DH just been taken to french hospital

[AirbnbhostAWOL]

On holiday in France. DH woke me up at 12.30 with intense pain in his left shoulder. Couldn't get comfortable. I put some voltarol on it and we propped him up on the bed, and turned the light out. Next thing I know he's fainted/lost consciousness, and is making a terrible groaning noise and his eyes have rolled back in his head. I can't rouse him, and obviously called emergency services.
He then woke up but was very confused and sweaty. We spent a long time using a combination of my long ago a level french and the operators broken English, but they sent an ambulance.
By the time the ambulance arrived he was better, although in a lot of pain and very pale and clammy. They had an amazing interpreter on board, they took his vitals, and seems convinced it is not his heart, but have taken him to hospital anyway.
I am in the apartment with two DC who slept through almost the whole thing (DD appeared right at the end but half asleep and has gone back to bed). He seemed ok and is obviously in the right place, but now the adrenaline has left my system I feel very shaky and tearful. It was fucking terrifying when he lost consciousness, I genuinely thought he was dying.
If anyone is up to keep me company it would be appreciated

My son was rushed to French ICU when we were in Paris last year and they were brilliant. We were there a week, the doctors couldn’t do enough and were so helpful moving totally shit insurers along.

Google translate is the most helpful thing for the medical talk that A level French won’t cover!

I hope he has a speedy recovery and all is well to get home safely and soon!

If you're still up, can you make yourself a mug of warm, sweet tea or cocoa, or milky, sweet coffee?

Everyone is being so kind it's making me cry again!
For background, DH has done the losing consciousness thing a few times before, which I did forget when it happened tonight, because I was already flapping as soon as he side intense pain on his left side.
He did it both times I gave birth (attention seeking 😂), and then once when he was quite drunk on a train, then once when dropping DS at school, but that was years ago. He saw the Dr who basically said it was nothing to worry about. I wasn't present for the last two, and the first two I had just pushed a child out and just felt irrationally angry with him!!
The paramedic thinks the pain might have caused the loss of consciousness event.
So, I am hoping very firmly it is this.
I have spoken to the insurers also, and sent DH a photo of his GHIC.
He's having bloods taken and an ECG.

It's amazing how much you can piece together with the words you do know!! But the interpreter in the ambulance was fluent which was great, because I was worried I was inadvertently saying the wrong thing

I say loss of consciousness because it's not quite fainting, more like a mild fit? He's groaning and twitching and his eyes roll back. Like I said, I only witnessed it years ago when the DC were born.

That’s so scary - well done though OP, he’s in the right hands now. Crazy about the cash point thing but I suppose in a very round about positive way that means it cannot be they suspect anything serious. Try to get some rest now if you can and call a family member as soon as you can for support. 🤗

I was on holiday in France and had a sudden ‘attack’. I was writhing in pain on the floor for around ten minutes. My husband called his GP father in the uk who asked if I had shoulder pain- which I randomly did, and immediately diagnosed gall stones. After the attack I was pretty much back to normal (until the next attack a week or so later). It was t nice but hoping for your sake that’s all it is. Get some sleep if you can. Rest assured if it is gallstones, as long as he lays off rich food, your holiday can resume normally x

Gosh how awful OP! Fingers crossed it’s just your DPs odd fainting thing! Must have been a shock though.

Oh op. You've had the week from hell you really have. It does sound reassuring though that they don't think it's his heart 🙏

Well it’s good they are ruling out anything cardiac related! Better safe than sorry.

I do know someone as it happens who fainted a few times as a child, teen and adult and it turned out he had an underlying congenital heart issue. But I am NOT a doctor so I shouldn’t be speculating. Sounds as if there are plenty of other explanations for your dh’s previous fainting fits.

And it might just be that he has a virus and the hotel room is stuffy!

They will hopefully take some blood tonight at ER which should pinpoint anything serious. . They won’t let him out of there if anything untoward is going on so don’t worry!

Hope you have your hotel room for a few more days and that you can get a little sleep tonight as you will need your strength tomorrow.

Hang in there op! And make yourself a cup of sweet tea if you have any to hand.

He has updated, the doctor seems to have ruled out cardiac issues.
He is having X rays because the pain in his arm/shoulder is so intense.

That may have been your experience with gallstones...

Mine vary from needing IV morphine and paracetamol for 12 to 24 hours, to being hospitalised for 10 days to get the pain under control and ensure its not a rupture or the bile duct blocked.

Some people require emergency surgery for gallstones (I would have, the last three times but I can't have surgery at all).

Oh your poor dh! Hope they find a definitive cause!

Very good it’s not cardiac though!

@AirbnbhostAWOL As daft as this may sound, you should take comfort in the fact they did this - if they had so much as a niggle that whatever's up with the poor bloke was critical/life or death they wouldn't have dreamed of pulling over with the blues and twos going to sort out a clerical issue🙂It must have been terrifying for you though - thank heavens you remembered enough French to get over that initial hurdle though!

I'm not even sure what the emergency number is in Europe.. 911? 101? I think 999 might work but I'm not sure.

Can't imagine my "Mate, gettez vou une ambulance le fcuk here, schnell, ah need yous here right now so I do, gracias" would do much good either...

It's 112, which I do know, but I was freaked out (my phone was on airplane mode), so I panic dialled 911. Which is neither the emergency number of my own country, or the country I'm in, and yet it worked.

Obviously I took it off airplane mode, but that took a while because of the flapping.

Hi @AirbnbhostAWOL I live in France (and have insomnia). It must have been scary, especially when you can’t properly express yourself in the language or understand everything.

As previous posters have said healthcare is generally very good in France. You have to pay or show proof of social security card and top-up insurance so I’m not surprised about the cash point stop. I remember an ambulance coming to the hospital to take DS to another hospital for a scan a couple of days after he was born and doing the paperwork for the ambulance payment in my hospital room.

Be aware that the GHIC covers what we get for free in France, not the full cost like the NHS. Most people have a top-up insurance to cover the majority of the difference. For example, when I see my GP I pay the GP at the end of the appointment. Something like 70% is later reimbursed by social security and the rest by my top up insurance. Hopefully your insurers will be helpful. Keep all the receipts!

I hope it’s nothing serious and that your DH makes a quick recovery.

112
It's 112 in the UK too, alongside 999nd has been since the early 1990s.

OP

Sorry I'm late to this, how are you doing?

How scary for you both. Hope he’s doing ok op and gets the right treatment. Good to see cardiac issues have been ruled out.

Gosh OP - WELL DONE to you for handling that call, which would have been hard enough in English, let alone a foreign language. I am an interpreter like the one who would have attended in the ambulance (although I tend to work remotely via a phone system or in the hospital itself for medical work - I am so glad they have on-site interpreters in the emergency services, it is vital work). You have done brilliantly. I hope they get to the bottom of whatever is up with him. He must be scared to being there alone. The cash point thing is awful though....

But it was his left shoulder...

112 in the UK as well? TIL...

@AirbnbhostAWOL hope you have got a soothing hot drink. I couldn't hazard a guess at what prompted it but at least he's with medical experts now.

You did such an amazing job. So scary for all of you. It's great he's in the hospital and they're being so thorough. They have a fantastic healthcare system there so he'll be well looked after. Try and relax and look after yourself as well. You might feel a bit weak or weepy even after you get the all clear, very normal. An unexpected holiday you'll be talking about for many years into the future am sure!

My daughter had what seemed like a mild fit when she had severe period pain. I got such a fright, her eyes rolled and she fell backwards twitching.
She got taken to hospital and after numerous tests it was decided it was a faint brought on by the pain. The doc told me a faint can cause momentary twitching, which I didn’t know.
Hope your husband is fine - horrible to deal with stuff like this abroad! Especially with your kids there and not being able to leave them alone. All the best.

Poor you. What a nasty shock. How much longer are you supposed to be on holiday? ie maybe it would be better to be home sooner because of Dh? Getting him checked out in nhs for free rather than mounting costs through insurance in France?

Is it possible it's gallstones or kidney stones. Both can be very painful. Passing a kidney stone is up there alongside toothache as one of the most painful things.