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    I feel like I'm not here

    I almost managed to have a plane diverted on Monday evening.

    I was sitting in my seat as the aircraft on a flight from Johannesburg to Istanbul was taxiing out of it berth, napping. As I awoke I suddenly felt very drowsy and nauseous. I leaned forward and said to my son that I was feeling unwell. I then leaned back, saying to hm: "I feel like I'm not here", and apparently passed out.

    I sat with my eyes wide open, pupils dilating to the size if my irises. My wife slapped me in the face to bring me back, but I knew nothing of that. The poor woman must have gone through million shades of distress and fear at that moment (so I'm sure did my son).

    It was the first time ever that I'm aware of that I passed out.

    Next thing I knew the stewardess unbuckled my safety belt and leaned back my seat all the way. I thought the man behind me must be quite annoyed at that.

    Then I was on the floor, drenched in sweat, with doctors around me, taking my blood pressure, pulse etc. They found hat my blood pressure was very low (usually it's high) I reassured them that I had no chest pains. At that point they gave the go-ahead for the pilot to take off.

    I was put on a three-seater (people were shuffled around for that) to lie down. After a while I returned to my seat, because I felt guilty about inconveniencing people, and I was starting to feel better. But soon after I came close to passing out again. This time the doctors talked about diverting the plane to get me to a hospital.

    The sensible view held and the plane wasn't diverted. I had a strong suspicion that the low blood pressure was probably brought on by a reaction to medication for restless leg syndrome on top of my daily hypertension pills, perhaps exacerbated by the air cabin pressure and the stress at check-in where things had been going poorly due to a bureaucratic issue I still don't quite understand and a screw-up by our travel agent.

    The upshot was that I was told to recline in business class. They didn't give me any of the other benefits of business class, but I can see the virtue of sleeping in a bed on an intercontinental flight.

    As for my health, by mid-morning I was feeling clear as rain again. I suspect the medication I had taken had worn off.

    Still, when I get home, I think a thorough medical check-up is in order.

    #2
    I feel like I'm not here

    Ouch. That must've been terrifying for you and your family. Hope you're fully recovered now. A check-up is definitely wise.

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      #3
      I feel like I'm not here

      Yikes. Glad you're OK.

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        #4
        I feel like I'm not here

        I've passed out with low blood pressure before. Horrible when it happens, but no long term ill-effects (though your doctor may be better qualified than I am to dispense wisdom and pills).

        It was quite good for me really, because unlike "feeling a bit sluggish", the kind of unquantifiable feeling I would gloss over, it hit home, hard. Literally, as my head was on the floor. Since then I've kept up fluids more and felt much better. Trite but true: more water, less of the drug-drinks.

        Keep well G-man, or you might make it to first-class yet.

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          #5
          I feel like I'm not here

          Jeez, the lengths some people go to get an upgrade.

          Seriously, that sounds really scary. I hope you're alright. Get yourself checked, a dicky ticker is not something to take lightly.

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            #6
            I feel like I'm not here

            Wow, G-Man, hope all is well.

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              #7
              I feel like I'm not here

              Wow G-Man, what everyone else said. Take care.

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                #8
                I feel like I'm not here

                Thanks for the good wishes. I am perfectly fine; it was brought on by a combination of unusual factors, I think.

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                  #9
                  I feel like I'm not here

                  Good show. It's bloody terrifying though, isn't it? Feeling the world slipping away.
                  I managed to pass out 3 times in 5 minutes in the Summer when I had the old pericardial effusion.
                  One of those times was pitching forward off the toilet into the door frame.

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                    #10
                    I feel like I'm not here

                    Good to hear this G!

                    (Now all you've got to look forward to now are the months (years?) of tests while one possible cause after another is simply eliminated!

                    Believe me - I know this from increasingly depressing and repetetive experience.)

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                      #11
                      I feel like I'm not here

                      Glad you are here, G.

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                        #12
                        I feel like I'm not here

                        Pleased to hear that you are safe and well after what sounded like a horrible experience for you and your family.

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                          #13
                          I feel like I'm not here

                          Scary story, G.

                          Please take care of yourself.

                          Istanbul is a nice place to recover.

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                            #14
                            I feel like I'm not here

                            I felt uneasy just reading you. Go have that medical ASAP just for peace of mind. Hopefully it will be nothing.

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                              #15
                              I feel like I'm not here

                              Glad that everything turned out okay.

                              I thought perhaps that no-one was replying to your posts.

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                                #16
                                I feel like I'm not here

                                ursus arctos wrote:
                                Istanbul (not Constantnople) is a nice place to recover.
                                Someone had to say it.

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                                  #17
                                  I feel like I'm not here

                                  Well, blimey. Hope it's just a one-off.

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                                    #18
                                    I feel like I'm not here

                                    jaysus g-man, i imagine the hours passed rather slowly on that flight for your family. hope you're feeling better.

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                                      #19
                                      I feel like I'm not here

                                      Hypertension is a bastard. A close relative of mine has it.

                                      Get well soon G-Man.

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                                        #20
                                        I feel like I'm not here

                                        yes, best wishes for a speedy recovery

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                                          #21
                                          I feel like I'm not here

                                          Best wishes G-Man, hope your family are over the shock too.

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                                            #22
                                            I feel like I'm not here

                                            G-Man wrote: They found hat my blood pressure was very low (usually it's high)
                                            This made me laugh a bit.

                                            Keep fighting the fight, get well soon etc

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                                              #23
                                              I feel like I'm not here

                                              GMan, seriously this is quite similar to what I went through recently (the symptoms).

                                              It's highly unlikely and by that I mean ridiculously low odds but if you're getting a heart check then have them look at your aorta, it's a quick scan but be specific about it.

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                                                #24
                                                I feel like I'm not here

                                                Oh, you are on a righter track than you think, Rob. My father had an aneurysm of the aorta, caused by a birth defect, and my older brother had an op for the same defect this year. That one is high on my list of things to check.

                                                In my brother's case, the alert was severe stomach pain, so I'm hopeful that my episode really was triggered by the medication I took. My rapid recovery would support that.

                                                ursus, I'm actually in Germany now (staying mostly with family and friends, which is reassuring in case shit happens). An evening in Frankfurt, your old hunting ground, is on the itinerary. We'll do a few days Istanbul at the end of our holiday.

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                                                  #25
                                                  I feel like I'm not here

                                                  G-Man wrote: Thanks for the good wishes. I am perfectly fine; it was brought on by a combination of unusual factors, I think.
                                                  Good news then.

                                                  The cause of my black out a month ago, which led to the concussion, is still not known with any precision. All of the tests have yet to show anything bad, although I may be on the hypotension (low) side.

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