Summary

Stella, a young woman in South Africa, suffered severe burns after setting herself on fire due to a romantic obsession, leading to an intense medical journey and reflection on the nature of love.

Abstract

The narrative revolves around Stella, a patient in a South African hospital's burn unit, who endured extensive second and third-degree burns following a self-inflicted act of desperation. Her injuries, which covered her neck, chest, abdomen, and thighs, resulted from dousing herself with paraffin and igniting it in front of her fiancé, Ricky, after he announced his intention to end their engagement due to her possessive behavior. The story details Stella's excruciating pain, the intensive medical care she received, including morphine for pain management, frequent fluid intake, and a strict diet, as well as the grueling process of debridement and skin grafts. Despite the harrowing maggot treatment for infected wounds, Stella's physical and emotional journey leads to gradual recovery, albeit with significant scarring and contractures. Throughout her ordeal, Stella's unwavering love for Ricky is a central theme, as she openly shares her story with medical staff, expressing her enduring devotion despite Ricky's infidelity and the traumatic events that ensued.

Opinions

The author portrays Stella's love for Ricky as an intense obsession, which drives her to extreme measures when faced with the prospect of losing him.
Stella's actions are depicted as a tragic consequence of her emotional instability and the depth of her passion for Ricky, highlighting the destructive potential of obsessive love.
The medical staff's perspective is implied through the detailed description of Stella's treatment, suggesting a blend of clinical professionalism and empathy for her emotional turmoil.
The narrative conveys a sense of pity and astonishment at Stella's situation, with her emotional suffering almost equating to her physical pain.
Ricky's character is presented with ambiguity; while he is shown to have been affectionate and passionate, his decision to end the relationship due to Stella's clinginess and anger reflects a complex dynamic in their relationship.
The story concludes with an implicit critique of the extreme and irrational behaviors that can arise from intense romantic attachments, questioning the sanity of such "passionate" love.

The Burn Victim.

What happened?

In South Africa, general nurse education is a four-year program.

The training involves rotation in nursing care, medical, surgical, pediatric, infectious diseases, & operating room.

The story is about a lady named Stella in the burn unit. She suffered second and third-degree burns to her neck, chest, part of her abdomen, & thighs.

She was a patient in the ward/burn unit at the local hospital where I worked.

Talk about excruciating pain! Lordy! Stella lived on I.V. Morphine.

And thirst, Wow! a nurse had to give her fluids via a straw every hour. She lay on her back under a wagon-tent cover, so linens would not touch her skin.

Her diet consisted of high protein drinks, fruit juices, and water—intravenous fluids & antibiotics scheduled around the clock.

The lady moaned & cried out at times day and night. It was pathetic.

Raw burn areas had moist sterile dressings—later debridement, followed by skin grafts in the operating room.

Despite precautions to prevent infection, the chest wounds became infected.

The maggot treatment for slough in the fourth week was sheer penance. Stella screamed with horror to get the creepy crawlies off her chest. Two days later, slough treatment was complete.

Many weeks went by, and Stella made progress. Healing left much scar tissue and contractures at her neck and chest. Much later, she was able to walk to physical therapy and eventually return home.

The question is, how did this happen?

Stella told her story at the staff conference with no shame to hide her deed. Her love was an obsession.

She was twenty-one years of age, engaged to her prince. Ricky’s love was all she ever wanted. She spoke of how they met, danced all night, and talked about plans of togetherness forever.

“I know of heaven when I am with Ricky. Even our fights end in the most passionate love - no one has love like us. I told him if he ever left me, I would kill myself.”

Stella expressed these sentiments, unashamed in front of a group of medical staff.

So what happened?

Ricky cheated. Stella tracked him down. He came to break off the engagement. Stella described the incident;

They argued. Ricky was leaving her, sick & tired of her clinginess, her anger, throwing & breaking beautiful gifts he bought for her. She gave him no room to breathe.

He had enough. That was 27- year -old Ricky’s answer to Stella.

She continues;

Ricky would not embrace her & calm her with the passionate lovemaking she expected, “ he was acting weird.”

Instead, he rejected her advances for consolation. Stella says she became upset & angry.

She walked to the kitchen, grabbed the paraffin bottle, dowsed the liquid on the front of her clothes & lit a match, right in front of Ricky!

As the fire caught her clothes, Ricky screamed, got a pot of water & splashed pots full of water on Stella to dowse the flames, then he wrapped Stella in a blanket & drove to the hospital Casualty (ER).

The worse burns were on her bare neck & chest.

Self-inflicted burns for the insane passionate love of a cheating partner. Stella maintained her devotion & said right there in the conference room;

“I will love Ricky forever. He is my heaven.”

Ricky was not allowed in the burn unit but was at her side as she recuperated.

I remember taking her to physical therapy weeks into her recovery.

When Ricky showed up, she hid her neck contractures with her scarf, smiled & said to Ricky, “Will you hold my hand today? I have missed your touch so much.” Ricky obliged lovingly. Love is strange and insane in some folks.