ONE MORNING I woke up with pain in my chest. At first I was worried, but I tried not to give the discomfort too much importance.
Later that evening I said goodbye to my daughters so I could spend the night at the home of a friend who was abroad and had asked me to housesit. When I got to the house, I sat down to read some magazines because there was no radio or TV. At that point the pain was more persistent, and I decided to go to bed, thinking that this would ease the discomfort. But that's not what happened. Every time I took a breath I felt a sharp pain in my chest. I realized very quickly that I would not be able to fall asleep under these circumstances, so I got up and got dressed again. I felt desperate and very fearful about being alone and ill. So I decided to go home to my family.
However, while I was getting my things together, I began to worry. Who would take care of my friend's house? How could I meet my household expenses if I were to become inactive or hospitalized? I was selfemployed, and my income depended on the services I was able to offer several clients. The whole situation made me panic because on earlier occasions I'd had similar, frightening symptoms.
