One of the most disconcerting experiences in life is waking up after a disturbing dream and trying to piece together whether or not it actually happened.
Usually, after a few good blinks, you will figure out there isn’t actually a tiger lurking at the end of your bed. Neither are you strolling naked around your local shopping precinct.
However, for one woman from California, a vivid dream turned out to have a painful – and very funny – curdle of truth to it…
Bride-to-be Jenna Evans, of San Diego, has long experienced ‘exciting’ and ‘vivid’ dreams which often play out like action-packed movies. And I must say, I envy her inventive imagination.
One night, the 29-year-old woman dreamt she and her future husband Bobby were aboard a speeding train, where they were facing off a group of shady villains. In a bid to protect Jenna’s 2.4-carat engagement ring from the nefarious individuals, Bobby urged her swallow it for safekeeping.
When Jenna awoke the following morning, the glittering piece of jewellery was no longer pride of place on her ring finger. Jenna quickly figured out she had actually swallowed the ring while still asleep.
Waking up fiancé Bobby, Jenna explained what had happened, and the pair shared a good chuckle at the bizarre occurrence before heading on over to the hospital. They also googled how common it was for an adult to swallow a ring. Turns out, not very.
After arriving at the urgent care unit, Jenna initially struggled to explain her situation to medics because she was simultaneously laughing and crying.
Recalling the surreal hospital visit via a Facebook post which has since gone viral, Jenna wrote:
The doctor ordered an X-Ray and seemed pretty shocked when she walked back in with a second doctor and showed me that sure enough, my ring was right there in my stomach!
They called a gastroenterologist and decided it would be best NOT to let nature take its course. (Thank God) Before I left, she recommended seeing a sleep specialist as well.
Speaking with CBS 8 San Diego following the incident, Jenna revealed how letting ‘nature take its course’ could have led to the ring tearing her intestines, or even getting stuck in her digestive tract. Ouch.
By the time Bobby took her to to see the GI doctor, Jenna’s expensive midnight snack was starting to hurt. She also had to sign a pretty sobering release form.
Writing on Facebook, Jenna said:
At this point, I could definitely feel it in my guts, it was starting to really hurt and make us nervous. They decided an upper endoscopy was just the thing and said don’t worry its not big deal, but please sign this release form just in case you die.
Then I cried a lot because I would be SO MAD if I died. I waited a long time for that damn engagement ring and I WILL marry Bobby Howell DAMNIT.
Fortunately the surgery went well, even if the doctors – perhaps understandably – chose to entrust Bobby with the retrieved ring rather than Sara:
So they push the sleepy drugs, and right as I started to feel that wave of warm and fuzzy sleep I said to the doctors, Bobby would LOVE this. Everything went great, they found my ring just beyond my stomach in my intestines, retrieved it and gave it to Bobby, not me.
Jenna finally has her ring back and – going forward – has vowed never to chow down on it again. In the words of Jenna, ‘we’re still getting married and all is right in the world’.
Jenna ended her Facebook post with the following quippy endorsement:
Ring is lovingly made by Simone Jewelry Designs in Houston, Tx. Jewels so lovely, you could eat them. But dont – trust me on this.
All the best of luck to Jenna and Bobby on their impending nuptials. Hopefully they will be keeping their wedding rings under lock and key until the big day…
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Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.