It was 2013 and I was going through a series of headaches that were getting progressively worse day-to-day, for about a week.
One day I became sensitive to light and my neck started to hurt. I went to the urgent care center close to my house and they diagnosed a migraine. I was given some medication and sent on my way.
Later that night, the headache came back, but it was exponentially worse. I started vomiting and my vision went crooked.
I don't usually go to the hospital as it is expensive in the US, but I begged to be taken to the hospital. When I got there, the vomiting and sensitivity to light had gotten worse, and my head felt like someone had stuck an ice pick into my skull. My ears were ringing at this point and when I was given a room, I happily accepted a dose of morphine.
Upon diagnosis of bacterial meningitis, I was given antibiotics and scheduled for surgery to remove part of my sinuses so as to clear the infection.
I spent the next week recovering in the hospital, suffered a yeast infection while I was there, and spent the next 21 days with a IV line implanted in my arm so that I could self-administer antibiotics.