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| Photos by Michelle Hoffman, Modeled by Jenny Stevens |
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Everyone in Dorm 354 of Chapman Hall was just waking up to get ready for church.
Five alarm clocks went off; Megan Platt's did not.
"I had been having stomach problems for a few days, but I just took some medicine, and it all went away. Or so I thought. The pain hit early Sunday morning about 3 a.m.," said Platt, a freshman from Texarkana, Texas.
Platt hadn't had much rest through the night, and it was not until more than six hours later that her roommates discovered there was a problem.
Platt was in tears as a result of the pain, and she remained in bed while her roommates left for church. The pain did not improve, however, and after counseling with her parents, Platt asked for a blessing.
"My roommate called some of our [Home Evening] brothers, and they were there within minutes," she said. "They gave me a blessing. In the blessing I was told that everything would be ok and that I would only be in pain for a short time."
Immediately after the priesthood holders left, however, Platt felt worse and ran to the bathroom. After throwing up, the pain got so intense that Platt collapsed on the bathroom floor.
Although she was in severe pain and felt alone, Platt did what she had done as little girl in Arkansas during tornado weather, waiting for her mom to come home — she prayed.
"The blessing had told me I was going to be ok and I wouldn't be in pain much longer, so why did this hurt so badly now? I asked my Father what I should do — anything to ease my pain. The thought kept coming to my mind, 'go to the hospital,'" Platt said.
Platt did not want to go to the hospital; she was away from her parents in an unfamiliar place, and she was scared. She tried to argue, but the thought persisted, so she called for her roommates to take her to the emergency room.
Two of Platt’s roommates, Stephanie Tello, a freshman from Cedar Park, Texas, and Jessica Funes, a student from San Salvador, El Salvador, stayed home while Platt was taken to the hospital.
"I was scared for her because I didn't know what was going on," said Tello.
"I felt helpless and worried, so I turned to my Father, and I felt better. I even called my dad, and he said that everything would be ok," said Funes.
Funes' father was right.
"After sticking me with a needle three times because they were having trouble getting my blood, they put an IV in me, ran some tests, and gave me a CAT scan. They concluded I had a kidney stone," Platt said.
The stone was relatively small and would pass quickly, within about three days. Platt was given medication that eased the pain. Platt said her knowledge of the power of prayer is the strongest part of her testimony.
According to a study by Dr. Anne McCaffrey of the Harvard Medical School, Platt isn't the only one that depends on prayer. The study concluded that a third of Americans use prayer to facilitate healing. Of the 2,000 people that were surveyed, 69 percent said that their health was greatly improved as a result of prayer.
"Prayer is such an amazing thing! It's like our help hotline we can call anytime, anywhere, free of charge. I know Heavenly Father is on my side. The promises given me in the blessing were true, and my prayer on the bathroom floor was answered,” Platt said. “Prayer is real. Heavenly Father is real. Answers do come. I know this to be true."
