Dr. Coco Toledo, Back from the ICU: A tale of faith, friendship and family

There is something that binds us as fellow doctors and as human beings, and the victory of one indomitable spirit is shared by us all. Coco Toledo’s story is a touching narrative of faith, friendship and family…of how blessed we all are to be lent the lives we live, filled with the people who surround us with love and support.—Ed.

In the words of Dr. Sandra Chua: This is essentially a story of the triumph of the human spirit and will remind us that there is nothing impossible if we can set aside our differences in moments where it really counts, and just do our share to make things better for others. We are not forgetting the ONE ABOVE, without HIS graciousness and mercy, nothing will be possible.

From Dr. Coco Toledo herself (10 December 2008):

This is a GRATEFUL and ALIVE Coco giving everyone a heartfelt hug for the INCREDIBLE support.

Bear with me as I ramble along, but I need to communicate. It has only been 2 1/2 days since my discharge. I have been savoring life. The first night home, I planted my 12 year-old son and fellow dengue veteran beside me and wept to grateful sleep.

We were both at the hospital with dengue but he took a turn for the better when I got demoted to the ICU. And as if there wasn’t enough drama to this sordid affair, it was my 16th wedding anniversary —and the cake at home went cold. I thought: Better me than my son, that’s for sure.

My platelets relentlessly plunged from 280 to 84 to 34 to 13 to a vicious 7 within 3 days despite the 26 units transfused. I knew then I was in big trouble…I began endorsements. (It’s not easy to be at death’s door lucid. You think: Okay, so how is this going to go? It didn’t help that the other two dengue patients wheeled into the ICU at the time had already expired with platelets in the 20’s.)

My three dengue blot tests were negative (!?!) and so my blood was sent for PCR tests…For now, my hematologist Dr. Francis Lopez is treating me as an ITP case triggered by some viral infection.

I feel all banged up, I have strange tremors, crampy muscles and burning sensations, my brain feels like it’s made of sifting sand and I automatically wake up at precisely 3 am. I’m a messy chemical soup of drugs and immune factors trying to get a grip.

But what do I care? I’m breathing!!! I am healing on many levels. Certainly the full impact of my ordeal is still to be reckoned with. This nightmare just grabbed me and my family from behind and we held on for dear life.

I really just wanted to share my thoughts and REACH OUT to all of you and say THANK YOU for the collective blanket of protection and care over me.

TO PRECIOUS LIFE, everyone!! And a blessed Christmas to all!!

I still don’t know how to thank you ALL but I will, for the meantime, as they say, pass it forward!!