been very sweet and thoughtful and it’s really the people that made me miss going back to work.
I have a Whatsapp group with 2 other gal pals and together, the 3 of us all happen to be pregnant at the same time with our babies being due 2 months apart. Another coincidence is that all 3 of us are HG sufferers! That thread became our support group. We rant and we whine and we “report” our daily suffering on that thread. Most importantly, we encourage one another to hang in there.
Resting at home with home hospitalization leave
I had the privilege of being able to rest at home and managed to avoid undue stress and worry.
With that, I also avoided having too much medication in my system. Before I was pregnant, I had successfully avoided Western medication for a while when I embarked on a journey of healthy lifestyle. No matter how much I suffered, I would feel proud of myself for having abstained from popping pills then. However during pregnancy, I had no choice but to take western medication for my HG symptoms as the suffering was too extreme. Also, I thought that my little one would not grow well if I'm suffering daily, affecting my emotional health and chanelling bad energy.
Nevertheless, I managed to avoid taking too much medication and the very strong ones because I had the liberty to stay at home to sleep it all away. Furthermore, I did not have to get myself hospitalized and hooked up in drips because I could simply rest at home.
Sleep sleep sleep
Despite the dark gruelling days, I caught up with years of lost sleep during this period. I had such a healthy sleeping habit waking up early, sleeping early and having lots of naps in between.
I know I finally have sufficient sleep when years of bloodshot eyes became all white. Yeah, an eye specialist once told me that little capillaries are formed in the sclera (white part of the eye) to obtain as much oxygen for the eye as possible and the only way to get rid of the visible red capillaries is to get enough sleep.
Having sufficient sleep certainly helped tide me over the discomfort I was going through. I also secretly thought that it was the best time get all the sleep I could coz I know how sleep is a precious commodity once the baby pops.
Eat whatever I can and whenever I can
Even though I vomit almost everything I consume, there are moments when I could keep food and water in. Chewing and swallowing very slowly also helped in keeping the stuff in. Since I could not eat whole real food for a period of time, I could only eat processed and dry food. I survived on crackers, chocolates, junk food, milo, oats, maternal milk and whatever that I could stomach. Instead of water which tasted bland, the tanginess and sweetness of processed fruit juices appealed to me and that was how I got myself hydrated. For a while, my gynae gave me the green light to eat unhealthily because at least I was getting some calories even if I was eating and drinking junk.
I used to take prenatal multi vitamins on empty stomach thinking that even if I did not eat, at least I had the vitamins to get me through. Big mistake. Taking any kind of vitamin or pill on an empty stomach can make you feel nauseous. In the case of prenatal multi vitamins, iron is an added culprit and ironically, we need lots of iron during pregnancy. When taking my prenatal vitamins with food did not help, I took it just before I go to bed so that I would be sleeping any sickness away.
Ultrasound scans of my little one kept me strong
Without having witnessed my little one's heartbeat and growth through the monthly ultrasound scans, it was just a "thing" in me that was making me really sick. What kept me going was the 20-week detailed ultrasound scan. I was feeling so sick lying there with the cold gadget pressed onto my belly that the sonographer had to pass me her little container of peppermint paste to keep me from vomiting.
My little one was so cute and active "swimming" here and there, up and down, left and right, kicking about, doing yoga poses and somersaults and then going to sleep just when the sonographer had to take the spine's measurement. I was so thrilled to see all these cute little acts that for a while, my nausea was gone and I forgot about how much I was suffering. Knowing that this thing making me sick is a life... a precious little life... kept me going strong. It made all my suffering worthwhile.
Be thankful for every small step I take ahead
I felt really proud of myself each time I completed something small. For example, when I washed that dirty cup without feeling nauseous, when I cleared Miyo’s poo all by myself, when I ate half my meal without vomiting, when I survived a car ride without feeling too sick, when I walked alone outside etc. They are really insignificant acts to a normal functioning person but to a HG patient, being able to do normal things are all huge achievements that we should be thankful for.
~
As time passes, I look back to see that I have accomplished a little more than before and have come a long way to battling this dreaded HG. Everything passes and this too shall pass. I still feel nauseous intermittently and vomiting has so far come to a minimum but I have already crawled out from the dumpest dump and I am proud to wear the badge of a HG survivor!
Showing posts with label health. Show all posts
Showing posts with label health. Show all posts
Sunday, December 17, 2017
Monday, April 11, 2016
Bubble Bump Bubble Bummed... Why Bubble Bump Soccer Is Not That Safe As Claimed
Disclaimer: I wrote this because of my own unpleasant experience and I'm in no way holding anyone else responsible for my injury but myself. I hope that anyone intending to play bubble bump would take note of all that they should know which isn't stated on the website and make a well informed decision of whether to go ahead with the game.
Two months ago on the Friday before Chinese New Year, our department had a Bubble Bump Soccer sports event after the department CNY lunch.
Some of you may have known that it was from playing Bubble Bump Soccer with my colleagues that I injured my knee and have never fully recovered till now. My closer friends also know that this knee injury has contributed greatly to the bouts of feeling upset about my overall health and physical well-being.
Let's look at some fun and happy pictures first before I elaborate more on how if I could turn back the time, I WOULD NEVER have played this stupid game.
This picture is fun coz everyone was spontaneously dressed in either black or in CNY bright colours like red, pink, orange and yellow whereas our boss was in between in shades of grey.
There are a few places to play this game in Singapore. We played it at The Cage @ Kallang. Before the game, there was safety brief and game instructions by the facilitator.
It was initially really funny to see my colleagues being bumped and rolling around. There were also instances of being flipped completely upside down with legs flailing in the air. Everyone outside of the cage kept laughing at the silly sight and some even took videos to enjoy after the event.
However, it wasn't exactly funny once you are in the bubble suit. Each game lasted only a few minutes and by then all of us were drenched in sweat. Unless you are some Greek god, there is no way you could play two consecutive games in a row. We definitely had to take turns because it was way too tiring.
Besides Bubble Bump Soccer, we also played Bubble Bump Invasion which was the more "violent" and competitive game.
Now we come to the 5 reasons why I hated being in the bubble suit:
~
The Knee Injury
A colleague bumped into me and as I "flew" up, I felt and thought I heard a pop in my left knee. I felt as if my whole calf had pushed into my thigh thus creating a trauma in the knee and that pop sound.
As I lay down on my back flat in the bubble suit, I felt severe pain in the outer knee as I started to hyperventilate in the very stuffy suit.
Nobody knew what happened initially as there was a lot of commotion all around and it happened in a flash. On top of that, most of my colleagues' gaze were on the other side of the field where something unpleasant was happening too.
Now, the trick to getting up in that silly suit whenever I fell was to roll over with belly down and to kneel my way up to a complete stand. For the many times I fell, I could easily do that even with the whole weight of the bubble suit on my neck, shoulders and back, and with the restrictions at the thigh area.
After lying there with nobody noticing that I was having problems, I tried very hard to stand but I couldn't. I used every ounce of energy left in me to roll to my knees with all my might. I tried heaving myself up by alternating my legs, only to have my left knee give way and collapse each time I put pressure on the left.
My next instinct was to wiggle myself out from the bubble suit. I thought that with the weight taken off my body, I might just be able to stand.
With the hyperventilating, I was running short of air in the bubble suit. I knew I had to get out or I might just faint in the bubble. Yes, there is a hole at the top and bottom. But when you have been running around in a plastic suit all drenched in sweat and with heat radiating from your body within the bubble, you would definitely feel short of breath easier.
I tried very hard to wiggle myself out and when I was finally out of that stupid bubble and tried to walk, I crashed down onto the ground. I thought I was too tired and tried to stand again, my left leg trembled and gave way as I collapsed onto the ground once more and then the third time.
I then realised that I could no longer feel anything in my left leg as I witnessed my left leg trembling nonstop.
By then, some colleagues saw that I was sitting on the grass trembling and hyperventilating and started scrambling to my side. I tried to speak but no voice came out. Nobody knew exactly the extent of my knee injury as I kept pointing to it without speaking. I had never ever felt anything like this in my life. It was a mixture of pain, anguish at not being able to control my left leg and fear of what was happening to me. I felt incapacitated, like my left leg wasn't mine.
~
Why Bubble Bump Is Not That Safe
This game is claimed to be safe for both the young and old as long as you follow the simple rules or have no back injuries or other severe physical injuries.
I seriously beg to differ.
This game has since caused lots of injuries to physically fit people. After learning about my knee injury, I have friends telling me how people they know had sprained their ankle, twisted their knee, hurt or strained their back and neck and dislocated their shoulder from playing the same game!
My TCM and my friend's orthopedic doctor confirmed that this game is truly not as safe as claimed. The most common injuries are twisted ankles.
As stated on almost all Bubble Bump websites locally and internationally, the bubble suit is made out of durable material which will absorb heavy impact well with two straps inside the inner sphere for you to strap your body with for a secure fit, and two handles for holding on for additional safety.
Yes all these are just as safe as you can get.
If you were to look at the whole suit, your body is safely cocooned but the legs are vulnerable in the open and carrying more weight. Your legs, your knees, your ankles are bearing lots of unnecessary weight and pressure especially when you twist and turn with the bubble suit restricting your upper body movement which would normally react together with your legs to maintain stability.
~
How Acupuncture Treatment Helped
On the day itself, I could not even walk as my left leg would tremble and lock. My colleagues had to send me right up to my door step and helped me into my house.
Later that night, I made my way alone to the TCM for my first acupuncture ever. Guessed how I walked? I hopped on my right leg all the way from the cab to the clinic as the left simply could not take any pressure. Although I hated the nervy feeling of the acupuncture needles, I was amazed at the powers of Traditional Chinese Medicine! I need not hobble and could walk with a limp after the first treatment!
Pardon the flabby tummy and stumpy legs.
~
Aftermath
I spent the next few days of CNY celebrations in clothes that could match my ballerina flats and had to put on an ugly knee guard. For the next few weeks after the knee trauma, I could not even apply pressure on my left leg. My knee would shiver, jerk, lock and twist outward to the side, causing pain to the outer flesh, muscle, ligament (whatever those parts that are not the bone part of the knee are called).
The only thing I can do now is walk almost like normal. However, I cannot do lots of simple daily activities like going in and out of the car normally, boarding and alighting from a bus, chasing after a closing lift, standing too long on a long crowded commute to name a few. My knee continues to lock, jerk and twist outwards if I tried to do my normal activities that put pressure on the left side.
For the last 2 weeks, I had not experienced any jerking, locking and twisting but I could no longer bend my left leg normally or even use squat toilets. The flesh above and below the outer knee would hurt when bent.
Without being able to bend normally, I won't be able to attend my usual pilates class that involves lots of squats and bending of knees for goodness knows how long. Even the yoga classes that I attend involve lots of knee bending too. To think that I just signed up for a 2 year package in January!
I have since stopped all yoga and pilates lessons and in fact, all forms of exercise. I was just beginning to get into the regime of regular exercise, feeling a lot more positive about my health and getting myself more toned, only to have everything terminated by this stupid knee injury.
So far, I have undergone 3 acupuncture sessions and have an appointment with the orthopedic and sports clinic at a public hospital tomorrow.
From all that I have read on the Internet about knee locking and twisting, I self diagnosed my condition as some form of meniscus injury. The doctor affiliated to my organisation suspected an ACL tear.
I do hope that the diagnosis from the specialist would be more accurate and I hope a scan could be performed to make sure there isn't any loose bone fragments in my knee during the accident or a keyhole surgery is required to remove the debris. I'm praying for the best.
I actually do feel extremely lousy and very upset at myself for playing Bubble Bump.
My knee injury had added quite a lot of angst whenever I have bouts of depression. Maybe I'm using "depression" too loosely but to be very honest, I do get very depressed in phases especially in the domain of health.
I just want to lead a normal life.
~
Update after seeing the specialist today (12 April 2016):
: ( The knee orthopedic specialist confirmed that the knee injury is 100% an ACL tear. He did various tests and the 3 tests for ACL tear all proved positive.
: ( A torn ACL is not able to heal on its own. The specialist advised that if I were to continue rigorous sports, it would be sensible to undergo reconstructive surgery to repair the ACL. However, for non-athletes, it is perfectly alright not to go through this. I could still decide down the road if I want to opt for it.
: ( Suspected lateral meniscus tear.
: ( Suspected lateral collateral ligament tear.
: ) X-Ray scans revealed no bone fragments, thankfully! No need for debris removal surgery.
: | An MRI scan would confirm all suspicions and pinpoint the exact injuries though the specialist said that the scan is inconsequential to my physiotherapy treatment unless I am opting for reconstructive ACL surgery.
: | For now, I would go for physiotherapy sessions every week to build up the muscles to compensate for the lack of ACL support while allowing the meniscus and ligament tear to heal on their own. I would perhaps get a second opinion from the people there on whether I should opt for the ACL reconstructive surgery in time to come.
Sad max.
Two months ago on the Friday before Chinese New Year, our department had a Bubble Bump Soccer sports event after the department CNY lunch.
Some of you may have known that it was from playing Bubble Bump Soccer with my colleagues that I injured my knee and have never fully recovered till now. My closer friends also know that this knee injury has contributed greatly to the bouts of feeling upset about my overall health and physical well-being.
Let's look at some fun and happy pictures first before I elaborate more on how if I could turn back the time, I WOULD NEVER have played this stupid game.
This picture is fun coz everyone was spontaneously dressed in either black or in CNY bright colours like red, pink, orange and yellow whereas our boss was in between in shades of grey.
There are a few places to play this game in Singapore. We played it at The Cage @ Kallang. Before the game, there was safety brief and game instructions by the facilitator.
It was initially really funny to see my colleagues being bumped and rolling around. There were also instances of being flipped completely upside down with legs flailing in the air. Everyone outside of the cage kept laughing at the silly sight and some even took videos to enjoy after the event.
However, it wasn't exactly funny once you are in the bubble suit. Each game lasted only a few minutes and by then all of us were drenched in sweat. Unless you are some Greek god, there is no way you could play two consecutive games in a row. We definitely had to take turns because it was way too tiring.
Besides Bubble Bump Soccer, we also played Bubble Bump Invasion which was the more "violent" and competitive game.
Now we come to the 5 reasons why I hated being in the bubble suit:
- The bubble suit was damn smelly even after disinfecting. I almost died from the stench. It didn't help that the straps were fabric and most of the stench came from there.
- It was really hot in the suit. Your perspiration would just flow out like the Niagara Falls all the way from head to toe.
- I could hardly see through the suit even at the transparent parts.
- It was very stressful on the body, creating severe strain even after a mere 5 minutes. For somebody who had been exercising regularly, I felt a huge strain on my neck, shoulder and back even with the safety straps on. In fact, the first bubble suit I was in had a practically useless pair of straps that kept slipping off my shoulders. The facilitator had tightened it to the max but the straps still kept slipping off. In the end, I had to use lots of arm muscles to lift the bubble suit to compensate for ineffective straps. I cannot imagine how this game is bearable for people who do not exercise regularly.
- The loose straps caused lots of velcro chaffing and totally spoilt the surface of my brand new Puma dri-fit top.
~
The Knee Injury
A colleague bumped into me and as I "flew" up, I felt and thought I heard a pop in my left knee. I felt as if my whole calf had pushed into my thigh thus creating a trauma in the knee and that pop sound.
As I lay down on my back flat in the bubble suit, I felt severe pain in the outer knee as I started to hyperventilate in the very stuffy suit.
Nobody knew what happened initially as there was a lot of commotion all around and it happened in a flash. On top of that, most of my colleagues' gaze were on the other side of the field where something unpleasant was happening too.
Now, the trick to getting up in that silly suit whenever I fell was to roll over with belly down and to kneel my way up to a complete stand. For the many times I fell, I could easily do that even with the whole weight of the bubble suit on my neck, shoulders and back, and with the restrictions at the thigh area.
After lying there with nobody noticing that I was having problems, I tried very hard to stand but I couldn't. I used every ounce of energy left in me to roll to my knees with all my might. I tried heaving myself up by alternating my legs, only to have my left knee give way and collapse each time I put pressure on the left.
My next instinct was to wiggle myself out from the bubble suit. I thought that with the weight taken off my body, I might just be able to stand.
With the hyperventilating, I was running short of air in the bubble suit. I knew I had to get out or I might just faint in the bubble. Yes, there is a hole at the top and bottom. But when you have been running around in a plastic suit all drenched in sweat and with heat radiating from your body within the bubble, you would definitely feel short of breath easier.
I tried very hard to wiggle myself out and when I was finally out of that stupid bubble and tried to walk, I crashed down onto the ground. I thought I was too tired and tried to stand again, my left leg trembled and gave way as I collapsed onto the ground once more and then the third time.
I then realised that I could no longer feel anything in my left leg as I witnessed my left leg trembling nonstop.
By then, some colleagues saw that I was sitting on the grass trembling and hyperventilating and started scrambling to my side. I tried to speak but no voice came out. Nobody knew exactly the extent of my knee injury as I kept pointing to it without speaking. I had never ever felt anything like this in my life. It was a mixture of pain, anguish at not being able to control my left leg and fear of what was happening to me. I felt incapacitated, like my left leg wasn't mine.
~
Why Bubble Bump Is Not That Safe
This game is claimed to be safe for both the young and old as long as you follow the simple rules or have no back injuries or other severe physical injuries.
I seriously beg to differ.
This game has since caused lots of injuries to physically fit people. After learning about my knee injury, I have friends telling me how people they know had sprained their ankle, twisted their knee, hurt or strained their back and neck and dislocated their shoulder from playing the same game!
My TCM and my friend's orthopedic doctor confirmed that this game is truly not as safe as claimed. The most common injuries are twisted ankles.
As stated on almost all Bubble Bump websites locally and internationally, the bubble suit is made out of durable material which will absorb heavy impact well with two straps inside the inner sphere for you to strap your body with for a secure fit, and two handles for holding on for additional safety.
Yes all these are just as safe as you can get.
If you were to look at the whole suit, your body is safely cocooned but the legs are vulnerable in the open and carrying more weight. Your legs, your knees, your ankles are bearing lots of unnecessary weight and pressure especially when you twist and turn with the bubble suit restricting your upper body movement which would normally react together with your legs to maintain stability.
~
How Acupuncture Treatment Helped
On the day itself, I could not even walk as my left leg would tremble and lock. My colleagues had to send me right up to my door step and helped me into my house.
Later that night, I made my way alone to the TCM for my first acupuncture ever. Guessed how I walked? I hopped on my right leg all the way from the cab to the clinic as the left simply could not take any pressure. Although I hated the nervy feeling of the acupuncture needles, I was amazed at the powers of Traditional Chinese Medicine! I need not hobble and could walk with a limp after the first treatment!
Pardon the flabby tummy and stumpy legs.
~
Aftermath
I spent the next few days of CNY celebrations in clothes that could match my ballerina flats and had to put on an ugly knee guard. For the next few weeks after the knee trauma, I could not even apply pressure on my left leg. My knee would shiver, jerk, lock and twist outward to the side, causing pain to the outer flesh, muscle, ligament (whatever those parts that are not the bone part of the knee are called).
The only thing I can do now is walk almost like normal. However, I cannot do lots of simple daily activities like going in and out of the car normally, boarding and alighting from a bus, chasing after a closing lift, standing too long on a long crowded commute to name a few. My knee continues to lock, jerk and twist outwards if I tried to do my normal activities that put pressure on the left side.
For the last 2 weeks, I had not experienced any jerking, locking and twisting but I could no longer bend my left leg normally or even use squat toilets. The flesh above and below the outer knee would hurt when bent.
Without being able to bend normally, I won't be able to attend my usual pilates class that involves lots of squats and bending of knees for goodness knows how long. Even the yoga classes that I attend involve lots of knee bending too. To think that I just signed up for a 2 year package in January!
I have since stopped all yoga and pilates lessons and in fact, all forms of exercise. I was just beginning to get into the regime of regular exercise, feeling a lot more positive about my health and getting myself more toned, only to have everything terminated by this stupid knee injury.
So far, I have undergone 3 acupuncture sessions and have an appointment with the orthopedic and sports clinic at a public hospital tomorrow.
From all that I have read on the Internet about knee locking and twisting, I self diagnosed my condition as some form of meniscus injury. The doctor affiliated to my organisation suspected an ACL tear.
I do hope that the diagnosis from the specialist would be more accurate and I hope a scan could be performed to make sure there isn't any loose bone fragments in my knee during the accident or a keyhole surgery is required to remove the debris. I'm praying for the best.
I actually do feel extremely lousy and very upset at myself for playing Bubble Bump.
My knee injury had added quite a lot of angst whenever I have bouts of depression. Maybe I'm using "depression" too loosely but to be very honest, I do get very depressed in phases especially in the domain of health.
I just want to lead a normal life.
~
Update after seeing the specialist today (12 April 2016):
: ( The knee orthopedic specialist confirmed that the knee injury is 100% an ACL tear. He did various tests and the 3 tests for ACL tear all proved positive.
: ( A torn ACL is not able to heal on its own. The specialist advised that if I were to continue rigorous sports, it would be sensible to undergo reconstructive surgery to repair the ACL. However, for non-athletes, it is perfectly alright not to go through this. I could still decide down the road if I want to opt for it.
: ( Suspected lateral collateral ligament tear.
: ) X-Ray scans revealed no bone fragments, thankfully! No need for debris removal surgery.
: | An MRI scan would confirm all suspicions and pinpoint the exact injuries though the specialist said that the scan is inconsequential to my physiotherapy treatment unless I am opting for reconstructive ACL surgery.
: | For now, I would go for physiotherapy sessions every week to build up the muscles to compensate for the lack of ACL support while allowing the meniscus and ligament tear to heal on their own. I would perhaps get a second opinion from the people there on whether I should opt for the ACL reconstructive surgery in time to come.
Sad max.
Monday, September 28, 2015
Instagram Snapshots ~*August 2015*~
I really should have more posts in between my Instagram Snapshots posts as it seems to me that they are appearing too frequently. But then I cannot say that the months are passing by too frequently eh?
It's less than 3 weeks to a mega event that my department is organizing together with many other public agencies. I guess that would only mean that there would be cobwebs here again.
~*1 August 2015*~
Brought back my new Asics running shoes from the office so that I would have more motivation to run in something new. And then the notti cat photo bombed.
#catphotobomb #asics #asicsrunning #asicsshoes #runningshoes #cattail #healthylifestyle #instagood #igsg
~*2 August 2015*~
Tried Milk & Honey artisan yogurt parfait for the first time. There was an SG50 $5 promotion going on and I chose the Healthy Mix which consisted of strawberries, oranges and bananas. Super yummy and look at that cute Singapore flag!
#milkandhoney #milkandhoney_sg #sg50 #simisaialsosg50 #singaporeflag #healthylifestyle #dessert #instafood #igsg #yummy #yogurt
~*2 August 2015*~
MIL birthday dinner at Tim Ho Wan.
#timhowan #dimsum #instafood #foodie #foodgasm #foodporn #ilovefood #fatdieme
~*7 August 2015*~
Whenever I wear this double ring, people would ask me if my finger movements are limited and get me to do the Asian peace sign. So... I'll just do the Asian peace sign.
#doublering #keyring #antiquekey #selfiequeen #asianpeacesign #peacesign
~*7 August 2015*~
First day of SG50 jubilee weekend, we indulge in many Singaporeans' favorite local dish - Nasi Lemak!
Nasi Lemak is one of my favorite local dish but Chong Pang Nasi Lemak is overrated. The coconut fragrance from the rice doesn't come off enticing, the luncheon meat isn't my favourite Ma Ling brand and the chicken drumstick is way too big with a strong frozen meat taste under the super delicious skin. Fried Ikan Bilis is always yummy and can't really go wrong.
I very much prefer the traditional ones where you don't pick your own ingredients coz those ingredients that come with the dish are simple and good.
#nasilemak #chongpangnasilemak #sg50 #sgfood #singaporelocalfood #chickendrumstick #luncheonmeat #ikanbilis #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*8 August 2015*~
Otah or otak-otak for second day of SG50 jubilee weekend. Love it when the whiff of otah permeates through the air and lulls me to the direction of the makeshift otah stand. Often, they smell better than they taste so when they taste just like they smell, those are really ho eh!
#otah #otak #fishpaste #sgfood #singaporelocalfood #sg50 #foodie #ilovefood #instafood #igsg #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*8 August 2015*~
Totally ruined my National Day theme DIY nail art.
#igsg #ilovesingapore #ilovesg #sg50 #simisaialsosg50 #redandwhite #instanails #diynails #chockfullofbeans #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*8 August 2015*~
I was laughing so hard at Hubby's 3D latte art. It's so girl girl!!! I requested for Totoro this time round. We thought that we were limited to 1 3D art per table so Hubz didn't bother to request and look what happened. LOL! 😂 Can anyone tell me if that's My Melody???
#chockfullofbeans #3DLatteArt #totoro #mymelody #coffeeart #latteart #igsg #instafood #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*8 August 2015*~
#Totoro is sinking real fast at #chockfullofbeans. On a separate note, #ootd is #redandwhite for pre national day! On a separate separate note, I wanna see how annoying it is to read hashtags in between text.
#igsg #latteart #coffeeart #3DLatteArt #sg50 #simisaialsosg50 #sgblogger #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*8 August 2015*~
Pre national day wefie with the hubz in red and white at our new place to finish up recording all the defects. So many so many post its everywhere.
#wefie #couplewefie #redandwhite #sg50 #simisaialsosg50 #igsg #newhome #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*9 August 2015*~
You could tell that the focus was really The Cat who was photobombed by the shoes.
On a separate note, the sky was overcast and perfect for running even when it was approaching noon. But once I started jogging, the sun beams peered through the grey clouds announcing their arrival. Then, the dam in my nose called Sinus started leaking and by the 15th minute, my chest was hurting from sucking in too much.
Then, I got home and saw The Cat lazing like nobody's business on the mat and I thought how nice it is to be a cat.
#instacat #catphotobomb #asicsrunning #ilovecats #stupidcat #igsg #healthylifestyle #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*9 August 2015*~
Third day of SG50 jubilee weekend which is also National Day, I indulged in my parents' comforting home cooked food. For today's dinner, there's brown rice, spinach stir fried with garlic and white bait, corned beef with onion, clams with white wine and lotus root soup. Look at how the lotus root is in heart shape. 💕💕💕 I simply love my parents' 爱心餐！We've been watching the NDP in the comfort of our sofa... With my work laptop left in the cold...
#homecookedfood #parentscooking #爱心餐 #like #love #lotusroot #beef #brownrice #healthydiet #sg50 #ndp #ilovesingapore #igsg #instafood #instagood #ilovefood #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*9 August 2015*~
Soaking in the post NDP atmosphere with @tifducky and Paul at the whole Marina Bay area before National Day is over. What better way to start the night with old school wafer ice cream! So we had chocolate mint, nata de coco and chocolate chips but they all tasted like durian!!!
#sg50 #ndp2015 #ilovesg #redandwhite #oldschoolicecream #igsg #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015 #marinabay
~*9 August 2015*~
Oh dear. It's past midnight but anyway... Happy birthday Singapore!!! I love you!
#ilovesg #sg50 #ilovesingapore #igsg #fullertonhotel #happybirthday #ndp2015 #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015 #marinabay
~*9 August 2015*~
Yesterday... Trying to get some work done while watching NDP. Today??? Sigh... Nothing to say. The 4-day long jubilee weekend sure passes quickly.
#ndp #ndp2015 #sg50 #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015 #ilovesingapore #ilovesg #wearesingapore #fireworks #danbo #workfromhome #igsg
~*10 August 2015*~
Hit by the realization that the 4-day jubilee weekend is coming to an end. Woa... Where did the time go?
#jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015 #sg50 #chewonit #ilovesg #igsg #ndp2015 #realitybites
~*11 August 2015*~
Watching The LKY Musical with @tifducky-- one of the greatest fan of LKY.
#LKY #TheLKYMusical #LKYthemusical #mbs #sandstheatre #ilovesg #ilovesingapore #sg50 #igsg
~*15 August 2015*~
MoMo (MolekTheCat), my favourite neighbourhood stray died from being attacked by a pack of 10 wild dogs last week over the Jubilee Weekend. I haven't even seen her the past few times I was at my family home. This picture of her rousing from her sleep in the bicycle basket was taken in 2008. I still can't believe she is gone... A feisty but loving cat when faced with 10 wild dogs is beyond her feisty nature to handle.
For my Singaporean followers/Yishun denizens, these wild dogs roam the forested area near Bottle Tree Park and they are pretty aggressive. There is a Park Connector there where I see joggers and cyclists. Do keep a good watch out when you are around that area!
This 2012 video was my last long interaction with her: https://www.facebook.com/jolene.ng.961/videos/vb.741817783/10153670493252784/?type=3&theater
#caturday #MolekTheCat #momo #instacat #straycat #cutecat #igsg #sgcats #ilovecats
~*16 August 2015*~
On National Day, I did a short clip of "Home" which is almost every Singaporean's favourite National Day song and didn't post it up. Now I'm challenged by SOMEBODY (tag removed) to post my amateur singing up on public social media. Challenge accepted but please don't bash me for the bathroom singing. Takes a lot to post this up to get bashed.
#KitChan #homesingapore #singingsunday #SG50 #NDP2015 #bathroomsinger #iruinedthesong #amateursinger #onesongonesg #ilovesingapore #ilovesg #陈洁仪
~*18 August 2015*~
Spontaneous lunch meet up with bestie @xtinaong and Baby Sammie today! Baby Sammie is sick but she was so well-behaved! Most of the times, she just let mummy and aunty eat and chat in peace while she looked at everyone in the restaurant and made them smile with her curious, kpo expression. It was so great catching up with you Chris!
#besties #bff #galpals #friends #ilovemyfriends #igsg
~*19 August 2015*~
I haven't posted any illustration or random doodle on Instagram for a loooooooong time. Here's a Triumph TR250 which was part of the farewell card for our previous director. I've never drawn or coloured a car before and even with referencing, this is my most challenging drawing and colouring to date.
#illustration #doodle #antiquecar #TriumphTR250 #colorpencildrawing #blackpendrawing #yellowcar #igsg #instagood #sgblogger
~*22 August 2015*~
Discovered new, doable and effective toning and sculpting YouTube videos to work out to! They are just toning and sculpting but I was burning and sweating like cardio.
Yes yes, some of you are still guessing on Instagram which sports bra I chose. I got the pink and black Nike one in the end coz I'm bimbotic and wanna match my pink and black FBT shorts.
#healthylifestyle #postworkout #postworkselfie #dontbelazy #hotandsweaty #sweatitout #fitness #moveyourbody #nikesportsbra
~*23 August 2015*~
Liquid eyeliners are meant for drawing fake tattoos, only that I don't know what I'm drawing.
#bodyart #faketattoo #wristtattoo #liquideyeliner #tattooart #instagood #igsg
~*27 August 2015*~
Throwback to 10 years ago. These are the very first colleagues I've made when I stepped out into the working world, some of whom have become great buddies and many of whom are still connected through Facebook. I will always miss the times when we worked hard together and played even harder together, the long lunches whenever we decided to reward ourselves and all the celebrations we threw for one another. We need a 10 year reunion soon!
#tbt #throwbackthursdays #colleagues #friends #missingyou #thosememories #thosedays #whenwewereyoung #igsg #instagood #mahjong #birthday
~*30 August 2015*~
The raw oysters from Itacho Sushi served in this manner reminded me of how much I miss the oyster shooters at Dan Ryan's.
#itachosushi #rawoysters #oysters #japanesefood #instafood #instagood #foodporn #foodie #foodgasm
You can find me on Instagram by clicking the button below. If you like my pictures, do follow and drop me a message so that I could check out your page too!
It's less than 3 weeks to a mega event that my department is organizing together with many other public agencies. I guess that would only mean that there would be cobwebs here again.
~*1 August 2015*~
Brought back my new Asics running shoes from the office so that I would have more motivation to run in something new. And then the notti cat photo bombed.
#catphotobomb #asics #asicsrunning #asicsshoes #runningshoes #cattail #healthylifestyle #instagood #igsg
~*2 August 2015*~
Tried Milk & Honey artisan yogurt parfait for the first time. There was an SG50 $5 promotion going on and I chose the Healthy Mix which consisted of strawberries, oranges and bananas. Super yummy and look at that cute Singapore flag!
#milkandhoney #milkandhoney_sg #sg50 #simisaialsosg50 #singaporeflag #healthylifestyle #dessert #instafood #igsg #yummy #yogurt
~*2 August 2015*~
MIL birthday dinner at Tim Ho Wan.
#timhowan #dimsum #instafood #foodie #foodgasm #foodporn #ilovefood #fatdieme
~*7 August 2015*~
Whenever I wear this double ring, people would ask me if my finger movements are limited and get me to do the Asian peace sign. So... I'll just do the Asian peace sign.
#doublering #keyring #antiquekey #selfiequeen #asianpeacesign #peacesign
~*7 August 2015*~
First day of SG50 jubilee weekend, we indulge in many Singaporeans' favorite local dish - Nasi Lemak!
Nasi Lemak is one of my favorite local dish but Chong Pang Nasi Lemak is overrated. The coconut fragrance from the rice doesn't come off enticing, the luncheon meat isn't my favourite Ma Ling brand and the chicken drumstick is way too big with a strong frozen meat taste under the super delicious skin. Fried Ikan Bilis is always yummy and can't really go wrong.
I very much prefer the traditional ones where you don't pick your own ingredients coz those ingredients that come with the dish are simple and good.
#nasilemak #chongpangnasilemak #sg50 #sgfood #singaporelocalfood #chickendrumstick #luncheonmeat #ikanbilis #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*8 August 2015*~
Otah or otak-otak for second day of SG50 jubilee weekend. Love it when the whiff of otah permeates through the air and lulls me to the direction of the makeshift otah stand. Often, they smell better than they taste so when they taste just like they smell, those are really ho eh!
#otah #otak #fishpaste #sgfood #singaporelocalfood #sg50 #foodie #ilovefood #instafood #igsg #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*8 August 2015*~
Totally ruined my National Day theme DIY nail art.
#igsg #ilovesingapore #ilovesg #sg50 #simisaialsosg50 #redandwhite #instanails #diynails #chockfullofbeans #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*8 August 2015*~
I was laughing so hard at Hubby's 3D latte art. It's so girl girl!!! I requested for Totoro this time round. We thought that we were limited to 1 3D art per table so Hubz didn't bother to request and look what happened. LOL! 😂 Can anyone tell me if that's My Melody???
#chockfullofbeans #3DLatteArt #totoro #mymelody #coffeeart #latteart #igsg #instafood #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*8 August 2015*~
#Totoro is sinking real fast at #chockfullofbeans. On a separate note, #ootd is #redandwhite for pre national day! On a separate separate note, I wanna see how annoying it is to read hashtags in between text.
#igsg #latteart #coffeeart #3DLatteArt #sg50 #simisaialsosg50 #sgblogger #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*8 August 2015*~
Pre national day wefie with the hubz in red and white at our new place to finish up recording all the defects. So many so many post its everywhere.
#wefie #couplewefie #redandwhite #sg50 #simisaialsosg50 #igsg #newhome #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*9 August 2015*~
You could tell that the focus was really The Cat who was photobombed by the shoes.
On a separate note, the sky was overcast and perfect for running even when it was approaching noon. But once I started jogging, the sun beams peered through the grey clouds announcing their arrival. Then, the dam in my nose called Sinus started leaking and by the 15th minute, my chest was hurting from sucking in too much.
Then, I got home and saw The Cat lazing like nobody's business on the mat and I thought how nice it is to be a cat.
#instacat #catphotobomb #asicsrunning #ilovecats #stupidcat #igsg #healthylifestyle #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*9 August 2015*~
Third day of SG50 jubilee weekend which is also National Day, I indulged in my parents' comforting home cooked food. For today's dinner, there's brown rice, spinach stir fried with garlic and white bait, corned beef with onion, clams with white wine and lotus root soup. Look at how the lotus root is in heart shape. 💕💕💕 I simply love my parents' 爱心餐！We've been watching the NDP in the comfort of our sofa... With my work laptop left in the cold...
#homecookedfood #parentscooking #爱心餐 #like #love #lotusroot #beef #brownrice #healthydiet #sg50 #ndp #ilovesingapore #igsg #instafood #instagood #ilovefood #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015
~*9 August 2015*~
Soaking in the post NDP atmosphere with @tifducky and Paul at the whole Marina Bay area before National Day is over. What better way to start the night with old school wafer ice cream! So we had chocolate mint, nata de coco and chocolate chips but they all tasted like durian!!!
#sg50 #ndp2015 #ilovesg #redandwhite #oldschoolicecream #igsg #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015 #marinabay
~*9 August 2015*~
Oh dear. It's past midnight but anyway... Happy birthday Singapore!!! I love you!
#ilovesg #sg50 #ilovesingapore #igsg #fullertonhotel #happybirthday #ndp2015 #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015 #marinabay
~*9 August 2015*~
Yesterday... Trying to get some work done while watching NDP. Today??? Sigh... Nothing to say. The 4-day long jubilee weekend sure passes quickly.
#ndp #ndp2015 #sg50 #jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015 #ilovesingapore #ilovesg #wearesingapore #fireworks #danbo #workfromhome #igsg
~*10 August 2015*~
Hit by the realization that the 4-day jubilee weekend is coming to an end. Woa... Where did the time go?
#jubileeweekend #jubileeweekend2015 #sg50 #chewonit #ilovesg #igsg #ndp2015 #realitybites
~*11 August 2015*~
Watching The LKY Musical with @tifducky-- one of the greatest fan of LKY.
#LKY #TheLKYMusical #LKYthemusical #mbs #sandstheatre #ilovesg #ilovesingapore #sg50 #igsg
~*15 August 2015*~
MoMo (MolekTheCat), my favourite neighbourhood stray died from being attacked by a pack of 10 wild dogs last week over the Jubilee Weekend. I haven't even seen her the past few times I was at my family home. This picture of her rousing from her sleep in the bicycle basket was taken in 2008. I still can't believe she is gone... A feisty but loving cat when faced with 10 wild dogs is beyond her feisty nature to handle.
For my Singaporean followers/Yishun denizens, these wild dogs roam the forested area near Bottle Tree Park and they are pretty aggressive. There is a Park Connector there where I see joggers and cyclists. Do keep a good watch out when you are around that area!
This 2012 video was my last long interaction with her: https://www.facebook.com/jolene.ng.961/videos/vb.741817783/10153670493252784/?type=3&theater
#caturday #MolekTheCat #momo #instacat #straycat #cutecat #igsg #sgcats #ilovecats
~*16 August 2015*~
On National Day, I did a short clip of "Home" which is almost every Singaporean's favourite National Day song and didn't post it up. Now I'm challenged by SOMEBODY (tag removed) to post my amateur singing up on public social media. Challenge accepted but please don't bash me for the bathroom singing. Takes a lot to post this up to get bashed.
#KitChan #homesingapore #singingsunday #SG50 #NDP2015 #bathroomsinger #iruinedthesong #amateursinger #onesongonesg #ilovesingapore #ilovesg #陈洁仪
~*18 August 2015*~
Spontaneous lunch meet up with bestie @xtinaong and Baby Sammie today! Baby Sammie is sick but she was so well-behaved! Most of the times, she just let mummy and aunty eat and chat in peace while she looked at everyone in the restaurant and made them smile with her curious, kpo expression. It was so great catching up with you Chris!
#besties #bff #galpals #friends #ilovemyfriends #igsg
~*19 August 2015*~
I haven't posted any illustration or random doodle on Instagram for a loooooooong time. Here's a Triumph TR250 which was part of the farewell card for our previous director. I've never drawn or coloured a car before and even with referencing, this is my most challenging drawing and colouring to date.
#illustration #doodle #antiquecar #TriumphTR250 #colorpencildrawing #blackpendrawing #yellowcar #igsg #instagood #sgblogger
~*22 August 2015*~
Discovered new, doable and effective toning and sculpting YouTube videos to work out to! They are just toning and sculpting but I was burning and sweating like cardio.
Yes yes, some of you are still guessing on Instagram which sports bra I chose. I got the pink and black Nike one in the end coz I'm bimbotic and wanna match my pink and black FBT shorts.
#healthylifestyle #postworkout #postworkselfie #dontbelazy #hotandsweaty #sweatitout #fitness #moveyourbody #nikesportsbra
~*23 August 2015*~
Liquid eyeliners are meant for drawing fake tattoos, only that I don't know what I'm drawing.
#bodyart #faketattoo #wristtattoo #liquideyeliner #tattooart #instagood #igsg
~*27 August 2015*~
Throwback to 10 years ago. These are the very first colleagues I've made when I stepped out into the working world, some of whom have become great buddies and many of whom are still connected through Facebook. I will always miss the times when we worked hard together and played even harder together, the long lunches whenever we decided to reward ourselves and all the celebrations we threw for one another. We need a 10 year reunion soon!
#tbt #throwbackthursdays #colleagues #friends #missingyou #thosememories #thosedays #whenwewereyoung #igsg #instagood #mahjong #birthday
~*30 August 2015*~
The raw oysters from Itacho Sushi served in this manner reminded me of how much I miss the oyster shooters at Dan Ryan's.
#itachosushi #rawoysters #oysters #japanesefood #instafood #instagood #foodporn #foodie #foodgasm
You can find me on Instagram by clicking the button below. If you like my pictures, do follow and drop me a message so that I could check out your page too!
Sunday, May 24, 2015
Hanging Out With Evan
Evan and I used to hang out a lot especially during JC and university days. We knew each other during first three months of JC and then I left for another JC after that. We continued to keep in touch and hung out even when we were in different schools.
We were like BFFs in university. Apart from the 1st semester, we chose the exact same modules every semester for the next 3 years. I was quite the lazy person and depended heavily on Evan to scan through all the modules we were interested in while meeting the requirements and fitting everything into our timetable. It was no mean feat to fit everything in whilst de-conflicting the exam dates for all 5-6 modules each semester. Apart from that, we always strive to create possible off days by packing a lot more lectures and tutorials in a day.
Of course I was no parasite. It was a mutual symbiotic relationship... Lol. I recall the times when she pang seh me, like when she could not make it for lectures. I would be there sitting alone and copying down notes frantically so that I could lend her the next time we met. I also had to find lunch buddies and people to hang out with till the next lesson whenever she wasn't around.
Of course we were no geeks. It wasn't all school school school. In fact, we were just those crazy and fun-loving gals who loved to hang out till the wee hours doing stupid things and taking photos. All the drinking sessions, clubbing and pubbing, and checking out new places... Those were the fun days!
We did not hang out as much as before once we started working. Nevertheless, we would make it a point to meet each other during our birthday period and Christmas. As we got even busier with work and planning our overseas trips, it could sometimes get increasingly tough trying to find a day to meet. There were years when we didn't meet during those occasions because either of us were overseas.
I was glad that Evan and I managed to meet up for her birthday this year.
We decided on Wild Honey for all day breakfast.
Somehow some people love eating breakfast food during dinner time.
I chose the English Breakfast... I think.
After dinner, we adjourned to an empty couch in Mandarin Gallery and chatted for hours on end even though there was work the next day. Each time we did that, we promised to meet up more often as there was simply too much to chat about.
Aside: We were rather tickled by the sign above the couch.
I was glad that we managed to meet up more often this year. By a twist of fate, she could join me for dinner one fine day when I was searching for someone to have dinner with me since my course ended early. We met up at Skinny Pizza but ordered no pizza. I had the Meatball Rigatoni.
She had some sort of mushroom risotto.
The very next day, we met up for breakfast together with my hubz at Wimbly Lu before heading over to Evan's new place. Her new home is a few months old (or a year) but I've yet to crash it yet. I'm always a sucker for visiting friends' homes to gain inspiration for interior design for our new home.
Cappuccino for Kh would never go wrong.
For me, I love anything matcha so no prize for guessing whose drinks belong to whom in this photo.
Kh had Eggs Benedict.
He loved it!
I had some sort of crepe which I can't remember the name. It was the Garlic Mushroom and Mozarella Crepe I think.
It was delicious but far too little for me. I was still hungry after chowing it down in 5 minutes.
I can't remember what Evan had too. All the menu I found on Google and even on their official webpage seems to be outdated.
All I know is that her appetite that day was small and she was so full just from her main course to even eat her share of the sides.
Truffle fries are always yummy!
I was a tad disappointed by these chicken bites. The menu described this as home made ginger-infused chicken pieces which sounded really delicious. However, it tasted just like those frozen microwavable Japanese chicken bites. In fact, the taste is strikingly similar that I wondered if they were in fact those microwave version. I like those microwave Japanese chicken bites but I was expecting something less commercial and more home made when I ordered that.
The Root Beer Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream is a supposedly must-try. Who would have thought of marrying Root Beer and chocolate cake to get Root Beer Cake? It has a distinctive root beer flavour which the hubz could not pick up at all. It was unique and I like root beer though I would prefer my dark chocolate cake without any taste of root beer.
When I was editing this photo, I simply had to do something to myself.
Q: Could you spot the difference between the 2 photos?
A: Photo on the left shows a protruding vein on my forehead. Photo on the right is edited to remove it as much as possible with my limited Photoscape tools.
For the first time in my life, I realized that I have a very distinctive vein running down the left of my forehead and ending at my left eye. I had never ever noticed it before until I started to keep my bangs long, exposing my forehead.
I'm rather disturbed by this distinctive ugly vein. Not only is it physically disturbing, it disturbs me at the back of my mind as I start to link things up.
I suffer from very bad headaches quite frequently to the point of nausea. It had been going on for years. Furthermore, I notice that when I get very bad headaches that last the whole day, I would always complain about it being a left headache and left eye ache to the extent of wishing to pluck out my left eye to massage the muscles behind. (Yeah I'm gross and morbid).
I notice that whenever I have problem with my eye, it is always the left eye. My left eye is beyond 600 degree. I had cornea infection with ulcers in my left eye. I experienced pain and blur vision due to thick mucus in my left eye even when my right eye was well and normal from wearing contact lens.
I started reading up a lot on protruding forehead veins after my eldest sis nagged at me to do a CT scan ever since she woke up from her brain surgery. In my family, my mum, my eldest sis and I are very prone to bad headaches.
From the websites I've read, protruding forehead vein isn't much to worry about except for it being physically disturbing. Heck, there is a whole blog post dedicated to celebrities with big forehead vein! I have the exact same type of vein as Nina Dobrev and Julia Roberts-- two celebs whom I don't exactly like. My sis has what she calls an angry vein which would protrude out during anger. I told her mine is a happy vein coz it would protrude out only when I smile in a certain manner.
Ok enough about the protruding vein. Kh dropped us off at Evan's place and was happy he got rid of me for that Saturday. I love her welcome mat!
Besides chatting and chatting and chatting, I got lots of advice from Evan on renovation and dealing with contractors. We also picnicked on the fake grass in the balcony, took photos to show that we picnicked on fake grass and headed back to the cool air-conditioned comfort when it got too hot and humid. What a pleasant laid-back Saturday spent with a good old gal pal.
I hope that as we grow older, we would still continue to nurture this friendship. I always feel very thankful to have good friends all around to be crazy with me and to share our ups and downs in life with each other. I cannot even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of great friends who have given me a heart full of joy whether in times of happiness or sadness.
We were like BFFs in university. Apart from the 1st semester, we chose the exact same modules every semester for the next 3 years. I was quite the lazy person and depended heavily on Evan to scan through all the modules we were interested in while meeting the requirements and fitting everything into our timetable. It was no mean feat to fit everything in whilst de-conflicting the exam dates for all 5-6 modules each semester. Apart from that, we always strive to create possible off days by packing a lot more lectures and tutorials in a day.
Of course I was no parasite. It was a mutual symbiotic relationship... Lol. I recall the times when she pang seh me, like when she could not make it for lectures. I would be there sitting alone and copying down notes frantically so that I could lend her the next time we met. I also had to find lunch buddies and people to hang out with till the next lesson whenever she wasn't around.
Of course we were no geeks. It wasn't all school school school. In fact, we were just those crazy and fun-loving gals who loved to hang out till the wee hours doing stupid things and taking photos. All the drinking sessions, clubbing and pubbing, and checking out new places... Those were the fun days!
We did not hang out as much as before once we started working. Nevertheless, we would make it a point to meet each other during our birthday period and Christmas. As we got even busier with work and planning our overseas trips, it could sometimes get increasingly tough trying to find a day to meet. There were years when we didn't meet during those occasions because either of us were overseas.
I was glad that Evan and I managed to meet up for her birthday this year.
We decided on Wild Honey for all day breakfast.
Somehow some people love eating breakfast food during dinner time.
I chose the English Breakfast... I think.
After dinner, we adjourned to an empty couch in Mandarin Gallery and chatted for hours on end even though there was work the next day. Each time we did that, we promised to meet up more often as there was simply too much to chat about.
Aside: We were rather tickled by the sign above the couch.
I was glad that we managed to meet up more often this year. By a twist of fate, she could join me for dinner one fine day when I was searching for someone to have dinner with me since my course ended early. We met up at Skinny Pizza but ordered no pizza. I had the Meatball Rigatoni.
She had some sort of mushroom risotto.
The very next day, we met up for breakfast together with my hubz at Wimbly Lu before heading over to Evan's new place. Her new home is a few months old (or a year) but I've yet to crash it yet. I'm always a sucker for visiting friends' homes to gain inspiration for interior design for our new home.
Cappuccino for Kh would never go wrong.
For me, I love anything matcha so no prize for guessing whose drinks belong to whom in this photo.
Kh had Eggs Benedict.
He loved it!
I had some sort of crepe which I can't remember the name. It was the Garlic Mushroom and Mozarella Crepe I think.
It was delicious but far too little for me. I was still hungry after chowing it down in 5 minutes.
I can't remember what Evan had too. All the menu I found on Google and even on their official webpage seems to be outdated.
All I know is that her appetite that day was small and she was so full just from her main course to even eat her share of the sides.
Truffle fries are always yummy!
I was a tad disappointed by these chicken bites. The menu described this as home made ginger-infused chicken pieces which sounded really delicious. However, it tasted just like those frozen microwavable Japanese chicken bites. In fact, the taste is strikingly similar that I wondered if they were in fact those microwave version. I like those microwave Japanese chicken bites but I was expecting something less commercial and more home made when I ordered that.
The Root Beer Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream is a supposedly must-try. Who would have thought of marrying Root Beer and chocolate cake to get Root Beer Cake? It has a distinctive root beer flavour which the hubz could not pick up at all. It was unique and I like root beer though I would prefer my dark chocolate cake without any taste of root beer.
When I was editing this photo, I simply had to do something to myself.
Q: Could you spot the difference between the 2 photos?
A: Photo on the left shows a protruding vein on my forehead. Photo on the right is edited to remove it as much as possible with my limited Photoscape tools.
For the first time in my life, I realized that I have a very distinctive vein running down the left of my forehead and ending at my left eye. I had never ever noticed it before until I started to keep my bangs long, exposing my forehead.
I'm rather disturbed by this distinctive ugly vein. Not only is it physically disturbing, it disturbs me at the back of my mind as I start to link things up.
I suffer from very bad headaches quite frequently to the point of nausea. It had been going on for years. Furthermore, I notice that when I get very bad headaches that last the whole day, I would always complain about it being a left headache and left eye ache to the extent of wishing to pluck out my left eye to massage the muscles behind. (Yeah I'm gross and morbid).
I notice that whenever I have problem with my eye, it is always the left eye. My left eye is beyond 600 degree. I had cornea infection with ulcers in my left eye. I experienced pain and blur vision due to thick mucus in my left eye even when my right eye was well and normal from wearing contact lens.
I started reading up a lot on protruding forehead veins after my eldest sis nagged at me to do a CT scan ever since she woke up from her brain surgery. In my family, my mum, my eldest sis and I are very prone to bad headaches.
From the websites I've read, protruding forehead vein isn't much to worry about except for it being physically disturbing. Heck, there is a whole blog post dedicated to celebrities with big forehead vein! I have the exact same type of vein as Nina Dobrev and Julia Roberts-- two celebs whom I don't exactly like. My sis has what she calls an angry vein which would protrude out during anger. I told her mine is a happy vein coz it would protrude out only when I smile in a certain manner.
Ok enough about the protruding vein. Kh dropped us off at Evan's place and was happy he got rid of me for that Saturday. I love her welcome mat!
Besides chatting and chatting and chatting, I got lots of advice from Evan on renovation and dealing with contractors. We also picnicked on the fake grass in the balcony, took photos to show that we picnicked on fake grass and headed back to the cool air-conditioned comfort when it got too hot and humid. What a pleasant laid-back Saturday spent with a good old gal pal.
I hope that as we grow older, we would still continue to nurture this friendship. I always feel very thankful to have good friends all around to be crazy with me and to share our ups and downs in life with each other. I cannot even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of great friends who have given me a heart full of joy whether in times of happiness or sadness.
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