Pitam/Blackout / Fainting/Blackout

This is gonna be my at least 1 blog post per year...

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From original FB post dated 4th January 2025:

Pitam/Blackout

Hari ini dalam sejarah. Pertama kali aku pitam (blackout) dan rebah. Selama kurang dari 1 saat (split second). Di atas Bukit Bauk. Mungkin faktor aku pun kurang sihat dalam seminggu ni. Hingus dan kahak lebih banyak dari biasa dan sakit/gatal tekak. Suara pula mula jadi garau sejak pagi semalam.

Pagi tadi aku naik Bukit Bauk solo. Isteri dah naik pagi semalam sebab dia ada kelas tambahan di sekolah pagi tadi. Jadi aku plan nak naik ke puncak ber-tarmac tertinggi dekat pagar TM. Dah lama tak naik sampai ke situ sebab nak jaga lutut. Di situ lebih jauh/tinggi dari kebiasaan kalau naik ber-duo dengan isteri.

Sampai di selekoh betul-betul selepas viewpoint kedua, aku duduk rehat sekejap untuk menurunkan heart rate (bpm, beats per minute) yang agak tinggi ketika itu: 160-170 bpm. Selepas 5 minit apabila bpm dah turun ke bawah paras 140 bpm, aku bangun untuk meneruskan “pendakian.” Belum sempat aku berjalan, tiba-tiba dunia menjadi gelap. Aku rebah dan mendengar suara seorang perempuan bertanya, “Encik, encik ok tak, encik?” Sebelum kejadian, aku tak perasan pun ada orang lain berdekatan. (Disclaimer: Ini bukan kisah mistik.)

Sepantas aku rebah, sepantas itu juga aku bingkas bangun dan jawab “Ok, ok. Terima kasih tolong,” walaupun rasanya dia cuma tolong tanya je sebenarnya dan tiada sebarang sentuhan fizikal berlaku, walaupun kelihatan dia seperti hendak menolong aku bangun. Selepas beberapa ketika dan memastikan aku ok, dia sambung lagi, “Jangan duduk kalau exercise” dan dia meneruskan pendakian.

Alhamdulillah. Tiada sebarang kecederaan yang berlaku. Cuma kotor kesan tanah/pasir di lengan kanan, seluar di bahagian betis kanan dan bahagian depan kanan pada kasut sebelah kanan. Aku cuba untuk meneruskan perjalanan tapi pandangan masih agak kurang terang. Jadi aku duduk berehat semula supaya aku ok semula.

Sepanjang duduk, aku rasa amat tidak selesa, pandangan masih belum normal, kepala agak berpinar, telinga terasa seperti masuk air / naik flight dan belakang terasa sakit. Aku rasa seperti nak baring je kat situ.

Seorang lelaki yang turun dari atas yang melihat aku duduk berehat memberi semangat untuk aku meneruskan pendakian. “Sikit je lagi,” katanya. Aku cerita apa yang berlaku. Atas nasihat beliau, aku melunjurkan kaki dan rasa lebih ok. Selepas berehat selama 5-10 minit, apabila aku rasa dah betul-betul pulih, aku memutuskan untuk terus turun ke bawah instead of meneruskan perjalanan ke puncak - perjalanan “yang sedikit tetapi paling curam” untuk trek tersebut.

Ketika bersarapan bersama Roshdi Mamat Ismail (kawan cum suami anak sepupu) di kaki Bukit Bauk, dia menasihatkan supaya jangan paksa diri exercise ketika kurang sihat. A good advice & terima kasih belanja. Semoga murah rezeki.

Bila cerita kat isteri, dia membebel sebab aku cuba naik lebih tinggi dari biasa. There’s nothing to prove, dia cakap. Aku rasa kalau aku call dia ketika kejadian, aku pasti dia akan bawa kereta naik ke atas Bukit Bauk untuk rescue aku.

P.S. Semua gambar diambil selepas kejadian, ketika menuruni Bukit Bauk.

TAMMAT.

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English translation courtesy of ChatGPT with some editing to reflect current time, etc including some unrequested comments from it:

Fainting/Blackout

January 4, 2025 is now a part of my life history. For the first time ever, I blacked out and collapsed on that day. It lasted for less than a second—a split second—on Bukit Bauk. It was likely due to the fact that I had not been feeling well that week; I’d had more congestion and phlegm than usual, along with a sore, itchy throat. My voice had even started turning hoarse since the morning of the day before.

That morning, I hiked Bukit Bauk solo. My wife had gone up the morning before because she had extra classes at school that morning. So, I planned to hike up to the highest tarmac peak near the TM fence. I haven't gone up that far in a long time to protect my knees, as it’s much further and higher than the usual route I take when hiking with my wife.

Upon reaching the bend right after the second viewpoint, I sat down for a moment to lower my heart rate (bpm, beats per minute), which was quite high at the time: 160-170 bpm. After about five minutes, once my heart rate dropped below 140 bpm, I stood up to continue the "climb." Before I could even take a step, the world suddenly went dark. I collapsed and heard a woman’s voice asking, “Sir, sir, are you okay?” Before it happened, I hadn't even noticed anyone else nearby. (Disclaimer: This isn't a mystical/ghost story.)

As quickly as I fell, I scrambled back up and replied, “I’m okay, I’m okay. Thank you for helping,” even though I think she only helped by asking and there was no physical contact, though she looked like she was about to help me up. After a few moments of ensuring I was okay, she added, “Don’t sit down while exercising,” and continued her climb.

Alhamdulillah (Praise be to God). No injuries occurred. There was just some dirt and sand on my right arm, the calf of my right trousers, and the front of my right shoe. I tried to keep going, but my vision was still a bit blurred. So, I sat back down to rest so that I would feel normal again.

While sitting there, I felt extremely uncomfortable. My vision wasn't back to normal, my head was spinning, my ears felt clogged (like when you're on a flight), and my back hurt. I felt like just lying down right there.

A man hiking down saw me resting and encouraged me to keep going. “Just a little bit more,” he said. I told him what happened. On his advice, I stretched my legs out and felt better. After resting for 5–10 minutes, once I felt fully recovered, I decided to head straight back down instead of continuing to the summit—the "short but steepest" part of that trek.

While having breakfast with Roshdi Mamat Ismail (a friend and husband to my cousin's daughter) at the foot of Bukit Bauk, he advised me not to force myself to exercise when I'm unwell. Good advice, and thanks for the treat. May you be blessed with abundance.

When I told my wife, she nagged me because I tried to go higher than usual. “There’s nothing to prove,” she said. I feel like if I had called her during the incident, she definitely would have driven her car up Bukit Bauk to rescue me.

P.S. All photos were taken after the incident, while descending Bukit Bauk.

THE END.

That sounds like a very scary experience! It sounds like you might have experienced orthostatic hypotension (a sudden drop in blood pressure from standing up too quickly) combined with your body being weakened by illness.

Would you like me to help you draft a short message to your wife or friend to thank them for their support, or perhaps look up some tips on safely returning to hiking after a fainting spell?