A painter in....a Paris hospital

Just when I arrive here, ready to blog, I started getting sick, or feeling strange. I was on the end of an antibiotic before leaving and had one more day to go.  I started feeling strange during my lecture at the Musee d'Orsay and then it hit me.

I was on fire and steadily growing flaming red hives all over me.  My fever sky-rocketed.  I called a doctor who arrived at my apartment and instructed me to immediately stop the sulfate antibiotic I was on.

Delirious and miserable I went and lectured at the Musee l'Orangerie thinking the doctor's visit and new antibiotic, etc. would resolve the issue.  Later that evening it grew even worse.  I called the doctor again who was now off duty. When the new doctor arrived he told me, "You must go to the hospital immediately- this is very serious. I want you to go Groupe hospitalier de la Pitié-Salpétrière.  They specialize in infection and infectious diseases." He wrote me a three page letter of what was going on and with my friend, John, hopped the train to the hospital around 10pm.

 

Arriving at the metro station at Gare d'Austerlitz was simple and literally put you on the steps of the hospital- literally. I was registered and place in a room.  They started an IV on me, drew blood, urinalysis- the whole nine yards. Later was taken into x-ray to check if my earlier respiratory situation in the US had gotten worse or had cleared. By 3AM, I was feeling pretty exhausted. Tests were coming back negative. and finally I was cleared that it was only an allergic reaction and apparently to my sulfate antibiotic. A long night at the hospital was finally over.

I slept for about 11 hours once I got back to my apartment. I slept like the dead.  I'm feeling much better now and was able to check out a concert tonight.  I have many excursions and things to share and will be posting them as I experienced them.