CHAPTER 58

2025-06-16

Tied to the bed, Lun tried his best to bend his body and sit up. The determination, will and strength he showed at this moment were amazing.

An hour ago, the nurse and blood test technician who took care of Lun in the previous shift failed to convince him to insert a catheter in his arm, so they had to give up temporarily. The nurse who took over again asked to insert a needle in Lun's arm, but he refused, sat up from his lying position, and protested loudly. The nurse's several attempts failed, but made him resist more fiercely. I was on his right side, trying to comfort him, but it didn't work. The noise spread out of the ward, and five to six male and female caregivers rushed over in an instant, some of whom were equipped with fiber ropes, and surrounded Lun's bed on both sides and at the end of the bed.

The nurse stood at Lun's left shoulder asked me to hold him down on the bed. Other nurses had been given the straps and skillfully put them on his limbs. After tightening them, they tied the other ends of the straps to the metal brackets under the four corners of the bed. The nurse immediately installed the infusion tube on his arm. Soon another nurse injected liquid into the throat tube, which should be a sedative.

During the process, several nurses said sorry to Lun, and some even used their eyes and gestures to attract his attention, meaning that Lun recognized and remembered them and forgave them for using "force". The nurse kept reminding everyone (including me) to be cautious when using force, so as not to hurt Lun's body and hinder his breathing.

After successfully stabilizing Lun on the bed, the nurses dispersed one after another. They underestimated him too much. He was bedtied, extremely angry, and howled at the top of his lungs. The sedative takes a little time to work. During this short period, he tried his best to break free from the cotton plastic bands tied to his limbs.

He bent his body as hard as he could and struggled to sit up. The determination, will and strength he showed at this moment were amazing. I only saw him swing his hands and feet at different angles, and the straps immediately moved. I was sure that he would be able to break free from one of the straps in a moment, and then he would pull out the intubation tube. I couldn't control him alone. His howling attracted many caregivers again, and we repeated the actions we had done a few minutes ago.

This time I was very tired and felt my heartbeat.

It was very unbearable and helpless to see him suffer.

Thirty-eight years ago, I took him to the North Point Health Center in Hong Kong for vaccination. When the female nurse inserted the needle, I was shocked.

Until the sedative took effect, I was worried that I couldn't stand his howling. In fact, after listening to it for a few days, I really couldn't stand it.

I packed my bag and said something to the nurse, who replied, "You have the right to decide whether to stay or not." I turned to Lun, leaned over and told him in English, "Papa go home, have a good time." He replied, "Bye." I walked out of the ward, and this time I didn't stay with him.

On the way home, I stopped at a park and sat down to calm my nerves. When I visited Lun the next afternoon, he was sleeping, with the straps on the bedside table. There was no IV equipment in the room, no needles in his arms, but his arms were covered with bruises.

At this time, another nurse on duty came into the room and told me that the doctor decided not to tie Lun to the bed last night to prevent him from struggling and getting hurt. This morning, within two hours, he tore off the IV tube on his arm three times by himself. The doctor decided to abandon it and instead give him oral medication and supervise him to drink more water.

Lun woke up and acted more relaxed. He ate the snacks and soda I brought him.

Knowing that he was not angry with me, my heart was at ease.