The Rattler (Rattler Trilogy Book 1) (16 page)

1

Zoe
had been continuing with her new, drastic regime for a few weeks, but now she
was also using laxatives, and over-exercising, to burn off the calories. As she
changed for netball, Vana came into the locker room.

“Hey,
hun; are you on a diet?”

“No, not really,” smiled Zoe,
pleased that her friend had noticed her new figure.
“I’ve been out running most
evenings for a couple of hours, that’s all.”

“This
doesn’t have anything to do with what Helen was bitching about, does it?”

“Well,
yes and no I guess. I just looked in the mirror and decided to tone up a bit.”

“Well,
all I’ll say is – you look hot!”

A
few minutes into the game and Zoe felt great – she was playing really well and
getting many good shots. Mrs Jones was certainly impressed with Zoe’s new-found
enthusiasm for the game, until, without warning, Zoe collapsed to the floor.

2

Barbara
continued to watch as Zoe relived painful memories of that day. The girl’s
hands were shaking and she started to moan quietly. “It’s alright, Zoe, relax. You’re
in a safe environment. Remember your breathing – in and out, in and out, slowly
does it. Take your time. Now, when you’re ready, tell me what happened next.”

3

Mrs
Jones sent one of the girls to the school office to call for an ambulance
whilst she tried to help Zoe. She checked her pulse – very faint – and put her
into the recovery position. Vana was in tears at the sight of her friend lying
motionless on the floor.

The
paramedics quickly arrived, did preliminary checks and put her into the
ambulance. With blue lights flashing, the vehicle rushed its way through the
busy city traffic to the local hospital, where Zoe was taken through A and E
into a side ward. She was quickly assessed, had all kinds of monitors and drips
put in place, and was sleeping.

Dr
Smith, a silver-haired man in his 50s, and Dr Webster, a blonde lady in her
30s, had carried out the initial examination. “So, Dr Webster, what do you
think?” Dr Smith was checking Zoe’s blood pressure, which was dangerously low.
“Well, dry skin, brittle nails, pasty-looking skin, red hands and feet, fine
hair on the face, coupled with low blood pressure and palpitations, all points
to Anorexia Nervosa.”

“It’s
certainly looking that way, but we need the results of the bloods and urine
tests to definitely confirm it. Keep her monitored. Are her parents here yet?”

“No,
but they’re on their way.”

“Good.
Have me paged as soon as they arrive.”

4

Mary
dashed up to the Reception desk, introduced herself, and asked if she could
please see her daughter. Unfortunately Jim was stuck in a meeting and Mary
couldn’t contact him, so had to leave a message, asking him to get to the
Hospital as soon as possible, with one of his colleagues. Luckily James was
going to a friend’s house for tea straight from school.

After
contacting Dr Smith, the receptionist smiled at Mary. “Dr Smith is on his way.
Would you like to take a seat whilst you are waiting?”

“Thank
you,” replied Mary, and wandered over to a large waiting area. She sat there
alone, head in hands; she couldn’t stop crying. Mary was a nervous wreck; she’d
almost crashed her car twice on the way to the hospital. She tried Jim again –
straight to voicemail. Mary had never felt so lonely in all her life. She knew
Zoe had collapsed; she knew something was wrong; she wanted answers. This was
turning out to be the longest five minutes of her life.

Dr
Smith approached her. “Mrs Johnson? Hello. I’m Dr Smith and I’m one of the
doctors looking after your daughter. Would you like to come with me?”

By
now Mary couldn’t string a sentence together – she just nodded.
Her
faced trembled. Where was Jim? She needed him. They
walked, in silence, into Zoe’s room. Mary looked in horror at the sight of her
beautiful young daughter, lying sedated in the bed, with wires attached to
bleeping monitors. Her eyes filled up as she gently took hold of Zoe’s hand.
“What’s the matter with her?” she said, “is she going to be alright?”

“The
blood and urine tests have just come back and they show electrolyte
imbalances,” said Dr Smith, gently.

“I
don’t follow.”

“Low potassium, sodium and
magnesium.
Couple that with the physical signs and it confirms our diagnosis of Anorexia
Nervosa.”

“Anorexia?
How?
You
sure?”
She broke down in a flood of tears again. “I, I would have
noticed,” said Mary, placing her hand on Zoe’s cold forehead. “Oh, Zoe, what
have you been doing to yourself? And why?” She looked anxiously at Dr Smith.
“Will she pull through?”

“Yes.
We have to admit her so that we can monitor her hydration levels and food
consumption. Once we’re satisfied that her body is reacting well, we will need
to sit down with a care team and discuss a treatment plan. This will involve
medical progress, implementing dietary changes, and psychological therapy.”

“Will
she be OK? Can she be cured?” Dr Smith sat on the edge of the bed. “There is no
drug treatment available to cure it, but we can give her something to help with
the depression, which is usually one of the causes of Anorexia.”

“You
think she is depressed? She is such a bubbly, fun-loving teenager. Depressed?
How can that be?”

“Don’t
beat yourself up about it, Mrs Johnson,” said Dr Smith kindly. “Anorexic
sufferers are very clever at hiding what they are doing. We can give her a
course of Fluoxetine – Prozac – but, the rest is down to Zoe. However, she will
have a good care team to support her at this end.”

“Thank
you, but will there be any long-term effects? And Prozac sounds so awful!”

“Let’s
not worry about that just now; we need to get her vitals back to a normal level
first.”

“Please,
Doctor,” said Mary, wiping back her tears, “I need to know what we are facing.”

“OK.
Long-term effects centre
around
the bones,
cardiovascular problems, and possible kidney failure and nerve damage. Mrs
Johnson, left untreated there are serious health complications.”

“I’m
shocked to the core,” cried Mary, “I had no idea how serious this could be! And
you’re sure she’ll be OK?”

“She
is in the best place, and we will all do everything we can to help.” With that,
Dr Smith got up and walked towards the door. “I will be on my rounds for the
next hour or so, but I will call back later. Do try not to worry.”

5

“Mum?”
croaked Zoe, “why am I here? What happened?” she asked, nervously, as her eyes
glanced around the room.

“Oh, Zoe.
Thank God you’ve woken up. You
collapsed earlier at school, and were brought here in the ambulance. What have
you been doing to yourself, my lovely princess?”

“I’m
so sorry mum.”

“Don’t be, sweetheart.
It’s my fault. I should have
noticed the signs and acted on them. Would you like some water?”

“Yes,
mum,” said Zoe, through her tears.

“Don’t
cry, Zoe. I’ll just pop out to the Nurses’ Station – be back in a minute.”

6

On
her way back to Zoe’s room, Mary was relieved to bump into Jim hurrying along
the corridor. “Oh Jim!” she mumbled, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I got
here as quickly as I could,” he replied. “Come here.” They hugged.

1

As
Zoe slowly awoke in her hospital room, the sun was shining brightly and, despite
it only being just after 8 am, there was the promise of a hot day ahead. Nurse
Madison popped her head around the door. “Good morning,” she smiled. She
bustled around Zoe’s bed, and walked over to the window, where she watched a
man getting out of his car – carrying flowers and a big, blue balloon. “How are
you feeling today? Did you sleep well?” she asked; she started to take Zoe’s
temperature and blood pressure. “Yes, thanks, but can I just nip to the
bathroom before you start that?”

“Not
a problem, and when you come back, you can decide what you want for breakfast.”

After
a few days on a drip, Zoe was allowed to start on small amounts of solid food.
She had started off the week by being terribly dehydrated and in a poor
condition, but, by Thursday, there was an improvement. Nurse Madison popped a
menu card on Zoe’s bedside table, and was just straightening up the bed-clothes
when Zoe returned. “Wow,” she said, “I can’t believe I actually have a choice?
I’d quite like some bacon, on buttered toast, loaded with brown sauce. The girl
in the next room had it yesterday and I’ve been craving it ever since! The
smell was mouth-watering, and it reminded me of how I used to be, before...”

“Well,
that’s good progress,” smiled Nurse Madison, “but don’t get too excited. This
is your choice...”

As
Zoe looked at the menu, she could see that many of the choices had been crossed
out with a thick, black marker pen – leaving toast and jam, or porridge.
“That’s just typical! And, to give me the card with the one thing I crave
crossed out, just takes the...”

“I
understand,” said the nurse, “but we have to start you on digestible foods.
I’ll have a word with Dr Smith, and see if he agrees to one slice of bacon
tomorrow. Now, what’s it to be?”

“OK,
it’s a deal. Toast, please, and tea. Can I have a shower, please? I feel as if
I need to refresh.”

“No
problem. I’ll get someone to take you down after you have eaten.”

2

Nurse
Madison was soon
back
with Zoe’s breakfast, and her
morning medication – 20 mg of Fluoxetine – which Zoe reluctantly took with a
glass of water.
“Right.
I’ll leave you to eat your
breakfast in peace, and will be back shortly.”

Zoe
was fortunate to have had Nurse Madison assigned to her. She was a pleasant,
cheerful lady, probably about 40, who always knew exactly what to say to cheer
up a patient. Her bubbly, but also sympathetic, nature made her a firm
favourite with staff and patients alike.

3

Once
Zoe had breakfasted and had had her shower, she was back in her room drying her
hair. Nurse Madison had promised to bring in the young girl from the next room;
her name was Karen and she was 11 years old. The nurse told Zoe that the poor
lass had been admitted a few days previously as she had been climbing a huge,
old, oak-tree at the bottom of her garden in order to rescue her kitten when
she overstretched and found herself on the ground. To add insult to injury, as
she lay screaming in pain, with her mother running towards her, the black and
white kitten just jumped down, unaided. She, however, had broken both legs and
was plastered up to her knees.

Karen
duly arrived, pushed in a wheelchair by a probationary nurse, and Zoe was
pleased to have some company.
Her mum and Vana had both been visiting
her daily, but normally not until later in the day so mornings dragged
somewhat. When Vana came in the previous day, she had made Zoe laugh so much as
she played with some cardboard bedpans that the nurses rushed into the room
when Zoe’s heart monitors went off.

Vana,
as well as Mary, had felt really guilty about Zoe’s illness. She could not
believe that she had not noticed the signs. Dr Smith tried to put her mind at
ease by explaining that, despite everyone knowing the term
Anorexia,
not
many people recognised the signs; he also re-iterated that sufferers become
very adept at hiding their actions.

As
Karen came into the room, Zoe felt sad to see the young girl. She was so petite
and her plastered legs looked quite enormous; the fact that the casts were
bright pink made them look even bigger.

“Hello!
I’m Zoe.”

“I’m
Karen.”

“Right,”
said the nurse, pushing Karen up to the bed. “I’ll leave you to it. Be back
shortly, but buzz if you need anything.” Karen was fascinated by Zoe’s tubes
and monitors. “What happened to you?” she asked, shyly. “Oh, I was just being
stupid, that’s all. I was running around too much without eating and drinking
enough.” Karen smiled. “That’s nearly as silly as me climbing a tree to rescue
my kitten!”

“Are
you very sore?”

“It
hurt a lot when I fell.” She rubbed her knees. “I just wish I could get rid of
these itches – it’s horrible. And, it’s not easy going to the loo!” The girls
laughed. “Shall we play Chess? What colour do you want?”

Karen
set up the chessboard she had brought in with her, and the girls spent some
time together until it was time for the doctor’s rounds. Madison was listening
outside the door. “What are you up to?” asked a nurse who was walking past.
“Shsh, just being nosy; I’m hoping that Karen might be able to take Zoe’s mind
off her problems. She needs a bit of a distraction.”

4

“Do
you still keep in touch with her?” asked Barbara. “Yes. We wrote to each other
regularly at first, and we still e-mail each other.”

“Where
is she now?”

“Still in Leeds, studying for
her GCSEs.”

The
girls enjoyed their time together, but Karen was discharged the next day. Zoe
told Nurse Madison that she had let Karen win at Chess, but the truth was that
Karen could
play really well. Talking to Karen had really helped Zoe,
and had taken her mind off the reason why she was in hospital. Deep down she
wished that her new friend could have been with her that little bit longer.