In 12 years of teaching, I never had a truly embarrassing moment in front of my students. Never left my pants unzipped. Never fell flat on my face. Never walked around with lipstick on my teeth all day. Never accidently tucked my dress into my panties & walked around. Never went into labor in class.
But yesterday?
It happened.
I passed out in front of a class of 8th graders.
I was subbing in the same school I taught at for the past 6 years—thankfully in a place where I knew everyone & they knew me. I was sitting at the desk & bent down to get something out of my purse & TOTALLY threw my back out.
But, of course, that wasn’t enough.
Apparently the pain was too much for my body to bare at that moment. The room started spinning. The noise became muffled. I was having an out-of-body experience. I knew this feeling. I knew I was about to pass out.
I sent a student over to get the teacher across the hall. I know she probably thought I had to go to the bathroom or something. She walked in, and I motioned for her to come over to the desk. I had just enough time to tell her what was up, & I was gone. Out like a light. And apparently I stayed that way for about a minute.
When I came to, I was so disoriented. My friend was standing there & now an assistant principal was too. The kids were all trying to figure out what happened. I had no idea where I was or what had happened. I was covered in sweat.
I finally started to get my bearings; I realized what had happened. And I was completely mortified. But, hey, what could I do? The assistant principal found a teacher to cover the last hour of the day for me, & I gathered myself & my wits & went home.
And now? Percocet will be my best friend for the next couple of days.
Oh, but think of how famous you are now. Those kids will be telling the story of their teacher who passed out for the rest of their lives. :)
ReplyDeleteHope your back is better soon. Back pain is not so funny.
Hope you are feeling better, and that your pride isn't too bruised. :)
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh, how awful. Hope you are feeling better.
ReplyDeleteWonder what made you think to mention the dress tucked in the panties? Hmmmm.
ReplyDeleteOh my! You poor thing!!! I've had one embarrassing moment where I started bawling in class, unrelated to anything, and left suddenly getting another teacher to cover. I came back and told my students I had allergies. right.
ReplyDeleteI'm SO sorry about your back! Arg that blows. Take it easy, momma!
(PS: I'm sure those students won't remember this happening this time next year!)