I woke up at 5 am trying to shake off the last traces of sleepiness and ready myself for the week ahead. Earphones in place, I hear anticipation over Lady Gaga’s concert right across my work place. Before I got out of the car, I asked my dad if he can pick me up. Long shot, but I was worried about transportation after work. I was worrying about the concert aftermath. I never thought I would be worrying about another thing right when I stepped into the elevator.
It stopped.
I was trying to play it cool for the first ten minutes, but it was worse than overstaying in a sauna. I was soaking wet from sweat. Uh oh, not a good sign. I’m one of the worst kind of cases to deal with when dehydrated. My hanky, my uniform, my pants were all a disaster. My insides? My heart was struggling. This is

by no means an exaggeration. I could feel how my heart was having a hard time pumping blood a.k.a helping get oxygen into my blood stream because there was no air, NADA, inside.
With my heart being in that state, I found myself thinking about another thing. They had to manually pull the elevator to get us out, so I am very thankful that the guys who were pulling us were strong enough because.. well, they were strong enough to not let us drop.
I’ve been stuck in the elevator a couple of times, but by far, this was the one that caused me great anxiety. I was thinking about the work I haven’t started, my heart exerting so much effort and the whole situation of the elevator.
Got in the clinic to get checked. I normally have a slow pulse rate. I’m a 48. The first record then showed 60, so it’s proof then how worked up my heart is after all. I was light headed, felt like floating and I found it difficult to breathe.
Then I met with the oxygen tank for the first time in my life.
I’ve never been more thankful when I was given what I needed from the equipment.
While I was having a date with the tank, I thought about the things that I wanted to do in my life. That quiet moment just mellowed me down. I was assessing my heart beat and general condition, but I was also thinking about things in life that I’ve always put aside. I think.. I want to do whatever I can do.
Through this incident, I discovered the true colors of most people. I can never forget the meanest person in the world. I think it’s safe to say, that this is the last straw. I never thought someone existed like the villains in cartoons, but I found that person. I’ll pray for you wicked one.
I found bosses I can always look up to, colleagues I’ve had a bad first impression and guiltily misjudged, friends who really are my friends, strangers who I now, share a deeper bond.
I’m still having a hard time breathing, but I was able to find shelter on my comfortable bed and family, including the dog. hehe
This is the kind of breath-taking I would never want a repeat of, but it also feels like it was one of the most important wake-up calls in my life.
Thank you Lord for making me Mrs. Captain America, thus my power to breathe in times of trouble. hehe
There’s no better way to say it. I found my new self through the oxygen tank.